Community celebrates graduates
Students encouraged to break stigma of Northern isolation
Sarah Ladik
Northern News Services
Thursday, June 2, 2016
INUVIK
In Inuvik, the East Three Secondary school graduation ceremony isn't only for the graduates. The high school graduation is a time of celebration for the entire community.
East Three grads toss their caps in celebration after their graduation ceremony on May 28. In the back row, from left, are Monica Bonnetplume, Tristan Blake-Grandjambe, Liam Laroque, Jordan Norman-Goose, Emily Rutherford, Dustyn Gully, Trent Gordon and Angela Voudrach. In the front, from left, are Angela Koe, Storm Machinine, Faith Raymond Rogers, Candice Esau, Dawson Kovacs, Kyla Hvatum and Jessica Stewart. - Kaila Jefferd-Moore/NNSL photo
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Principal Deborah Reid summed that feeling up perfectly as she addressed the "eaglettes" on stage and expressed her feelings of pride for the grads and let them know they aren't alone.
"Look at those who are here to celebrate with you today. Look to your parents and loved ones. Look to your friends, family and the teachers. This is their day too," Reid said in her address.
There are people who come to the ceremony to show their support regardless of affiliation with the graduates. They were happy to see Inuvik faces celebrating their accomplishment, as evidenced by a large crowd in the almost-full gymnasium for the intimate ceremony of just 17 graduates.
"The glory of one is truly the glory of all," said Denise McDonald, superintendent of schools for the Beaufort Delta Education Council, in her greetings from the school board, adding the accomplishments of this class are a representation of the accomplishments of the community.
Community was the recurring theme of all the speeches given at the ceremony. The event is held to celebrate the graduates on their very special day before they venture into the challenge of finishing their high school careers and moving on. While some students on the stage graduated with a diploma, others were awarded leaving certificates to mark their achievements. All, however, are still required to complete their programs and pass their final exams before those distinctions become official.
Yet as each guest speaker mentioned, it was also a time to celebrate the community for supporting these accomplished and eager young adults.
This year's valedictorian, Emily Rutherford, said she'll miss how close people can get in Inuvik and in high school.
"The relationships you have with all your friends, and families, and teachers and everyone. It's a really small town so you really get to know everyone here."
The 2016 grad class was proof of this, as the crowd watched them fist bump, high five and cheer each other on with words of encouragement as one by one they walked the stage to receive their diplomas and various awards. The genuine pride in their peers' achievements and their collective excitement was obvious.
Quoting American entertainer Dita Von Teese in her valedictory address, Rutherford said "You can be the ripest juiciest peach in the world, and there's still going to be somebody who hates peaches." She spoke of the confidence she encouraged her peers to have in the coming years.
"With confidence our potential is infinite," she said, addressing her classmates as she stood beside them on stage.
Rutherford wanted to encourage her class and the entire community, because she feels there is a "stigma that you're not really going to accomplish much because you're up in some Northern place. But really that's not true. I know a lot of people who are doing amazing things who are from here."
