WHS Class of '09 shows its mettle

Wahkiakum High School's Class of 2009 left a mark to be recognized.

The class earned $406,000 in scholarship awards, a new record for a WHS class.

Last year's seniors earned about $260,000, Counselor Nancy Renner said, adding that she had challenged the Class of 2009 last fall to top that total.

Of the 36 seniors on stage Friday all but five are planning to go to college or trade school. Two are going into the armed forces, and three are going into the work force.

In her address, Valedictorian Amanda Collier recognized classmates for their hard work. "We have 17 people with above a 3.5 grade point average sitting here before you with high honors," she said. "Ninety-five percent of us have been accepted and are going to attend college."

Salutatorian Jasmine Bingham spoke of the shared memories the class would have and the good experiences they had at Wahkiakum. She likened life to a race and urged her classmates to keep their minds focused on their goals.

Class choice speaker Ben Doumit described the growth of the class and how Kari Schillios made them realize in the fifth grade that they would graduate in 2009. "As a class, we have been involved in so many different activities," he said. "We have competed in sports, been involved in community service projects around town. We have taken initiative to find work wherever we can to prepare ourselves for college. There has been so much we have accomplished as a class."

Faculty Choice Speaker Jessica Asmus spoke of her arrival at WHS as a sophomore from Portland. She said she soon found the small school had a lot to offer. "I think the thing that really made the last three years so special for me were the friendships and bonds created," she said. "I think this may be why many of us have been successful academically. We pushed each other to do well in school, and always encouraged each other to do our best. We have without a doubt taught each other what true friendship is."

Class members received a variety of awards:

Washington State Honors, top 10 percent of seniors statewide--Bingham, Collier, Sarah Doumit, and Stian Vik.

Washington State Principals, top 5 percent of seniors statewide--Collier.

WHS Activity Award--Ebony Cothren and Kari Schillios.

WHS Athletics--Shelby Deaton and Joel Fudge.

WHS Citizenship--Brittney Robbins and Vik.

WHS Leadership--Ben Doumit and Sarah Doumit.

US Marine Corps scholarship and activity awards--Bingham, Collier, Blake Anderson, Joel Fudge, and Samantha McClain.

A list of scholarship awards may be found elsewhere in this week's edition.