MORGANTOWN — Do you have your knife?
Is it sharp?
Whether you’re facing down an anaconda in the Amazon, tending to a wounded barnyard animal in a gas station parking lot or navigating a path through life, two things are certain — you don’t know what’s around the corner, and you better be prepared.
Reverend Ben Tuel tied these seemingly disparate thoughts together during his commencement address at May 25’s 18th Annual Commencement, at Trinity Christian School, explaining to the Class of 2018 that “life just gets crazy sometimes,” and the only way to know you won’t be dumped into the storm is to have Jesus on board with you.
“That’s the only way you can really be prepared for anything,” he said.
As it turns out, preparing seems to be a bit of specialty for the class of 29 graduates with more than $900,000 in accepted scholarships and north of 6,000 hours of volunteer work. More than half the class are West Virginia Promise Scholars.
Valedictorian Emily Saurborn is among that number. For Saurborn, Friday mark-ed the end of a chapter that began on the first day of kindergarten.
“I’m excited, and I’m a little sad. I’ve been with half the class for 13 years. We’re so small, and we’re really close. We’re close with each other. We’re close with our teachers,” she said. “It’s going to be scary to go out and not see them every day.”
Saurborn said she plans to attend WVU with the goal of attending medical school.
Dr. Lois Campbell, who heads the school’s science program, offered remarks on behalf of the faculty.
She said she’s appreciative for all the laughter, tears and prayers she’s shared along the way with the new grads.
“I hope you’ve all learned great things happen in small schools,” she said.
