Editor’s Note: This article was also published in the Benet Herald 2024 Graduation Edition.

I vividly remember my first day of Freshman year- the beautiful Friday in August, the green leaves on the trees, the butterflies in my stomach, and the black mask on my face. I had already said my quick goodbye to my mom and ran into St. Martin’s Lobby, where I was screened for COVID symptoms and struggled to open my locker. Outside, Student Government kids rushed to make a make-shift Froshfest, taking yardsticks and measuring six feet between every little thing.

Inside, we, the Class of 2024, met new people, or at least the top half of their faces, found our classrooms, and figured out which stairs went in which direction. Over these last four years, the Class of 2024 endured more challenges than just managing the first day of high school. We have balanced a global pandemic with the immense growth that takes place during high school. We were flexible, adjustable, and most importantly, we were resilient. We saw the challenges before us and handled them with great strength and courage during the volatile world that we entered Benet in, we leaned on Benet’s core value of stability and made long-lasting friendships, expanded our knowledge, learned life lessons, and grew as men and women in Christ. We were resilient through it all. 

Today is the first time we will walk a graduation stage — a testament to the resilience we have demonstrated over the last four years. Today as a class we stand together and celebrate all of our success in high school and look forward to the success to come in college and beyond. Let us never forget the values we learned at Benet and the value we all have shown over the last four years — resilience.