In Their Own Words and Images — The Class of 2009
As we begin a new calendar year, we want to take a few more moments to recognize the Senior Class of 2009. We already miss them very much, but a few of them were kind enough to leave a few choice words and images behind for us to enjoy as remembrances. Over the next few days we’ll be posting these for our online community.
First in line is a transcription of Kelly Mackenzie’s graduation speech. Kelly was one of three speakers from the class of 2009, along with Amanda Veth and Colin Carrig, but unlike the other two she left a copy of her written speech crumpled up in the stage podium for us to find, and gave us her blessing to publish it.
“Good evening ladies and gentlemen. Thank you for joining us tonight to celebrate the graduating class of 2009. As you may have noticed, we’re missing three students tonight: two boys are at a National Development System camp and one girl is at Olympic Qualifiers for half pipe snowboarding. That is just a glimpse of what this season will bring for this class. Do you sometimes wonder what we do in the winter? It’s as if we each have our own secret lives from November to April. Most of this class is too humble to admit their accomplishments, but nothing can hide from a little Google searching. Among those sitting in front of you tonight are:
- J2 Nationals competitors and winners
- A NorAm Cup slalom and GS winner
- 3 Junior Worlds competitors
- 3 who are or have been U.S. Ski and Snowboard team members
- And 2 professional freeride skiers
“But our accomplishments don’t stop there. Academically, we have:
- A National Merit Scholarship Semifinalist
- An early graduate now attending Stanford University
“Not to mention that, together, we’ve attained more A+’s than any other graduating class. To quote members of the faculty such as Rob and Andrea, ‘This class has set new standards.’ (Hope you underclassmen can keep up.)
“We’ve all gained a lot of knowledge and common sense over the past four years. Personally, there are four lessons I had to learn the hard way.
1. When the pencil sharpener doesn’t work, check to see if it’s plugged in. Afterwards, don’t plug in the television instead.
2. If something is following the tiger, it’s probably its tail.
3. Regardless of the math involved, there are always 24 hours in a day.
4. Last but not least, Abraham Lincoln may have freed the slaves, but he did not invent BASE jumping.
“There are eight of us onstage who have been together since the beginning of our freshman year on April 17th, 2006. Four years in this tiny school is a very long time. Those who stuck with it for the whole ride are Amanda, Colin, Alex, Joss, Brandon, Jessie, and I. While we lost the other freshmen who started with us, we gained classmates who became part of our family. This year our family of 23 had some memorable experiences.
“While students at Park City High were itching to get out of school for the summer, we had just started our senior year. What better way to begin than having a week long break just ten days after starting school? The whole point of the ‘Swine Flu’ break was to prevent the spread of the flu. So what did we do? We went laser tagging and freaked out over the prom that was cancelled. Some went rock climbing and others went to movies. There were students who took part in the trend of extravagantly colored surgical masks. We even got together with Joanne and Rosie at Park City Roasters to hold unofficial class. One member and his friends even ran around with pig masks acting crazy. I guess you could say that our class likes to keep it unique.
“Another trend our class went through was the obsession with internet games. They weren’t the typical video games you’d expect from a group of teenagers. A flashback to the 90s brought Tetris fever. One student reached the top 96th percentile on all of Facebook, while others just came second best. Naturally, as all else does in this class, gaming got competitive. A 6000 mile trek for little penguins above water was the entire objective of Learn to Fly. Finally we found Farmville, where virtually nothing could go wrong, which settled our competitive differences.
“Around the end of the year, we tried to plot a terrific senior prank. Although it was successful, our senior prank almost never happened. Eric, why would you ever look for students inside of portable TV stands with 2×2 ft. cabinets underneath? Officer, you never cease to amaze me. But thank you for leaving the buildings unlocked for us anyways.
“As you all have in your past years with the Winter Sports School, continue to make the most of your opportunities that lie ahead. A couple of weeks ago, my dad gave me three words of advice for my future that I’d like to pass on to you: ‘Run with it.’ With that said, never forget those who made it possible for you to follow your dreams. Let’s all give our parents a round of applause to say ‘Thank you.’
“I want to take the opportunity to say farewell on behalf of the class to the incredible faculty. You have tolerated us at our worst and helped bring us to our best. This experience wouldn’t have been much without you.
“As the snow falls and our eagerness to shred grows, I want to wish my class the best this season. Continue to set new standards wherever you go and astonish whoever you meet. I cannot wait to see what we, the class of 2009, accomplish in our lifetime.
“Thank you for your time and support.”
To cap off today’s post, here are links to the Class of 2009 Senior Slide Show, presented in two parts. Those in attendance at the graduation ceremony had great fun watching each set of photos as they progressed from infants and toddlers to young adults. Enjoy, and keep watching this space for more videos in the upcoming days.
(Note: If you are viewing this message in e-mail and cannot access the video links directly, please click on the message headline to visit the WSS blog site — both videos can be viewed there.)
Part 1
Part 2
