Apple Valley's 433 graduates leave a lasting legacy

By Rene Ray De La Cruz
Staff Writer

APPLE VALLEY — With dreams in hand and expressions of joy on their faces, a jubilant army of Sun Devils marched into Newton T. Bass Stadium one last time before stepping into the future.
Family and friends cheered as Apple Valley High School Principal Dustin Conrad looked over a sea of orange and white, and welcomed the graduating class of 2016 during the school’s 48th commencement ceremony Wednesday.

After welcoming a lengthy list of former AVHS graduates and nearly 60 alumni whose children were graduating that evening, Conrad invited the graduating class of 433 seniors to “look around and see how many people came to celebrate this evening with you.”

He added that the legacy of Sun Devil pride continues to live on through each graduating class.

At one point, the stadium erupted in cheers when Conrad invited everyone present to return to the stadium on Sept. 16 to witness “history in the making as we win the Bell Game for the sixth consecutive year” over rival Victor Valley High School.

As he invited the 15 co-valedictorians to the stage for a brief address, Conrad told the audience that the speakers endured a tough academic battle during a “highly competitive year.”

The list of valedictorians included Ahsan Bari, Roxanne Bodenbender, Stephen Chandler, Lauren Crawford, Janelle Drew, Kevin Flaieh, Joanne Lancetta, George Lasko, Jamie Morales, Alexis Moyes, Marissa Napolitano, Ritika Sahai, Ashleigh Solorio, Taiz Soto and Kaylee Voss who all stood on stage while the wind had its way with their caps and gowns.

Most of the valedictorians thanked parents, family, friends, teachers and coaches for supporting and for preparing them for the future. Some also thanked God and Jesus Christ for their guidance.

Napolitano, who plans to study psychology at the University of California, Santa Barbara, used a quote from author J.K. Rowling when she encouraged her classmates by saying, “Let us step into the night and pursue that flighty temptress, adventure.”

Moyes said she was overwhelmed by the love and support of the people who made her day possible. She also thanked her grandfather for flying out from Tennessee to be at the graduation.
“High School was like a roller coaster, with its highs and lows,” Flaieh said. “There’s the time when your hands are in the air and you’re taking the selfie, and times when you have to puke.”

The SunSations sung “You’re Gonna Miss This,” before ASB President Austin Keefe and Senior Class President Brookelynn Wetzel shared the microphone and thanked parents, family, friends and others who supported them.

Keefe and Wetzel closed their address by saying “Congratulations, we did it,” before Conrad presented the class of 2016 and Apple Valley Unified School District Superintendent Thomas Hoegerman accepted the class.

Besides winning the Bell Game all four years, the class of 2016 witnessed several accomplishments over the past year, including seniors Gabe Lopez, Jelly Contreras, and Blanca Mandjuano who won the 50th Annual California Student Media Festival for the category Secondary –English/Language Arts.

The school’s Precision Machining Program was awarded a $15,000 grant from the Gene Haas Foundation, which will be used toward supporting students who are following a career pathway to the machining industry.

And senior Samuel Looper was elected as state treasurer for the California Association FFA. Looper will spend the a year in Sacramento and will travel throughout the state to visit FFA chapters, plan leadership conferences, work with partners in the agriculture industry and serve the 83,000 members of the California Association FFA.

Tayari Kuanda, a former AVHS social studies teacher, sent his best wishes to the graduating seniors via an email sent to the Daily Press, saying it was awesome watching “former freshmen” grow into “bona-fide graduates.”

“I am so very proud of all of you. It pains me that I couldn't be there to watch you go off onto your next journey, but you are vividly in my mind,” Kuanda said. “I know your families are proud of you just as I am. Keep striving for the best to attain what you have come to deserve.”

— Rene Ray De La Cruz may be reached at 760-951-6227, RDeLa Cruz@VVDailyPress.com or on Twitter @DP_ReneDeLaCruz.