On a clear and bright afternoon, 370 Ann Sobrato High School students waited nervously offstage for the long-awaited honor of their high school graduation.
Following a flag salute led by Jonah Komer and a rendition of the national anthem delivered by Ainsley Nall, the graduating class on June 6 was welcomed to the field by Ann Sobrato and Morgan Hill Unified School District staff, including Principal Theresa Sage and Superintendent Dr. Carmen Garcia.
“It is an absolute honor to join you today as we celebrate one of the most significant milestones in our students’ lives: their high school graduation,” Garcia said. “This moment, right now, is something greater. It’s a threshold, a hinge of sorts, a point in time suspended between everything that has been and everything that could still become.”
“The future is not something distant or theoretical,” Garcia added. “It is not a place you arrive at one day. Your future is a decision you make right now, and again and again tomorrow.”
Drama teacher and recent Morgan Hill Chamber of Commerce Teacher of the Year recipient Christopher R. DeMelo was tasked with giving the student body one final lesson before they received their diplomas.
“My last lesson, from more than 30 years of theatrical experience, is one that feels particularly relevant today, and one that I often tell directors and actors: Don’t rush the ending,” he advised the class. “Go out there, have fun, make memories, try to enjoy it as much as you can—and remember that for the curtain to rise on your next moment, it must fall on this one.”
Aubrey Bergesen gave the student address.
“Whether we liked it or not, we became a family, and this school will always be a place we once called home,” she said. “As we stand here, saying that final goodbye, this moment that once felt like a distant fantasy is now a reality. The future is ours to shape, and what we do next is ours to decide.”
