MVHS Holds 2022 Commencement

By CRAIG HIGGINS

The Progress

The latest graduating class of Moapa Valley High School congregated one last time as high school students on Thursday evening, May 26.

The festivities informally began at 5 pm in downtown Overton where an impromptu procession took place. The graduates rode in style down the main street in Overton and on through town on a route to the high school.

At 7 pm, the 117 members of the graduating class assembled again for a more formal, emotionally cathartic final ceremony: the 2022 Commencement exercises. A faintly warm breeze brushed over assembled family members, fellow students and well-wishers as they filed into the cavernous gymnasium.

Stretching almost sixty feet to the ceiling, the gym’s walls lay plastered with row after row of royal-blue banners demonstrating Moapa Valley’s past dominance on just about every field and court of athletic accomplishment. And this night was to highlight the academic accomplishments of the graduating class.

The room swelled with a giddy excitement; the hopes and ambitions of a proud small town, turning out to cheer on the graduates. In a way, this response was entirely appropriate, since each former student had by now secured their first rung in their own journey towards the American Dream.

At the front of the gym stood a riser decorated with a faux-Grecian columnar fence, backdropped by columns draped in blue. Standing on deck, Principal Hal Mortensen, School Board Trustee Katie Williams and other luminaries congratulated the graduates, who rolled down the center aisle two-by-two. Each wore the customary blue robes and square caps topped with gold tassels.

Many added a dash of individuality to their ceremonial clothing such as broad satin sashes worn by some reflecting their ethnic origins; colorful leis wrapped round their necks; or the occasional daisy chain of snack bags taped over their shoulders. One former student made a bold statement, sporting distinctive high-heeled black vinyl boots accentuated with hot-rod flames.

With the graduates seated, the ceremony began. After rousing statements from Valedictorian Tanner Western and Salutatorian Maria Perez, each member of the graduating class filed in rows up on either side of the platform. One by one, the freshly-minted alumni reached the podium and received their diplomas, then sat back down to bask in the adulation of their families and friends.

After the ceremony, the party continued outside. Crowds of friends hugged their parents and classmates, perhaps aware the warm embrace of their town might soon be overtaken by the cramped dorms and unfamiliar common walkways of the university.

Regardless, this was a time of celebrating. Though some might not see each other again anytime soon, none will forget their days at MVHS.