“2020: The class of resilience"

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After the last months of their high school careers vanished from them because of the coronavirus pandemic, Long Beach High School Seniors were finally able to receive their diplomas and say farewell to the Long Beach School District on June 26.

The district held brief appointments throughout the day at Long Beach Middle School on Veteran’s Memorial Field, where students walked on the stage and received their diplomas, while parents were able to take pictures. Students were given masks and gift bags during the ceremony.

Later that day, about 130 graduates and their families gathered at Point Lookout Town Park for a more traditional ceremony. With the blessing of Hempstead Town Supervisor Don Clavin, and under the leadership of Long Beach resident Johanna Sofield, president and a co-founder of the Long Beach Christmas Angel, a nonprofit organization that assists families in the Long Beach School District, the event took place.

After a talk from Pastor Mark Moses of the New Life Church of Christ, graduation senior Ariel Nachman sang a powerful rendition of the National Anthem, just a few yards away from the 9/11 memorial at the Town Park.

Nassau County Legislator Denise Ford, who also assisted in bringing the ceremony together, addressed the graduates. “To all of you students, remember to believe in yourself,” Ford said. “To believe in the choices that you make. To follow your dreams, no matter where they take you.”

Class of 2020 salutatorian Henry Hayden addressed his classmates and joked about the new reality the world was living in.

“This is quite the year we’ve had,” Hayden said. “Instead of the typical senior spring, the class of 2020 got online learning during our final months. We had to get our yearbooks signed digitally and now we don’t even know if there’s a traffic jam outside or it’s our neighbors birthday.”

However, Hayden said even though the class has lost a lot, they still have the right to celebrate their accomplishments like every other graduating class. Hayden spoke about the class’s hard work throughout their four years and urged his classmates to “strive for their absolute best.”

Class President Isabella Salsone, who was recently recognized by State Sen. Todd Kaminsky for her exceptional work and leadership, reflected on all her class has endured and overcome: they were born the year after the 9/11 terrorist attacks; they survived Superstorm Sandy, which devastated Long Beach, and now are living the nightmare of the coronavirus.

“No one could’ve predicted that we’d be separated just before what was supposed to be the closing of an exciting chapter together, but history found the Class of 2020 yet again,” Salsone said. “Because of the many obstacles we’ve overcome together, I can say without a doubt, the class of 2020 is resilient. I hope that you remember that we are and will always be the resilient class of 2020.

During the ceremony, students were spread out in rows and were given an index card, where they wrote their names and handed them back to organizers. When their rows were called, a speaker announced their name and the students walked across the stage, in front of their fellow classmates and family, who applauded from a distance.

Midway through the ceremony, Valedictorian Arjun Gupta addressed the crowd and used his time to talk about issues the country is currently facing.

“In this tumultuous year of 2020, there’s been a national outcry about issues of race and equity,” Gupta said. “Even though these are difficult times, I see a bright light. I see that through the education that we received at Long Beach High School… together we will move towards change to make sure every person is treated with respect, dignity and kindness.”

After all the graduating students in attendance had the chance to walk across the stage, they finished the ceremony by moving their tassels from their right to the left side, signifying the end of their time in the Long Beach School District.