THE EVERETT ADVOCATE – FRIDAY, JUNE 11, 2021 Page 13 GRADUATION | FROM PAGE 1 that. “Don’t forget where you came from; say you came from Everett, Massachusetts,” he said. “You will forever be connected to Everett High School.” DiDomenico reminded the graduates that being a good person exceeds any other accomplishment. “At the end of the day, no one is going to care how much money you have in your bank account or what title you have,” he said. In addition, he told the graduates that they were only in first grade when he joined the Senate in May 2010. “I’ve seen you grow. I’ve seen how you act in the community,” he said. State Representative Joseph McGonagle said the past 14 months were challenging not just because of the pandemic, but also because of the political and social turmoil. “It was real easy to look at the negative, but you didn’t,” he said. McGonagle said that early on in the COVID-19 crisis there was a massive effort to distribute meals to students, purchase hundreds of new Chromebooks and ensure that everyone had Internet access. “Teachers worked twice as hard to adapt to remote learning,” he said. “Everywhere we looked there were helpers, all of you were helpers.” Therefore, McGonagle advised the class to seek out the good even in the darkest of times. “Remember to always look for the helpers,” he said. During her keynote address, Superintendent of Schools Priya Tahiliani said she had only been at the helm for nine days when the pandemic struck in March 2020. “You’ve all gotten here on a very similar road together,” she said. “You are a graduating class that will go down in history.” She also said the graduates have a firm understanding of the greater good and have always conducted themselves with “integrity and grace.” “Our wishes for you are very simple: We just want you to enjoy,” she said. With the pandemic being so unpredictable, Valedictorian Karen Portillo said, for several months she and her classmates were unsure about graduation. “We didn’t even know if this was going to happen at all,” she said. Portillo recognized her fellow graduates as being champions of the Black Lives Matter movement and as defenders of the Asian American Pacific Islander community. “We believe that love is love,” she said. “We will not sit by while injustice still exists.” Mayor Carlo DeMaria (Photo Courtesy of the City of Everett) Honor medal recipients enter Everett Veterans Memorial Stadium. These students all had grade point averages of 3.7 or higher. (Advocate photos by Christopher Roberson) Everett High School principal Erick Naumann Senior Class President Anne Laurie Pierre State Senator Sal DiDomenico In addition, Portillo said it is her hope that Everett has made a “lasting impression” on her classmates as they venture out into the world. “Know that Everett has your back,” she said. Portillo will be attending Harvard University in the fall. Salutatorian Tina Nguyen remembered when the schools were forced to close because of the pandemic. “We didn’t think it would last that long,” said Nguyen, adding that she and her classmates were certain they would be back in GRADUATION | SEE PAGE 14 State Representative Joseph McGonagle
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