Colony High School sends off the class of 2022 with live graduation at Menard Center

WASILLA — Colony High School’s class of 2022 celebrated graduation at the Menard Sports Center Wednesday, May 20.

Valedictorian Charly Rentz commended her fellow graduates for persevering through all the unique and unprecedented challenges such as earth-shattering earthquakes, constant changes to daily learning routines thanks to the COVID-19 pandemic, and widespread windstorms that tossed everyone around before the spring finally thawed.

“I can’t imagine leaving without finding bits and pieces of everyone in this room,” Rentz said. “At the end of the day, the things I’ll remember about you all have nothing to do with what you did and everything to do with how we came together when things got tough… Your worth is inherent in your humanity. It is unshakable.”

Faculty speaker Shannon Guinn said that she was proud of the graduating class for their unwavering dedication to their education in spite of the various challenges they had to overcome to get to this point. She shared some parting advice that emphasized keeping your sense of humor intact, the fact that there’s always time to express your gratitude, and retaining common sense and kindness.

“There’s a lot that life will throw at you, but remember that it’s up to you on how you handle it,” Guinn said.

CHS choir students performed a rendition of the song, “Slipping Through My Fingers” from “Mamma Mia!” for the graduation ceremony.

“Sometimes I wish that I could freeze the picture, and save it from the funny tricks of time slipping through my fingers.” — ABBA

Contact Mat-Su Valley Frontiersman reporter Jacob Mann at jacob.mann@frontiersman.com