166 Struthers High School grads embark on new journey

By ELISE McKEOWN SKOLNICK

news@vindy.com

STRUTHERS

Cheers and whistles greeted the Struthers High School graduating class as they entered the Struthers Memorial Fieldhouse.

“So here we are, graduating,” said Alyssa Olmi, senior class president. “Four years flew past us, and we hardly had time to realize it.”

Even though high school’s over, she told her fellow classmates, the journey is just beginning for them.

“Explore your options,” she encouraged. “Don’t be afraid to make mistakes, because you’re going to make them. Learn from those mistakes and know that nothing is permanent. Know that there are endless opportunities.”

The graduates will go their own ways — some to college, some to jobs or the armed forces, and others to marriage, Olmi noted.

“I do not know where life will take you,” she said. “But I do know that I certainly expect great things from all of you.”

Kathleen Gallagher knows where she’s headed next year — to Kent State University to study history — but getting ready for commencement had her thinking about the rest of her life. It also had her taking a trip down memory lane.

“I’m kind of wondering what I’m going to do with the rest of my life,” she said.

“And kind of picturing everyone around me like we were in elementary school.”

Read the full story and a special graduation section Monday in The Vindicator and on Vindy.com.