June 2020

While the COVID-19 pandemic has impacted all of us in a variety of ways, none may be more unique than the current experience of the high school graduating class of 2020. Typically this time of year, the calendar is filled with memorable senior lasts. The last game, last performance, last day of school, and the last time these young adults have the ability to socialize with a group of peers they’ve spent the majority of their lives with before everyone heads their separate directions and “adulting” becomes a thing. While many looked forward to those special moments, and just as they were on the cusp of them, they were unexpectedly and quickly taken away by an unfamiliar virus leaving many feeling uneasy and unsure about their general health let alone how to now close a special chapter of their lives.

Navigating the social distancing requirements and new norms, finding a way to honor the hard work and achievement it is to finish 13 years of education that lay the basic foundation for a future successful life became a high priority more than any graduation season has seen before.

So while the parties may be smaller, the graduation ceremony arenas sit empty, and we turn to new forms of recognition through yard signs and drive-through graduation ceremony parades, let us remember the lesson the class of 2020 can teach us that no matter what comes our way we can make the most of it.