Photo Courtesy of Ross Lavigne

By Chris Brown

No one will forget

CHHS grads get their rite of passage

Jun 11, 2020 | 4:56 PM

MEDICINE HAT, AB – The teachers and staff at Crescent Heights High School knew how much a cap and gown ceremony would mean to some of the students. And so when COVID-19 closed the books on regular school and the traditional grad ceremony, they knew they had to do something.

For some students, this is the moment every single class has been leading up to.

“It’s pretty exciting. I’m really grateful for the school that they put this together in such a short amount of time so I’m pretty happy that we got to do this,” said Mikaela Claypool. “I’ve grown up with two older siblings so I got to watch them and then now it’s finally my turn. It’s a little bit different but it’s exciting that I get to do it.”

On Wednesday and Thursday, Crescent Heights High School celebrated its grads with individual cap and gown ceremonies in the theatre and photo booths in the cafeteria.

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“Graduation is a rite of passage for our youth and it’s something most of us have had an opportunity to be part of so we wanted to make sure the students didn’t miss out just because we had such a unique year,” said vice-principal Shonna Barth. “And so they get a chance to come today, celebrate with their parents, be recognized and just have that moment where they move on to the next time in their life.”

For Claypool, on her way to university in Lethbridge in the fall, the ceremony represents closure.

“It’s you know ending high school and then starting into my life as a, as an adult and into university and. I’m moving away to Lethbridge so it’s just kind of saying goodbye to you know, my teenage years and all that.”

Michael Cook said it’s huge for the grads to get at least a little taste of what was nearly taken away from them by the pandemic.

“This is, well I guess kind of what we had taken away from us. What could have been but it’s really nice and it feels good and I think everybody else will be extremely appreciative of this especially because of what we couldn’t have and what we have now.”

Colby Cave was also happy to have the chance to have this moment to celebrate.

“Considering the fact we thought it was done like it wouldn’t happen so it’s kind of cool that we get recognition.”

Barth praised the dedicated group for its resiliency and grit

“We’ve had a great many kids graduate that would have maybe had a harder time then we would have thought but they worked with their teachers and their parents did get involved and they just really made the best of a situation that was very unique. This will be a group of kids that nobody ever forgets, that for sure.”

Barth said nearly all the school’s 184 grads picked up their diploma over the past two days.

The week will wrap up Saturday at Kin Coulee Park, where grads will line the path next to their own grad sign for a drive-by parade for friends and family.

Footage from this week’s events, including images from a photo morphing station, will be put together with speeches from the valedictorians, our principal, superintendent our school board chairman will be put together into a keepsake video for the students.

Barth said it will “look somewhat like a regular grad ceremony but it will have a little bit more artistic flair because normally it’s just filmed as it goes.

Details on when and how it will be shown to students are still being worked out, said Barth.