Eielson High School grads keep on dancing
Published Thursday, May 15, 2008
Despite the wide range of cultural backgrounds at Ben Eielson Jr./Sr. High School, the graduating class of 2008 stood on common ground Wednesday night as 66 individuals received their high school diplomas.
Family, friends and faculty packed the house to support their young loved ones as the red and black-robed graduates marched in to pomp and circumstance and marched out to the beat of their own drums.
Eielson Salutatorian Emily Nosce gave a simple message to her fellow classmates.
“Life is what we make it. Always has been and always will be,” she said. “But remember to keep loved ones and friends close to you. They are always our main sources of strength,” she said.
Nosce stands out among her peers as being one of the few Eielson graduates who is not affiliated with the Air Force.
“Community service has been a big part of what I enjoyed doing in high school,” Nosce said. “My parents raised me with the strong belief of giving back to the community.”
Both her parents are teachers in the Fairbanks North Star Borough School District so when her mother took a job on base, Nosce followed.
“I think my parents’ value in education is what really helped me get here,” she said.
Nosce plans to study biology at a small school in southern Illinois.
In a military high school, students might not have much in common when it comes to growing up in the same town.
But when asked what the most memorable thing about high school was, almost everyone said their friends.
“The icing on the cake was the time I spent with my friends,” Nosce said. “We’re like a family here, and the graduates mean a lot to me.”
The senior class motto summed up the attitude of the class of 2008: “Life may not be the party we hoped for but while we’re here we should dance.”
Bethany Coblentz, president of the senior class, was proud of the motto. She has been in Alaska since December 1999.
During high school, she managed to dance her way through by helping with the wrestling team all four years. She also played on the varsity soccer team.
But think twice before calling her a jock. The valedictorian also made time to act in two plays and maintained a 3.98 GPA.
After traveling abroad during the summer, Coblentz plans to keep on dancing at the University of Alaska Fairbanks for a few years and then move on to study nursing.
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Great kids, and congratulations. Too bad the JROTC had hogged half of the evening. I would've liked to have heard more of the kids address their peers instead of doctrine.
Take care and have a safe summer!
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