“Don’t be ordinary. Make your life matter,” urges Roger Thompson

The 95 graduates of Eufaula High School Class 2024 were honored in a ceremony at Paul Bell Field Friday.

Counselor Amber Graham highlighted the top students, including the school’s three 2024 Academic Scholars: Chenoa Bumgarner, Abigail Charlton and Valerie Lewis.

The top 10 students of the class of 2024 included Abigail Bell, Valerie Lewis, Abigail Charlton, Avery Williams, Cambry Williams, Chenoa Bumgarner, Parris Wingo, Preston Dalton, GracieJane Lasiter and Tucker Leathers.

Almost $2 million in scholarships were awarded to graduates who will be going on to college.

The top scholarship recipients were: – Jackson Lange, $11,200 – Katelyn Pennington, $12,000 – Parris Wingo, $20,000 – Tucker Leathers, $32,000 – Mica Combs, $37,720 – Henry Fry, $56,620 – Abigail Charlton, $94,000 – Chenoa Bumgarner, $123,480 – Abigail Bell, $124,500 – Valerie Lewis, $175,950 – Prestin Letcher, $340,088 – Dravan Gragg, $507, 600 – GracieJane Lasiter, $855,500

Roger Thompson

In years past, history teacher Roger Thompson announced students who would be going into the military after graduation.

Instead, this year Thompson announced his retirement.

“This is my final graduation,” he said. “If we go all the way back to Miss Wright’s kindergarten class of 1959, I have 48 graduations under my belt. My first one was when Eisenhower was president.”

Thompson expressed his gratitude to the students, faculty, administration and board of education for their support during his 33 years at Eufaula High School – in total, he has taught for 44 years.

“I appreciate that,” he said. “As a classroom teacher, that makes all the difference in the world.”

Thompson said he wasn’t actually the commencement speaker – “but on the other hand this is a graduation, and I am speaking and this is a commencement, so technically I could claim to be a commencement speaker.”

He said he was asked to offer some words of wisdom and encouragement.

“But in defense of all people that speak at graduations, we are so honored that you have asked us to be a part of this very important moment in our life.

“Let me tell you this graduation may be the most important graduation that you ever go through. I would take time to explain that but that’s another topic for another day, but just take my word for it.”

Thompson said his words of wisdom and encouragement were: “Whichever profession or job you pursue in life, pursue it with all your might, as if the whole world depended on how you do your job because it does. Live your life as if the whole world depends on how you live your life because in reality it does. Don’t be ordinary. Let me say that again. Don’t be ordinary. Make your life matter. Thank you. Farewell.”

Principal Heather Combs

Principal Heather Combs offered her own words of advice and wisdom at the end of the graduation ceremony.

Lots of people will be giving advice, “but remember it is your life. You’re the one that must live it so take responsibility for it and be willing to deal with the consequences of your decision. “Don’t worry if you still don’t know what you want in life. As matter of fact … a lot of people I know still don’t. Life is a journey and as long as you enjoy it and do what is good for you, your family and your society, then I’d say you’re on the right track.”

Class President Tucker Leathers

During these extensive years, we have gleaned not only knowledge but lifelong friendships and relationships and friendships that will carry through our everyday lives. I am proud and grateful for the wonderful teachers and staff at Eufaula. I would not have asked for a better school to be brought up in.

To our teachers, I extend my greatest gratitude to you all. To my peers, I for one have been an Ironhead since day one, in pre-kindergarten. You have made my life in school fun and exciting.

Graduation is a wonderful milestone in the game of life and it’s the true step into a new world of adulthood and one that should be cherished and celebrated.

The next chapter in your life is just beginning. Go forward with your head held high. Live life to the fullest extent possible. Show the world who you truly are.

Salutatorian Valerie Lewis

A lot of us are sitting here right now thinking: “Finally, this is the end of high school. I’ve made it. It’s finally over.”

But this time right here, right now, is actually the complete opposite of the end. Sure it’s the end of bland school lunches, “D-hall”, and Google classroom assignments due at 11:59, but it is also the beginning of our transition from a snotty nosed toddler, a mischievous kid, and a rebellious teenager into a fullygrown, independent adult.

Some of us will go to college, some of us will go to work, and some of us will still be going to high school parties. But what we all have in common is this day, May 17, 2024, is the defining moment of our leap into adulthood.

It is time for us to go buy a house, or start a family, or start a career, but most importantly it is time for us to go start our lives. No matter what we decide to do, or the next path we decide to take, our future is now solely in our hands, and it is time to start building it for ourselves.

We are now starting it with a clean slate. Maybe you didn’t have the best grades, maybe you got ISP a few times, or maybe you were in Saturday school every other week, but all of that doesn’t matter now. Because regardless of all of that we are all walking across the stage today as equals. It is time for us to start new, and I hope everyone will make the most of this amazing opportunity we have been given. I am excited for my future and the future of everyone sitting in front of me here today.

I want to say thank you to everyone who supported me and believed in my potential, making it possible for me to get to where I am today as Class of 2024 salutatorian. Congratulations to all the 2024 graduates. I wish you all a fulfilling, prosperous, and successful future.“

Valedictorian Abigail Bell

What an honor it is to stand before you this evening as the class of 2024 valedictorian. I would like to express my appreciation to all of my teachers, band directors, friends, and family members who helped me get to this place.

I would like to give a big thank you to Mrs. Adcock for helping me perfect my speech. I would like to give the biggest thank you to my little brother, Thaddaeus Bell. I will forever be thankful for what you have said and done to help me get to this place, especially this past year.

I truly never thought I would be standing here in this position. Valedictorian seemed like an impossible thing to achieve until Mrs. Graham informed me that I had a shot at it. I decided then that I really wanted to achieve this, so one step at a time I pushed myself to achieve a goal I once thought impossible.

I remember walking into the high school for the first day of my freshman year and feeling nervous, anxious, and excited. I remember thinking about all the classes I had to take over the next four years.

I’m sure we all remember feeling intimidated and afraid of the unknown things each of those classes would hold. But as the school year went on, we began to realize that high school was not as scary and intimidating as we had led ourselves to believe. We took each day, each class one step at a time after that.

Soon, we found ourselves not being intimidated or afraid of the unknown, but rather we found ourselves embracing it. The unknown is not something to fear and run from, but rather something to explore and embrace.

Whether you are attending college or going straight into the workforce, it is all unknown waters to us. Looking at the picture as a whole is important for us to set goals for our futures, but we must remember goals are achieved one step at a time.

We have all experienced something that takes one step at a time. For me, it is standing here with the honor of being the valedictorian, for others it was making it into the final rounds of sports, doing well in band, or doing well in FFA.

For all of us sitting here now, we are about to achieve something that seemed like a thousand miles long, and it all began with a single step four years ago. We have all worked, sacrificed, and stressed to get to this moment, so congratulations to the class of 2024.

As we end this chapter of our lives, it is important to remember that we decide how our future will go. I heard something a few months ago that I would like to share.

“Hate has four letters, but so does love. Enemies has seven letters, but so does friends. Lying has five letters, but so does truth. Cry has three letters, but so does joy. Negativity has ten letters, but so does positivity. Failure has seven letters, but so does success.”

Life has two sides, and we get to choose which side we live on. I encourage each of you to choose the better side of life as we start a new chapter of our lives. Not every step we take will be easy or quick; in fact, we might stumble or fall on some steps, but we have the choice and ability to get back up and try again.

Winston Churchill once said, “Success is not final, failure is not fatal, it is the courage to continue that counts.”

It is up to us to have the courage and faith to continue.

I wish all of my fellow graduates the best in their next steps. In closing, I would like to leave you with the words of Gary Bolding, “Your families are extremely proud of you. You can’t imagine the sense of relief they are experiencing. This would be a most opportune time to ask for money.” Congratulations to the Class of 2024.