11 minute read
Commencement and The Class of 2020
THE CLASS OF 2020
Front row: Rachael Miller, Eden Groum, Cameron Blair, Jordyn Harrison, Lilia Machado, Ajala Elmore, Kate Saber, Zoë Wishengrad, Ariel Shweiki, Hannah Blackwell, Olivia Ivins.
Second Row: Sully Williams, Ashley Chompre, Abby VandenBrul, Remy Stewart, Jimmy Butterfield, Annabel Teague, Harry Anderson, Sianna Risko, Luann Ji, Sydney Taormina, Olivia Billitto, Madison Hughes, Jacob Jaworski, Emi Arai, Ashlee Borst, Katrina Winfield, Emma Selekman, Sam Shipp, Oliver Gooderham, Matt Bell.
Third row: Eddie Micheletti , Courtney Thomson, Oryem Kilama, Ava Cottone, Luke Fahey, Jadyn Elliott, Will Davis, Wyatt Nelson, Kiera Patterson, Evan Arai, Joanna Clark, Ian Scott, Blue Koenig, Zoe Holden, Olivia Brick, Yunan Liu.
Back row: Dylan Roskovensky, Grayson Sullivan, Connor Rosas, Mark McMillan, Miles McCoy, Cole Opderbeck, Nick Urick, Casey Tyler, Weldin Dunn, Sean Brady, Liam Hudgings, Nick Redd, Manny Adebi, Connor Satterfield, Tomas Vebeliunas, Alex Ropars, Denzel Dixon, Ryan McWalter, Jordan Ranji, Lucien McKean, Sam Gise, Craig Lyttleton, Ryan Evans, Jack Taylor.
Congratulations to the Class of 2020! Members of the class are listed below with college choice and service project/agency.
Chukwuemeka “Manny” Adebi Cornell University Global Leadership Adventures trip to Ghana
Harry Anderson University of Delaware Dominican Republic Church Trip
Evan Arai University of Richmond Alfred I. duPont Hospital for Children
Matthew Bell Hofstra University Orphanage in Ensenada, Mexico
Hannah Blackwell University of Vermont National Ski Patrol at Plattekill Mountain
Cameron Blair Bryn Mawr College Ronald McDonald House
Ashlee Borst The University of Alabama Faithful Friends
Sean Brady Wake Forest University Alfred I. duPont Hospital for Children
Olivia Brick Franklin & Marshall College QUEST El Paso Service Trip
James Butterfield The University of the Arts QUEST Dominican Republic Service Trip
Ashley Chompre Duke University Special Olympics of DE Swimming Joanna Clark New York University Delaware Art Museum
Ava Cottone North Carolina State University Boys & Girls Club
William Davis University of South Carolina Sixers Camp
Weldin Dunn University of Delaware Habitat for Humanity
Jadyn Elliott Haverford College Eastside Charter
Ajala Elmore Moravian College Special Olympics of DE Basketball
Ryan Evans University of Richmond Pass it Forward
Oliver Gooderham Ithaca College Education First Golf
Eden Groum University of Delaware Eastside Charter tutoring
Jordyn Harrison University of Rhode Island QUEST El Paso Service Trip
Zoe Holden University of Massachusetts Amherst Boys & Girls Club
Liam Hudgings Hamilton College Pass it Forward Madison Hughes College of Charleston Delaware Nature Society
Jacob Jaworski Colgate University QUEST El Paso Service Trip
Luann Ji University of Delaware Chinese Sunday School
Oryem Kilama Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University QUEST Dominican Republic Trip
Lilia Machado Marist College Kranz Hill Farm
Miles McCoy Seton Hall University QUEST South Africa Service Trip
Lucien McKean Ursinus College QUEST Dominican Republic Trip
Mark McMillan Drexel University Boy Scouts Camp
Ryan McWalter Marist College Boy Scouts Camp
Edward Micheletti The George Washington University All Star Baseball Project
Usually seniors hold their annual Noise Parade through the halls of the school building. Even with the school’s closing, the seniors got creative with a parade in their cars!
Wyatt Nelson University of Delaware Ranch Hope (Baseball)
Nicholas Redd University of Maryland College Park Delaware Lacrosse Foundation
Sianna Risko University of Delaware Brandywine Volleyball
Alex Ropars SUNY at Binghamton Boys & Girls Club
Katherine Saber University of Southern California Best Buddies of DE
Connor Satterfield Ursinus College Delaware Lacrosse Foundation
Ian Scott University of South Carolina QUEST South Africa Service Trip
Emma Selekman Pennsylvania State University Delaware Puppy Rescue
Samantha Shipp The University of Alabama QUEST El Paso Service Trip Ariel Shweiki Occidental College QUEST South Africa Service Trip
Remy Stewart Elon University East Side Charter Summer Camp
Sydney Taormina Davidson College Mary Campbell Center
Courtney Thomson Stevenson University Ingleside Assisted Living
Casey Tyler University of Delaware Delaware Nature Society
Nicolas Urick Swarthmore College East Side Charter Tutoring
Abigail VandenBrul Pennsylvania State University Darlington Arts Center
Tomas Vebeliunas University of Delaware Camp Henson
Sully Williams University of South Carolina QUEST Dominican Republic Service Trip
Katrina Winfield Trinity College QUEST Dominican Republic Church Trip
THE CLASS OF 2020
Commencement
The Wilmington Friends School Class of 2020 commencement exercises will be remembered as one of the most unique (and hottest) in 272 years.
On the evening of Saturday, July 18, members of the Class of 2020 processed in, six feet apart, wearing masks, while their families and friends (limited to five guests per graduate) sat spread across Tattersall field. Across the globe, family members and friends tuned in to a live broadcast of the event.
Many things were different about the conclusion of the 2020 school year, including that Final Assembly, a right of passage for most senior classes, was cancelled due to the pandemic. Because of that, two students who were chosen by their classmates to speak at Final Assembly instead addressed the crowd at graduation. Below are excerpts from their speeches, as well as from Head of School Ken Aldridge’s remarks.
An inquisitive student, a talented athlete and mentor, the first student speaker, Hannah Blackwell ’20, seeks out adventure. Her determination will serve her well on her next adventure at the University of Vermont.
“Today, I want to talk about silver linings. Because, with the past few months, I think a lot of us could do with some optimism. To state the obvious, we did not have the senior spring any of us were expecting. But, when I really think about it, I don’t think that there’s a more Quaker way to end the year,” Blackwell said. “The Quakers of the 18th century endorsed and advocated for solitary self-confinement. They believed that solitude can lead to true growth and self-realization. Through the next few centuries, the practice of solitary confinement has been misconstrued and perverted, but I have seen how solitude has led to growth in myself and my classmates within the period of a few months.
Three months ago, all we talked about was a Netflix series about exotic cats. It all seems quite trivial now. The energy in our generation has shifted.”
The next student speaker, Luke Fahey ’20, has been described as quirky, amusing, and authentic - much like the 1992 Dodge Ram van he drove to school every day. Intellectually curious, he can speak eloquently about Greek mythology, music, soccer, and literature. Genuine, engaged, kind, and affable, he connects with everyone he encounters, which we know will be the case when he joins Syracuse University next year.
“My classmates’ growth and maturity forced me to grow up, and that is something I can never repay,” Fahey said. “And that’s a common hallmark of this class; they make people want to be better. They improve what they find, whether purposefully or just by virtue of who they are. I for one can attest to that. This is a group of people that are willing to work with flaws, which is why I owe all of these people so much.
“So I urge you, please don’t lose that drive to improve. I think that gift this collective group of people has, the way they raise up and try to improve others is especially important now. It’s no secret that this school seems to be enduring what may be its toughest year in a very long time. It’s had to lay groundwork
THE CLASS OF
2020
Commencement
and compromise for a future campus, it’s had to learn how to adapt in a post-pandemic world, and it seems now that the time has come for some far-overdue self-reflection about how we handle race and how we stand to try and correct what we’ve done. There’s been a lot of reckoning happening around us, which may be uncomfortable for some and cathartic for others. Larger than life problems like these aren’t easy to take responsibility for, but that’s why I come back to what I find this group does so well. Improvement. Not perfect, not flawless, but this class is never regressive, and always better than yesterday.”
“Graduates, 128 days ago, you walked out of Friends for Spring Break,” Head of School Ken Aldridge said. “If you had known that would be the last time you slammed your locker, hugged a certain teacher or friend goodbye, the last time you ran down the stairs at the Arches, what would you have done differently? Would you have said goodbye to a few more teachers? Hugged a friend a little harder? Made one last basket in the gym? 128 days ago you were looking forward to many things: Spring Break; your last varsity season; your last performance in the WFS theater; the noise parade; senior exploration; your final assembly; graduation.
“And while your senior year will end in one of the most unique fashions, your year before March 12 was also unique. Because of you. You are scholars, actors, athletes, and musicians. You are debaters and peace keepers and climate changers.
“In your senior year alone, you organized a climate strike, won every game on Homecoming Day, collected more than 400 books for pediatric hospital patients, and competed in the National History Bowl. You produced and performed, you paraded with your first grade buddies on Halloween. Oh, and let’s not forget that you survived a very close encounter with the Delabear.
“And then March came. We asked you to put your plans for your senior year on hold, for a few weeks. And then a few more weeks. And then, on April 24, we announced that we would not
be returning to school for the remainder of your senior year. Through it all, we challenged you to manage uncertainty in a way never asked before. And you did just that.
“These were truly unprecedented times. Amidst a global pandemic, you experienced the rise of social justice movements worldwide, including right here in Wilmington. As a Quaker school, part of our DNA is to speak out. Against inequality. Against brutality. Against suppression.
“You have already lived through significant adversity and disruption. Parents, you are sending your children into a world that is very different from the world a year ago. What have you learned over the last 128 days to help you prepare for the future? It has taught you that even in the face of hardship, there is hope. It has taught you that we are better together. This class is unique in its unification, which is more important now than ever before.”
THE CLASS OF
2020 Alumni Families
Weldin Dunn ’20 and Dagmar Krewson Dunn ’84
Melissa Fagan Billitto ’87, Olivia Billitto ’20, and Rocky Billitto
John McKean, Lucien McKean ’20, Harper McKean ’29, and Kyle McKean ’98 Scott Davis ’15, Jeff Davis ’13, Bob Davis ’83, Will Davis ’20, Susie Tattersall Davis ’84, Matt Davis ’11
Dina Robinson Anderson ’84, Harry Anderson ’20, Lily Anderson ’22,
Chris Anderson ’79, and Gail Porter Anderson ‘56
Jeff Hughes ’79, Madison Hughes ’20, Jason Hughes ’24, and Jill Hughes
Kyle Opderbeck ’19, Erik Opderbeck ’87, Cole Opderbeck ’20, and Cindy Opderbeck
Far Left: Remy Stewart ’20, daughter of Jocelyn Sutton Stewart ’82
Left: Ryan Evans ’20, son of Dee Durham ’79
