Every morning, senior class treasurer Zaria Randall-Reed wakes up ready to make the most out of her final year of high school as each school event will be her last. Like Randall-Reed, seniors throughout campus aim to make the most of their final high school opportunities, with sentimental moments and what makes a “last” special varying.
For Randall-Reed, leadership class has marked senior year as a time to remember through participating in school events, as well as encouraging others to enjoy activities they can get involved in.
“It’s the last time to do these events, and you want to make everything as memorable as possible,” Randall-Reed said. “Finally being in Leadership meant that I could be a part of involving people, and I’ve made it a goal to try to involve more people who aren’t in the classroom because it’s always more fun.”
Having hard work and time dedicated to planning school-wide activities like Homecoming has made class events for Randall-Reed more sentimental milestones.
“For Homecoming, I was putting in at least 20 hours a week – after school making the poster and going to flower parties every weekend,” Randall-Reed said. “The fact I was in the class and that it was more of an obligation for me made it easier to put in all that commitment, but also getting to do it with my friends that were in the class made it special.”
For seniors in positions of sports leadership, including badminton team captain senior Paul Kim, senior year means the conclusion of high school sports seasons. Kim has been on the team since his sophomore year and hopes to make the most of the limited time he has left with his teammates.
“It’s sad that I’m actually graduating, and I wish I could spend more time with people like the underclassmen and the people I’ve created strong bonds with. With the little time we have left, we’re just trying to cram in everything and spend more time together as a team,” Kim said. “I hope we can hang out during the summer and play for fun.”
Senior night is often viewed as the most memorable night as senior athletes are celebrated by underclassmen teammates, commonly with posters and gift baskets. With it finally being her turn to have a senior night, senior Danielle Wong feels sentimental over having an impact on the underclassmen she helped grow in badminton who showed appreciation.
“I feel like it was really rewarding hearing the speeches from those who made my poster. They talked about how I helped them, the JV girls in mixed, and I sometimes coach in practice,” Wong said. “It was really rewarding hearing that my teaching and mentoring helped them. I feel like my purpose was fulfilled.”
The end of the school year for extracurriculars, including Yearbook, marks a time for distributing a project cultivated throughout the year. Yearbook co-editor-in-chief James Kohara Demalta views the end of the year as a time to celebrate the hard work he and his classmates have dedicated to the class.
“Every year, at the end of the year, it feels like we’ve created something pretty special,” Kohara Demalta said. “It’s really fun when we get the yearbooks because we get to look over the whole year and remember stuff that happened in the fall semester, or specific photos because that photo can capture a moment so well. It’s a whole overview of the year, and it’s a great way to look back.”
Sentimental “lasts” often characterize what milestones are important to students, inside and outside of school. Randall-Reed believes it is important for seniors to find what hobbies and extracurriculars interest them so they can make the most of their final moments in high school.
“For me, senior year, all the activities are special, but getting to do them with my friends is what’s special to me. Getting to have final moments and final memories is what’s important to me,” Randall-Reed said. “I think it’s important not to hold yourself back from anything because everything’s your last, so if there’s anything you are interested in, get some friends and make an event out of it because that makes it more fun.”