Class Of 2010: Set To Graduate

When these students started kindergarten so many years ago, their graduation date -  June 2010 - must have sounded almost futuristic, a date so distant it was in a new millennium. 

Now the day is nearly here, and the Marblehead High School class of 2010 will graduate this weekend and set off into a brave new world.

More than 230 seniors will collect their diplomas at the MHS graduation  on  Sunday at 2 p.m. The ceremony will be held in the school's field house.

"This class is filled with fine, intelligent, endearing individuals," says Patrice Clough, English teacher and senior class advisor.

The class of 2010 stands out with many inspiring stories, especially among the Senior Projects this Spring. 

One hundred and forty students spent the last six weeks working outside of school with mentors. Some became teachers' aides in local schools,  others produced documentaries, still others worked in galleries, bakeries, courthouses, hospitals. The idea? Explore your passions and test out possible career paths.

Drew Snadecki worked at Beverly Airport, learning about aviation and plane mechanics - and earning his pilot's license. He's flown around New England and even to Syracuse University where he'll be attending school in the fall.  

"The biggest benefit is learning more about something that intrigues you," Snadecki said. "Instead of being stuck in school all day you're getting experience."

Sarah Likins spent her six weeks in the special care nursery at North Shore Medical Center in Salem, working with babies born prematurely or with special needs. She witnessed cesarean sections and even minor surgeries on newborns. She fed and changed infants. Another important duty:  cuddling newborns facing big challenges.

"The babies in the nursery have taught me the value of life," Likins wrote in her project essay. "All these babies that survived through birth are miracles, and we are lucky to have them."

Likins, who is going to nursing school, says her experiences in the nursery solidified her choice to go into medicine.

Three friends - Dillon Irving, Patrick Grady and Justin Hyte - designed and built a  memorial garden at the high school in honor of student Allie Castner and former principal John Ziergiebel. Castner was struck by a car and killed last summer. Ziergiebel died of cancer in October.

The boys cleared away weeds and brush and built a beautiful garden with benches.  

"We wanted a chance to do something really productive and meaningful," Grady said. 

To build the garden, they secured  a $1,000 grant from a parent council to pay for the plants, benches and plaques. A dedication ceremony is being planned soon and the Castner and Ziergiebel families will be invited. In the future, the garden will be maintained by students in V.O.I.C.E.,  a special ed vocational program for students ages 18 to 22 at the high school. 

In another meaningful project seniors Sean Mitchell and Kyle Edwards produced a documentary about World War II veterans in Marblehead.

"We wanted to capture their stories, to remember the amazing things they did, before it's too late," said Mitchell.  The boys interviewed a bomber pilot and two aircraft mechanics.They worked with MHTV to produce the documentary which is 100 minutes long.

Senior Project advisor and  teacher Wendy Soucy swells with pride when she talks about her students. 

"They've done some amazing community service," she said. "They're a wonderful group of kids."

Check in with Marblehead Patch all week for the latest on MHS graduation news and features on graduating students.

Highlights of This Sunday's Graduation Include:

• The MHS band will play the traditional Pomp & Circumstance and Marblehead Forever. Student choral groups will perform.
• William Wyman, speaking as class co-president
• Christina Henrich,  speaking as valedictorian
• Maxwell Sherman, reading his winning student essay
• John Dowds, reading a poem he wrote for graduation