Thank you Mr. Noftsker. Dr. Koufman, Dr. Fitzgerald, Mr. Paolillo, Members of the School Committee, Mr. Driscoll, Town Council Members, friends, family, faculty, and of course fellow graduates.

We'd like to start off by acknowledging the man who has been with us from day one, and has made everything possible, our class advisor and our friend Mr. Dave Passeggio. At this time our class president Joe Lepera would like to present him with a gift to show our appreciation.

On a day like today it's only fitting that we look to what's ahead of us, towards the future. The things we hope to achieve, the decisions we'll have to make, the people we'll meet, and the many opportunities for success that stretch out before us. But what is this genuine success that we are looking for? As was once so eloquently said and ironically misattributed to Ralph Waldo Emerson, "to leave the world a bit better; to know even one life has breathed easier because you have lived. This is to have succeeded."

Down life's long hallway to this success we seek, there are many doorways, one of which we are passing through today. Some, like the one leading into the third floor boys' bathroom, may be locked at times. Others will be revolving, allowing us to pass through easily, but leaving us back where we started if we rely on them too heavily. Many more will be blocked, and I only hope each one of us will have the tenacity to find our way through.

As we move through these passageways into our different stages of life, we will come in contact with many different people, diverse in their cultures, ideologies, and perspectives, who will affect how we think, act, and live.

However, to paraphrase the late great Robert Nesta Marley, even with our great futures stretched out ahead of us, we can't forget our past. It has played such a huge role in making us who we are, and who we will become.

This stage we are finishing today may have been the most varied of all. We've had a chance to interact with people of different languages, backgrounds, and religions. Schools ten times our size often do not have the same variety. Some of us have been together since kindergarten, while others are more recent additions. While at times frustrating, it was also extremely enriching. Although we come from and are headed to vastly different places, we shared this common experience.

Because of these influences, especially in the past four years, we've all changed in ways we probably don't even realize. We certainly have a lot of people to thank for guiding us towards adulthood, both in and outside the classroom.

If I were to stand up here and try to thank every single person that has helped me along the way, my list of teachers, parents, coaches, and fellow classmates would last for hours, and would send us spiraling into another paper shortage. I'm sure each and every one of us has a list just as long. As a tribute to all those who have helped us so much along the way and never let us quit, we should work our hardest and strive to become the best that we can be, reach our highest goals, and be satisfied with nothing less.

Having misquoted Ralph Waldo Emerson, rephrased a line from a song by the immortal Bob Marley and his Wailers, and spoken of doorways, it seems only fitting to end with a quote from the lead singer of the Doors, the late Jim Morrison. As he once said, "There are things known, and things unknown, and in between are the doors." Let us move forward now, and seek that next doorway.