Photo: Mortarboard saying

With a cool 60-degrees outside keeping the temp ceremony below the usual sweltering conditions of past graduations, the Wenner Field House was packed with family, relatives, and friends who witnessed a record 331 seniors from the class of 2018  graduate from Belmont High School on Sunday, June 3.

The afternoon was filled with pomp and circumstance, a cappella singing, thoughtful remarks, senior pranks, an hour of presentation of diplomas and throwing of hats at the conclusion of the ceremony. 

Three students addressed their classmates and the audience: 

Class President Benjamin Brody

“As we sit where we are, right now, we are on the precipice of the old and the new. We can look retrospectively on our lives as high school students as we look prospectively on whatever comes next. … When we get to the beginning of the next part our prospective journeys, that same confident, that same level of comfort, that same feeling of belonging and of ‘I’ve made it’, all the stuff that makes up our right foot, our best foot, our ‘pedidextrous’ … it can all stay with us if we put our minds to it. … All us can look to the future and put our best foot forward … take on this journey with the same zeal and confidence that I know we will all have as we walk across this very stage.

Kosta Tingos, School Committee Award for Outstanding Achievement in Scholarship

“It isn’t a fluke that his class of 2018 is special. I believe we were not born this way but instead we fought for every inch of our success and made a mark at BHS and our greater community. … Today we find ourselves facing a similar transition, one from high school to a new chapter in our lives, whether it be college, career, gap year, or some other pursuit. We have been through a lot and accomplished a lot and now we have an opportunity to start fresh and do what we love and dream of. Everything is possible, and relish all the unexpected twist and turns. … Go into the world, wear your heart on your sleeve, win your own championship and, most importantly, enjoy your life. 

Sofia Schlozman, School Committee Award for Outstanding Achievement in Scholarship

“As we step away from the familiar routines of Belmont High School and the next stages of our lives, we will all encounter setbacks. There will be moments when we will feel small, confused and a little bit lost. But while the prospect of these challenges  [is] truly frightening, there is also excitement and the opportunity to work for something new and to learn from the moments that don’t immediately go our way. … Let’s learn to embrace the difficult moments and to celebrate what we accomplished, whether the outcome is as perfect as we hoped it would be or not. After all, the beauty of things that don’t come easily is that they always matter more.”