On April 25, the graduating senior class got together for one of their last class events in high school. The Dragons had their Senior Day of Reflection at St. Bartholomew (Bart). While at St. Bart’s, the seniors participated in a variety of activities, each as a way to reflect the past four years they have spend at NDB.
Senior Katie Homrig was invited up to be honored at the reflection as the class’ student speaker. Homrig gave a speech about how NDB helped her find her identity and true passions. She discussed her journey throughout high school and her struggles of entering NDB without an idea of who she was. The speech concluded with her sharing how NDB helped her discover what she truly loved, which led to her passion in training dogs for Guide Dogs for the Blind.
Following Homrig’s speech, the seniors were then sent to their small groups to reflect on their own NDB journeys. In this activity, students were tasked with creating a poster with drawings and memories that illustrated the past four years. They had to create skits and were assigned to one of their years at NDB, being either freshman, sophomore, junior, or senior year. These skits brought back many memories and humor for the audience.
NDB History Teacher Jonathan Tomczak then delivered a speech to the class about the importance of the present moment. He shared a story of a girl he knew years ago, and how the life she lived taught him to truly appreciate every single moment because the next moment is never guaranteed.
“The present, for as long as we get to be a part of it, is a precious thing,” said Tomczak during his speech, reminding the seniors how precious the last month they will spent as students at NDB is.
After Tomczak’s speech, students were then led to another group activity. The seniors each had to create a card to give to one of their classmates, imparting a piece of wisdom they have learned throughout these past four years on it. This provided students an opportunity to pass on lessons they have learned while on their high school journey to someone who has had a completely different journey, but who can still learn a lot.
To conclude the speeches, NDB Teacher and Senior Class Moderator Sarah Boragno, an NDB alumna herself, gave a speech on the idea of saying goodbye to NDB and the meaning behind it. Boragno talked about how every goodbye opens up more opportunities for more hellos, and even as the senior class graduates, that goodbye is opening them up to a bright and inviting future.
“You are saying goodbye to navy skirts and laughter in the hallways but saying hello to every adventure that awaits you.” Boragno said as she reminisced on her own memories at NDB.
This gathering provided an opportunity for the graduating seniors to come together and forge deeper connections as one of the final occasions before they part ways. It gave the class a chance to reflect upon the hundreds of joyful moments they have shared throughout their four-year journey, as they prepare to embark on new chapters in their lives in college.
