Ogdensburg Free Academy Class of 2012 President Kori Bresett had the honors of welcoming her classmates into adulthood Saturday afternoon, but in doing so, she also took it upon herself to tell them how things were going to be different.

“Now we are adults, now we are truly independent, now we are on our own,” she said. “And let’s face it, at least to me I know the concept is a little bit scary.”

Ms. Bresett then shared with her classmates several reasons why the concept of adulthood is at least a little bit scary.

“Who can we call when we left our homework sitting in our dorm? Mom and dad can’t call your job and tell your boss that you’re sick so you can leave and go to lunch with your friends and your boss probably isn’t going to care that your alarm didn’t go off and that’s why you’re two hours late for your first day of your new job. There are no senor skip days in the military, in college, or in the office. We are no longer seniors,” she said.

Leading up to graduation Ms. Bresett said it wasn’t unusual to hear her classmates talking about how they couldn’t wait for the year to be over, but now that graduation has finally arrives, she said the course of those conversations has changed.

“Now that we are finally out of this place and it really is graduation day, the thoughts running across our minds are more about the things we’ll miss, like seeing our friends every day, sports, study halls, green gravy, some teachers, some classes, green gravy, senior skip day, senior privileges, or the lack thereof and of course the ever-lovable, but sometimes questionable,famous green gravy.”

Ms. Bresett also offered her classmates some advice for the future.

“A very wise man once told me, ‘Always be the best person you can be’ and another, ‘Can’t is not in your vocabulary. Can’t means you choose not to,’” she said. “At this crossroads in our lives, where we have concluded one phase and are about to begin another, these are words that I believe OFA has tried to pass on to us, that we should abide by and keep in mind as we embark on new journeys.”

The first of two Dr. Suess references, traditional graduation staples, came from honor student representative Adam McCarthy.

“Soon we’ll be out in what people like to call the “real world.” It will be a tough road, but if we use what we’ve learned, we can all succeed. Soon, we’ll all be looking back on our high school career and realize that some of the greatest memories were from these past years,” he said. “The information we’ve gained the things we’ve done and the people we’ve met while we were in school will stick with us throughout the rest of our lives.”

And while graduation may be an emotional time, Mr. McCarthy said to look at it as happy times, rather than a sad times.

“It seems sad that we’re leaving a place that holds so many memories, but as Dr. Suess wrote, ‘Don’t cry because it’s over, smile because it happened.’”

On behalf of his classmates, Mr. McCarthy thanked his classmates teachers, families and friends for helping them all make it to graduation.

“If we look back years and years ago, when we were younger and compare that to the people we are today, it becomes clear how much we’ve changed and how much we’ve matured. Throughout the years our families, our teachers and our friends have helped us to become who we are,” he said. “They’ve all put in just as much effort as we have to guide and educate us along the way. Without them we would have never been able to make it this far.”

The second Dr. Suess reference came from Vice President Brianna Barber, who presented Principal Cynthia Tuttle with the class’ gifts to the school.

“Dr. Suess said, ‘Unless someone like you cares a whole awful lot, noting it going to get better. It’s not,” she said quoting the author. “So we the Class of 2012 do care a whole awful lot and that is why we decided to make several donations this year to worthy causes.”

Those gifts included $1,000 for the construction of a new playground at the yet to be constructed primary wing at Kennedy Elementary School, as well as another, $1,433.17 to the student council for teacher appreciation gifts and to the district for the restoration of both the Art Club and Earth Club, student organizations that would have otherwise been a causality of the 2012-2013 school budget.

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