LIMESTONE, Maine — The Loring Job Corps Class of 2014 held their commencement ceremonies on Friday at the ballroom of the Job Corps Center in Limestone.
A graduating class of 41 students gathered with friends, family and school faculty to celebrate the conclusion of their education and training at Job Corps.
Job Corps is a no-cost education and career technical training program administered by the U.S. Department of Labor that helps young people ages 16 through 24 improve the quality of their lives and opportunities for career advancement.
Job Corps Student Government Association President Dean Rogers began the ceremonial speeches by congratulating this year’s graduates and urging them to move on to bigger and better things as they depart from Job Corps.
“Here you are — at the best and brightest moment throughout all of your time at Job Corps … Graduation. “Where do you go from here?,” asked Rogers. “The answer lays within the students graduating here today. Some of you will go out and find a job. Some of you will return home, and for others you will advance further in your training.”
Rogers explained the particular trade or skills each graduating student learned at Job Corps is not the only thing they will be leaving with.
“Some of the most important things you will take from Job Corps are the things you have learned about yourself,” said Rogers. “You have all worked hard to get here and you all have your minds set on what you want to do with your futures. Your dreams are straight ahead. Only time will tell what you will accomplish. If we look at ourselves now through the eyes of our former selves, we wouldn’t recognize the people we have become. The biggest thing I have learned, and again, I’m speaking on behalf of many of us, is that we only have one life, so we should enjoy it.”
Rogers closed his tribute to the graduates with a few final words about how to learn and grow throughout the future.
“We have two options in life; to accept things as how they are, or to take responsibility and change them,” said Rogers. “To everyone who touched your lives, say thank you. To parents who stood by you no matter what, to teachers who tried to instill a passion in you to learn, to the administrators who wanted to make your time at Job Corps unforgettable, to the friends who stuck with us, say thank you. If opportunity does not knock, build a door. Life is your oyster and the world is a pearl. Life is what we make of it.”
Next to the podium was the 2014 class’ guest speaker, WAGM television reporter Shawn Cunningham. She spoke to the graduates about the difference they can make in the world now that they have graduated from Job Corps and will soon be blazing their own trail into the real world.
“You may know exactly what you want to do in the future, and you may realize those dreams. On the other hand, life could throw you some big surprises, and you could find yourself doing something completely different than what you had planned,” said Cunningham. “Your degree is something like having a life boat. It will keep you afloat until you find your own particular niche. In the rapidly changing world that we live in now, you have to be able to adapt.”
The student speakers at the ceremony were Sarah Lanning and Jacob Williams. Williams took the podium first to share some stories about his experience at Job Corps.
“We arrived at Loring Job Corps — after a long day of riding on the bus — not knowing what we would find,” said Williams. “We have accomplished many things while here at Job Corps, and it was not without the help of fellow students, staff and other Job Corps faculty who all played a vital role in getting us where we are today. This is not the end of our journey. We are excited about these new prospects in our lives, but also sad about everything we will be leaving behind.”
Lanning reiterated Williams’ sentiments by congratulating all her fellow graduates, despite admittedly being quite nervous in front of such a large audience.
“For those of you who know me, shy is not a word you use to describe me. However, despite what you all may believe, my ears are bright red, my heart is beating much faster than normal and my hands have a slight tremor,” said Lanning. “I could stand up here and tell you that I spent all last week writing this speech, but I’d only be fooling myself.”
“I’d like to begin by congratulating all of us. From the very beginning we were told that we could do whatever our hearts desired. As we became older and wiser, we realized that’s not the way life is. Some of us were told we would never be anything. We all had different dreams. Some of us wanted to be the next Kobe Bryant, Jeff Gordon or Biggie Smalls,” said Lanning. “Our dreams changed as we grew up, but despite all of our trials and tribulations and all of our differences, against all odds, we overcame.”
Lanning concluded her speech by explaining her foresight, or lack thereof, toward the future, and what she hopes for the days ahead.
“I wish I could stand here today and say that every one of us is going to leave Job Corps and find a great paying job and live a happy and successful life, but in reality, I don’t know what the world has in store for any of us,” said Lanning. “However, today, we stand on the brink of a new chapter in our lives. I would like us all to take a moment and reflect on everything we have achieved here. Take a moment to look back and appreciate just how far we have all come. Today is our day.”
