DIDSBURY - The Didsbury High School (DHS) graduating class of 2025 is well prepared to meet future challenges, relying on the “skills and connections” they have garnered during their school years, says valedictorian Brandon Holliday.
In his address during Friday’s graduation ceremony in the school gymnasium, Holliday also called on his fellow graduates to strive to be community leaders going forward.
“We all have our own strengths, our own weaknesses,” he said. “The beauty of that fact is that we will all contribute differently to the world. Even though we will all take different paths in life, the experiences and values that we have built are things we can always share.
“Wherever we go, it is essential that we create connections to those around us, building a community, building experiences, and building our lives the way we want to live.”
He commended teachers, staff, parents and other supporters for helping the graduates during their school years.
The 60 graduates were joined by hundreds of family members, friends and other supporters during the May 23 ceremony.
Dignitaries attending included Didsbury mayor Rhonda Hunter, Mountain View councillor Alan Miller, Chinook’s Edge School Division (CESD) trustee Gord Kerr and CESD superintendent Kurt Sacher.
In his message to graduates, DHS principal Scott McDonald said, “Choose well, and if you make a mistake and choose poorly, admit it, fix it as best you can, and try again. I look forward to hearing from many of you in the coming years and learning your stories – especially the mistakes, because they make the best stories.
“They (graduates) represent the best of what small town Alberta has to offer the rest of Canada and do great credit to the adults in their lives who helped guide them to this day and this moment.
“We, the staff of DHS, are grateful for the trust that they and their parents have put in us to lead them toward life after high school.”
Graduate Alley Crampton performed O Canada during the ceremony, which saw graduates presented with certificates and introduced to the assembly.
Scholarship winners were also acknowledged, with the businesses and organizations sponsoring the scholarships also recognized.
“We are gathered here today to celebrate not just the success of our grads, but the organizations and individuals who helped them get to where they are today,” said valedictorian Holliday.
