Another class of Cardinals has officially flown the nest, as they tossed their hats in celebration at the graduation exercises held Tuesday, May 23 at Landrum High School’s gym. (Photos by Mark Schmerling)

Landrum High School Class of 2017 Salutatorian Address  

By Bethany Grace Ghent

Thank you Mr. McCraw, Mr. Flynn, Mrs. Sloan, Dr. Garner, Board of Trustees, Landrum High School faculty and staff, and families for all you have done for us these past four years.

“Today you are you, that is truer than true. There is no one alive who is youer than you.”

As I searched for inspiration for this speech, I realized one individual teaches us to speak our minds and remember a person’s a person no matter how small. Believe it or not, Dr. Seuss was once a student in our shoes who believed he could steer in any direction he’d choose. His father insisted his bright son become a doctor, and that’s exactly what he became, but not in the way his father had hoped. Maybe as young adults, we have forgotten the importance of his rhymes that our elementary teachers read to us on carpeted floors. Maybe as adults we have forgotten the life lessons packaged in phrases easily underestimated. Here to jog your memory, I present my salutatorian address.

Good evening, here we are.

Graduation day is upon us, we have come so far!

From our first day here,

To our last shed tear.

It’s time to remember

All we’ve shared through the years.

Oh the places we’ve been,

Walking into school with nervous grins.

At 14 and 15 we didn’t stand tall,

Our Facebook statuses were not really cool at all.

From Mrs. Painter’s English class,

To Mr. Hood’s math,

We freshman got a wake up call at last.

Once kings and queens of middle school,

Now “fresh meat” as they say,

We were introduced to high school,

Getting started on the graduation pathway.

Our first spirit week is one not to forget,

The first time as Cardinals,

A feeling we didn’t want to quit.

We ascended the ladder to sophomore year,

We took Chemistry One and Algebra Two,

Made three times the trouble for McReynolds and Murray too.

I’ve heard it said,

And I believe it’s true.

Sophomores are merely freshman,

With more attitude.

We finished our finals,

We were halfway done!

Just two more years of high school,

Left to overcome.

Juniors at last,

Oh how satisfying,

But little did we know,

We had a hard year ahead,

We had to keep on climbing.

No more riding with Mom, we knew how to drive,

Until our parents shouted, “Please stop! We’re going to hit that car from behind!!”

From serving the community in Beta Club or INTERACT,

We learned that life is a great balancing act.

ACT and SAT,

Boy were those tests fun,

Along with Advanced Placement classes,

We felt we should be done!

We charged the hallways without fear,

For senior year was finally here!

LHS Football beat Polk,

The best game of the season,

The cheerleaders and fans rejoiced for a reason.

The Flock became a must,

Our ringleader Miles left our opponents in the dust.

Why fit in when you were born to stand out,

Alex Rollins sure did, there is no doubt.

The southeast proclaimed JROTC Best of the Best,

With medals galore,

Adorning their chests.

One fish, Two fish, All caught on a boat.

The state champion fishing team could easily gloat.

The girls’ speed and strength team pressed their way to the top,

Our back-to-back state champs cannot be stopped.

Many accomplishments we’ve made,

We should be so proud!

A Cardinal certainly stands out from the crowd.

You have brains in your head,

And feet in your shoes,

You can steer your path in any direction you choose.

While we are all different one thing is the same,

Time is something that we do not gain.

Time is a gift from the Lord up above,

So use your time wisely with those whom you love.

The way we spend this gift is choice,

Much like how we use our voice.

Will we succeed,

Oh yes, yes indeed!

It’s 98 and ¾th percent guaranteed.

Congratulations Class of 2017!!

 

Landrum High School Class of 2017 Valedictorian Address 

By Meredith Nicole Phillips

Congratulations to Landrum High School’s Class of 2017! Through the past 12 years, we persevered through all the difficult challenges we faced and made it to this day. We will walk away from today and reminisce over the hundreds of memories that were made in this building. But we couldn’t have done it without every person in this room who has supported us. So thank you teachers, administration, staff, and most importantly, our families. Thank you for giving us endless amounts of support and believing in us until the end. It has definitely paid off.

Four years ago, you walked into Landrum High School for the first time as a freshman. In those four years since, you crafted friendships and relationships that have impacted your life tremendously. Hundreds of memories will bounce through your mind about some of the best times you had here. Sophomore year dragged on while we tried new things and struggled through some of our classes. Junior year passed right by us while we were busy taking standardized tests and worrying about senior year. Then senior year arrived and we procrastinated and did as little as possible just to get by. Ironically, senior year was also the time when we tried to cram in as many experiences as we could because everything was coming to an end. We all claim that we’re ready to get out of

here. And we are, until we think about the things and people we’re leaving behind.

We walk away from Landrum High School today, but we’ll never forget cheering at football games for our boys. We won’t forget dressing up for the homecoming and yearbook weeks. We won’t forget how our girl’s soccer team made history. We won’t forget how our student section leader got kicked out of multiple basketball games. We’ll remember all the bus rides when we cheered with our teammates. We’ll remember dancing around in our Spanish classes. We’ll remember watching the best first dance of our Prom King and Queen. We’ll remember how a team of seven people managed to defeat us all during Senior Olympics. We all made memories here, memories that last when the friendships and relationships have disappeared.

We’ll walk away from Landrum High School today with a million different memories and favorite moments. Even though we’ve been looking forward to this day since the first day, we never hesitated to stop and enjoy ourselves. We laughed so hard that we cried. We cried because we lost close friends. We united as a class and as a school against any obstacles thrown our way. You may not know the person you are sitting beside today. You may never see some of your classmates again. But the one thing you will always have is that we are all Landrum High School’s Class of 2017. We are all Cardinals. No matter where we started, we all ended up here together.

We will walk across this stage and receive our diplomas, completing the final chapter of our high school experience.

Graduation is the end of one chapter, and the beginning of a new one. Where you go from here is the rest of your story. Your options are endless. We’ll all experience new opportunities and meet new people. Some of us will start a brand new four-year chapter at a new school. Some will opt for a short two-year chapter. Others will dive into the biggest chapter, going straight to work. We won’t take any more classes in this building. We won’t play any more sports on those fields. We start the next chapter. Whatever the path we choose to take as individuals, it will be something we learn from and something that shapes us. Where you go from here shapes the foundation for the rest of your life. I know we’ll all do great things, just look at what we’ve accomplished these past four years.

I would like to take these next few moments to say thank you. Thank you to every single person sitting in the audience today. Thank you to every teacher who taught us. Thank you for the support and love through this journey. Thank you to the administration and staff of Landrum High School and District One. To our families, everything we have accomplished that has led to this moment would not be possible without you. So thank you. Thank you to our classmates. You are the reason

our high school experience was the way it was. You are the reason we walk away with some amazing memories.

You will walk away from Landrum High School today as alumni. You now get to live the best life you possibly can outside of these walls. Enjoy the small stuff. There is no script. Live your life. Soak it all in.

So here’s a final Congratulations to Landrum High School’s Class of 2017. You did it. You defeated all the obstacles. Just make sure you don’t trip on your way up here to get your diploma. I’m proud to call you all my classmates. I’m thankful for all the memories. And no matter where life takes us, I know we’ll always have Landrum to call our home.