DEEP RIVER— A 135 member Valley Regional High School Class of 2014 celebrated the conclusion of their high school yearsWednesday at the school’s 63rd annual commencement ceremony. A crowd of several hundred friends and family members from the Region 4 towns of Chester, Deep River, and Essex watched the program in sunny but cool weather from a field on the southeast side of the school grounds off Kelsey Hill Road.
Principal Kristina Martineau welcomed the crowd by noting the retirement of six longtime district teachers, including high school English teacher Margaret Meehan and foreign language teacher Maria Tellechea. Martineau said members of the class had many accomplishments in academics, athletics, and arts during the past four years while also often serving as volunteers in the school system and the three district towns. “Achieving and living this balance- the pursuit of personal success and service to others, is what it means to be a Valley Regional High School Warrior,” she said.
Superintendent of Schools Ruth Levy noted that school staff, parents, and family members have played a role in mentoring the graduates through their years in Region 4 schools, and urged them to also serve as mentors in their post-high school lives. “As you, the Class of 2014, move on from Valley, and in to your adult lives, I encourage each of you to seek out your niche and live an amazing life. to be both a mentee and a mentor,” she said.
The three student speakers, all from Essex, looked back at their years at VRHS, and ahead to the future. Honors Essayist Kelly Carufe recalled the volunteer efforts of class members, noting that “it takes many individuals working together to achieve change.”
Valedictorian Phoebe Petrivic expressed appreciation to her teachers and other school staff. “Each of you has benefitted from a similarly essential relationship, whether a coach, a director, a teacher, or a friend. Other’s belief in us, and the resulting belief in ourselves, has helped fuel our growth,” she said.
Salutatorian Hannah VanBenschoten praised the school, and urged underclassmen to “know that each day is a rare gift, especially in such a safe and encouraging community.” She urged her classmates to “look back at your time at Valley with fondness and nostalgia,” because the past four years at the school had “given us the tools to accomplish great things.”
Members of the Class of 2014 are:
Erica Alexander
Maxine Allen
Jenna Armenia
Linnea Barbour
Connor Barnes
Peter Barry
Mia Belval
Shelby Bersing
Cori Camire
Kelly Carufe
Daniel Caulfield
Christopher Chiappa
Alexandra Clymas
Matthew Cole
Tazmin Corbett
Alan Cote
Jake Cuccaro
Lindsey Cullinan
Sarah Curran
Gabriel Cusack-Mercedez
McKenzie Davis
Kiernan Decker
Brandon Dole
Kelly Duggan
Dale Duguay
Amelia Dyson
Nicole Eline
Dillon Eriksson
Connor Ewart
John Forsythe
Emily Fuentes
Luke Gagnon
Audrey Garden
Claudia Gates
Sara Giangrande
Brittany Gilbert
Stone Gilbert
Andrew Goehring
Jessica Grote
Bobby Hamblett
Ashton Harris
Evan Haston
Erin Hayes
Mary Helchowski
Alexandria Hollwedel
Alexander Hougrand
Tyler Jaynes
Ryan Johnson
Samuel Jones
Nathaniel Joyce
Wyatt Joyce
Aubrey Karg
Jakob Kasimir
Kara Kelly
Holden King
Madeline Kozlik
Dashiell Krempel
Robert Kuchyt
Angela LaMark
McClent Langellier
Robert Lanouette
Jill Larsen
Michaela Lavy
Emily LeGrand
Alexander Lewis
Jacob Luster
Scott Lynch
Chloe MacNeil
Caroline Madden
Cole Magee
Paige Malcarne
Jessica Markland
Katelynn Maxwell
Seamus McGinley
Brendan McGirr
Casey McKeon
Dustin Meadows
Naomi Menard
Jonathan Metsack
James Molyneux
Marcella Mosier
Katherine Mulligan
Heather Negralle
Joseph Nevins V
Ryan Newman
Iestyn Norton
Cobi O’Connell
Beatrice O’Neil
Michelle Odekerken
Shelby Olson
Michaela Paholski
Fenna Palmieri
Marcia Pandolfi
Jordi Paredes
Hanna Partyka
August Pearson
Phoebe Petrovic
Sean Porter
Jean-Luc Poulard
Tiffani Ramcke
Eric Rannestad
Deidre Regan
Alexandra Riggio Clark
Zachary Robertson
Emily Roise
Samuel Rosenberg
Kyle Ruthstrom
Nicholas Schultz
Sarah Shepard
Owen Sheppard
Jack Simoneau
Colin Smith
Sena Spinella
Samuel Spitzschuh
Abigail Stempel
Jacqueline Stevens
Gabrielle Stratidis
Joshua Szachewicz
Angela Tabor
Julia Tackett
Liza Thayer
Ethan Thompson
Bryanna Tobin
Emma Trabucchi
Oscar Valera Rico
Hannah Van Benschoten
Clay Vernon
Seth Verry
Veronica Villafana
Whitney Wachtarz
Kristen Watson
Lauren Webb
Jack Wislocki
Destinee Yenovich
