Celebrating the Class of 2021 A Picture is Worth a Thousand Words

CelebratingTHE CLASS OF 2 21

With masks on, seated in pods and safely distanced, the Class of 2021 and their families were nonetheless able to enjoy both Baccalaureate and Commencement exercises in a somewhat normal fashion in May. Graduates excitedly processed into Mercy’s auditorium for the final time as a class on May 23, as master of ceremonies Ms. Ann E. Drewry ’97, Principal of Student Life, welcomed everyone—those seated in the auditorium and others in the cafeteria and music room, where the event was lived streamed.

The Salutatory on that special occasion was delivered by Giuliana Judge, daughter of Robert Judge and Rosetta Lucatino-Judge of Killingworth. A student of remarkable intellect, Giuliana is known for being knowledgeable and eloquent, brilliant and resourceful, and all the while extraordinarily humble. During her high school years, she earned the Harvard Book Prize, department honors in AP United States History, Honors Chemistry and Ceramics, and was Maxima Cum Laude in the National Latin Exam for two consecutive years. She was a participant in Mercy's String Orchestra, Math National Honor Society, Latin National Honor Society/Junior Classical League and co-captain of the Mock Trial Program. She is a member of the National Honor Society and Mercy Ambassadors, a school club that connects with new Mercy students and advocates for the school. Giuliana is an active and engaged volunteer, involved with organizations including the Killingworth Library Association, Police Activity League, Saint Lawrence Church, and Hands On Hartford. She also works part-time in the retail industry. Giuliana will be attending the University of Connecticut. As she reflected on the changes of the past four years, Giuliana observed that “… we are responsible, compassionate, well cultivated teenagers. Thank you parents for that, and thank you administration, teachers, and staff for making Mercy High School a safe environment where we were able to grow up, to make mistakes, and to figure out who we are.” Looking to the future, she explained, “…I hope you all take these last moments in the same place with your class and with your families, to make one more high school memory together. So while you are walking across the stage today, maybe excited, maybe crying, maybe waking up from a nap (no judgement), think about everything you have accomplished, think about what our entire class has accomplished, and be proud of not only your individual success, but our collective success.” After the conferring of diplomas by the Most Reverend Michael R. Cote, D. D., Bishop of Norwich, Alissa DeJonge ’95 shared her presidential remarks to the Class of 2021. “My wish for each of you, is that you remember what it takes to be happy, and actively pursue that mindset. In order to be happy, you need to choose to be happy. Rarely does happiness knock at your door and present itself without you being aware,” DeJonge told the graduates.

“You have been particularly tested this year, and what I have seen in your responses impressed me immeasurably—you have what it takes to be happy. I also think Catherine McAuley, the foundress of the Sisters of Mercy, would be very proud of you, graduates. She once said, ‘Let us pray well and never get weary of doing what is good.’ You have shown what it takes to be true Women of Mercy. Keep at it, and it will serve you well.” When Class of 2021 Valedictorian Kaila Lujambio was called upon to deliver her message to the graduating class, it was defined by hope. “We are the class of HOPE,” she exclaimed. “As Pope Francis said this Lenten season, ‘Hope is given to us as inspiration and interior light.’ Hope is a positive mindset, an inner motivation to persevere, a willpower to produce change. Hope has been our engine to move forward. Hope to see the good in the future, to look on Kaila Lujambio and Giuliana Judge the bright side, to see opportunity in challenges, and to actively look for happiness for yourself and others. And this is exactly what we have done as the Class of 2021.” Kaila, daughter of Julio and Carolina Lujambio of Wallingford, is an outgoing and inspiring student leader, an elite student-athlete who is highly regarded among her peers for being compassionate, industrious and charismatic. Selected as a Scholar Athlete by the Southern Connecticut Conference, Kaila was a National Merit Commended Student and a National Hispanic Recognition Program Scholar. At Mercy, her many activities included serving as Vice President of Justice and Peace, Senior Peer Ministry Leader, Broadcast Journalism Club, Math Club, Ecology Club, Medical Minds Club, and Ambassadors Club. She was President of the Spanish National Honor Society, Vice-President of the Math Honor Society, an Advisor Group Representative, indoor and outdoor track and field athlete, soccer team co-captain and recognized with All-State and All-SCC honors. Among her many volunteer activities, Kaila was project leader and founder of the “A Butterfly of Love” student-led community service project, which fundraised, prepared and delivered care packages to front line workers, patients and people at risk during the pandemic. She has also been a health clinic volunteer at the Migrant Farm Workers Health Clinic, where she interacted with patients, took vitals, and acted as a Spanish interpreter at numerous farms in Connecticut. She will be attending the University of Connecticut’s Special Program in Dental Medicine and has earned the prestigious Stamps Scholarship from the university and the UConn Foundation and Stamps Family Charitable Foundation. Her closing words at the graduation ceremony were inspirational to her class. “Today, I encourage each of us to continue making the world a better place. Be inspiring, be compassionate, be the best you can be. St. Thomas Aquinas taught us that ‘Hope grows when it is shared, it blooms when it is given away.’ Be beacons of hope! We have proven ourselves capable. We are the class of HOPE.”

Congratulations and Best Wishes, Women of Mercy!

AnnMarie Josephine Abbott+ Katherine Concetta Antico+ Gabriella Antogiovanni^ Ava Hope Arcesi*• Emily Mae Babcock*§ Brynn Tierney Baltramaitis Isabella Nicole Marie Bartolomei*#«+ Lindsy Emily Beebe+ Annie Elizabeth Berger*« Patricia Lillian Bigos*§« Lauren Emilie Blanchette+ Nevaeh Terria Bland Alexa Joy Boone*#+ Delaney Jean Boone*#« Barbara Teresa Buczynski* Elena Theresa Cahill*~§ Celina Anna Carabetta Jessica Carta+ Lila Grace Cerritelli* Makaley Eryn Connelly Guadalupe Corona-Sampedro Alexandra Ann Cosentino Amanda Marie Cosentino Elizabeth Grace Curran* Hannah Jane DeFilippo~ Genesis Del Valle Ashley Rose DeLuca*#+ Grace Anne DeVito+ Isabella Camargo Dias Miranda Noelle Elak Ma. Vyei Elopre Paige Elizabeth Fauvel Kayla Noelle Finkle Kayla Brook Fordyce*#+ Kylie Beck Fordyce*#«+ Lilly Ella Foster Paige Marie Frederick+ Angelica Margaret French*#«+ Isabella Rose Galati~^ Abigail Louise Goff Michele Ann Grelotti*#^« Nannan Gu«+ Sara Ellen Harris*«+ Catharine Judith Harrison* Lilly Christine Hedge* Lily XinRu Herron*#§« Regan Hughes Giuliana Rose Judge*#§« Reilly Logan Keegan+ Shaelyn Rose Kelley*§ Abigail Grace Kern* Isabel Mary Kessler*~^ Mary Catherine Kolodziej*+ Karena Kulakowski*•« Kaila Lujambio*«+ Julia Isabel Marotta+ Kathleen Helen Mathews Ava Charlotte McGrath*§+ Emily Elizabeth McGuane~+ Kathryn Rose Menard Jennah Lucia Milardo Mason Katherine Murphy Grace Gillian Novak*^+ Shreya Oberai*•« Elisia Faith Pagliuca*+ Emily Paige Paterno*¯~ Katharine Morgan Pillion*# Lily Elizabeth Pollard* Sara Elizabeth Prestash*+ Elana Sophia Puszka*+ Ivania Quintuna~ Sarina Sanjay Ramchandani Nadab Rana* Dilawaiz Rao# Grace Olga Riegler* Alyssa Ann Rondinone*§ Anastasia Catherine Rosenthal*•~« Amanda Marie Ross Cecilia Ann Rossi*«+ Caissie Elyse Sanderson~ Jocelyn Anastacia Santiago Nicole Kaitlyn Saraceno Anabella Rose Shafir Adriana Elizabeth Shea*^ Christa Jo Simone Natalie Ann Tavana+ Madeleine Frances Thompson*§ Chloe Alivia Tomasso•~ Lauren Olivia Turner*^ Paw Say Wah Abigail Elizabeth Weaver Lillian Ann Wimler Wenhui Yan*«+ Yuhan Yang*•« Kaylie Ann Zemke+

* National Honor Society # AP Capstone Diploma Candidate • French National Honor Society ~ International Thespian Society ^ Italian National Honor Society § Latin National Honor Society « Math National Honor Society + Spanish National Honor Society

Tri-M Music Honor Society

Members of the Class of 2021 over the course of their four years of college will receive over 6 MILLION

dollars in scholarship monies.

Graduates of the Class of 2021 will be attending the following colleges and universities:

American University Assumption College Bay Path University Boston University Bridgewater State University Bryant University Catholic University of America Central Connecticut State University Coastal Carolina University College of the Holy Cross Community College of Rhode Island Curry College Drew University Eastern Connecticut State University Elon University Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University Endicott College Fairfield University George Washington University Gonzaga University High Point University Hofstra University Iona College James Madison University Loyola Marymount University Manchester Community College Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences University Middlesex Community College Mount Holyoke College Northeastern University Providence College Purdue University Quinnipiac University Rochester Institute of Technology Sacred Heart University Saint Anselm College Saint Michael’s College Salve Regina University Seton Hall University Siena College Springfield College Stonehill College Temple University Texas Christian University The University of Alabama The University of Tampa The University of Tennessee Union College University of California—

Santa Barbara University of Colorado Boulder University of Connecticut University of Hartford University of La Verne University of Maryland University of Miami University of New Hampshire University of Saint Joseph University of Scranton University of South Carolina University of St Andrews University of Vermont Villanova University