It was a joyous occasion when the Class of 2018, comprised of 330 members, graduated on May 30th at Knott Arena in the PNC Sports Complex at Mount St. Mary’s University. This celebration of their accomplishments was well deserved for such a legendary senior class!

The ceremony opened with the prelude, “Patriots on Parade,” performed by the band. Special guests of Linganore High School, Nancy Doll, Andrew McWilliams, Michelle Gilmore, Ilana Blum, and Katherine Becker, and those from the school board and extended community such as Theresa R. Alban, Mike Markoe, Brad W. Young, Joy Schaefer. April Fleming Miller, Colleen Cusimano, and Kathleen Schlappal, entered the arena and took their seats on stage.

As the Graduation Band played the processional “Pomp and Circumstance,” the members of the Class of 2018 were a bundle of smiles as they made their grand entrance.

Even principal Ms. Nancy Doll said, “One of my favorite parts of graduation was seeing all of the students so excited about the event.”

Once guests and students alike had taken their seats, class president Kenny McQuay welcomed the guests and led everyone in the Pledge. 

Doll then recognized retiring staff member, Ms. Virginia Karlen and those members of the Class of 2018 that planned to pursue a career in the military. These recognitions were followed by another performance from the choir, a speech by Brad Young, the president of the Board of Education and then remarks from the Superintendent Theresa Alban.

Then, Class of 2018 members Samantha Buntman, Jordan Cencula, Alyssa Chiarelli, and Lindsey Ekanger sang “Homeward Bound” and were accompanied by Richard Zhang on piano.

Student achievement was honored in Sarah Hall’s powerful speech that explains what it means to be a LANCER. She chose different words to represent each letter of the word to ultimately describe the Class of 2018 as “legendary, academically accomplished, noisy, creative, enthusiastic, and ready to face the next stage of life.”

“I chose the word “Lancer” because that is who we are. Each of us– whether an artist or an athlete, musician or academic all-star, showman or introvert– is a part of what it means to be a Lancer, and each of us is an integral part of the Class of 2018. The legacies that we will be remembered for are those that we have made together,” said Hall in her speech.

Audience applause followed Hall’s speech and carried over into the presentation of the Golden Lance Awards. These awards were given to a senior and a member of the faculty who demonstrate the Six Pillars of Exemplary Character: trustworthiness, respect, responsibility, caring, fairness, and citizenship.

Tommy Moyer was the recipient of the student Golden Lance Award because he demonstrates all pillars of character every day and “he serves others without expectation of praise or reward.”

“It was a huge honor to be awarded the Golden Lance from my teachers and classmates. It was extremely exciting,” said Moyer.

Mrs. Durann Ecalano was the recipient of the faculty Golden Lance Award and is described as “highly organized and an excellent communicator.”

Ecalano said, “I’ve enjoyed seeing the Class of 2018 grow up through their years in high school and I’ve loved seeing their dedication and school spirit!”

Before awarding diplomas, a slideshow was shown which was made by Lancer Media member Lily Player. This slideshow is a new feature to the graduation ceremony.

Player said, “I was inspired by the senior class’ theme of “Be humble; be kind” to create my video. I used a song of the same name by Tim McGraw to convey the theme even more.” Player’s video shows photos from the Class of 2018’s senior year memories and photos from the summer before their last year in high school. Player’s video can be viewed in this article.

The moment the guests, faculty, and most importantly, the students had all been waiting for finally arrived: the presentation of diplomas. Jeremy Brown and Doll gave the diplomas to each graduate as their name was called.

After the name of the last graduating senior, the Class of 2018 officially threw caps in the air and called themselves graduates.

Congratulations Class of 2018! Your mark left on Linganore High School will not be erased.