Gilroy
– Rain and clouds were the order of the day as Gilroy’s middle
school students gathered for their promotion ceremonies at the
Christmas Hill Park Amphitheater Thursday.
South Valley Middle School lucked out with fairly dry seats for
students and guests when their ceremony got under way at 4:30pm,
with just a light drizzle.
Gilroy – Rain and clouds were the order of the day as Gilroy’s middle school students gathered for their promotion ceremonies at the Christmas Hill Park Amphitheater Thursday.
South Valley Middle School lucked out with fairly dry seats for students and guests when their ceremony got under way at 4:30pm, with just a light drizzle.
“This is a big day in the lives of your kids,” Principal Paul de Ayora said. “Most, if not all of them are ready to go on. They are going to do great things in the future.”
Rebecca Butkavich, associated student body president of South Valley, reminisced about feeling a bit lost during the first year.
Keynote speaker Dr. TJ Owens emphasized that middle school is just one phase in the students’ lives and they are now going on to a phase that has more permanent consequences.
“The first phase is like a team practice,” Owens said. “Teachers are your coaches and they tell you what you can do and some times what you can’t do. The next phase is a whole different thing.”
“This next phase is one of record,” he said. “It will follow you now on for the rest of your life.”
De Ayora and Gilroy Unified School District Board of Education members helped hand out certificates as each student was called across the stage.
After all the certificates were handed out, de Ayora introduced Gilroy High School Principal Robert Bravo.
“You spent some years being tigers. Now it’s time to be Mustangs,” Bravo joked with the crowd. “You can now relish being the class of 2005, but really starting now you are the class of 2009.”
Despite the inclement weather, students, family and staff members agreed the time was a moment for celebration.
Jonathan Asuncion, 13, said he was looking forward to having a big dinner after graduation and that he was surprised by the weather.
“The weatherman said it would be sunny,” he said.
Some parents were also caught off-guard by the drizzle
“I think it’s, for lack of a better word, poopy,” said Dawn Perry, whose granddaughter Kaytlin Anderson was moving on. “But I am excited to be here. Grandmas enjoy everything.”
When the Brownell Academy students began to arrive, the rain had picked up. Unlucky students who forgot umbrellas had water dripping down their faces and their maroon robes turned a darker shade of red in the rain.
Some families came especially prepared for the weather. Michael Botill, Jr.’s family brought their backyard lawn furniture, including a patio umbrella and chairs. They scouted out a place that was out of the way of other viewers.
“We brought the big umbrella and a couple of chairs to try to stay as dry as possible,” said his father, Michael Botill, Sr.
Rose Campos also braved the weather to support her grandson, Nathan Plaza.
“I’m happy for him because he worked hard. I’m sad because of the weather,” Campos said.
But graduation goes on, she said, because she loves her grandson.
Eighth graders Emily Castro, Ashley Harrington and Mariah Caudill said “this is pretty out of control” of the weather, who hoped the ceremony would move quickly.
Once the ceremony got started, it was clear the speakers had the same desire to speed the event along.
“This graduation will never be confused with any other,” Brownell Principal Suzanne Damm said of the rain. “2005 truly is unique.”
Brad Scherck, student body president, joked that he would keep his speech short because he was only given five minutes and it was raining.
“Get an education,” he urged his classmates, as he told a story of back-breaking work digging fence posts for $10 an hour. “And I don’t mean a Brownell education. Go to college.”
The American Legion honored a dozen students with Scholastic Achievement awards before Owens, who again served as keynote speaker, was introduced. He offered a short congratulations and skipped the speech to move on to the presentation of certificates.
Thinking ahead, the staff opted to hand the students blank certificates so as not to ruin them in the rain. Certificates will be mailed home to students at a later date.
As students crossed the stage to receive their certificates, the scene was much different than that of the first ceremony. Family and friends sat huddled under umbrellas in the wet bleachers at the amphitheater, and students scrunched under umbrellas. But the sound was the same as shouts and applause were heard as each student crossed the stage at this truly unique promotion ceremony.
