RRHS sends 2002 grads forth

Ken Johnston
Editor

Rainy River District Board of Education Trustee Ron McAlister called them, “A special group of people.”
He was referring to the Rainy River High School graduating class of 2002 and their exceptional efforts during the flood scare June 11-13, in Rainy River. He also complimented the rest of the RRHS student body and the students of Riverview School and asked the audience to give them a hand, which they did.
43 grade 12, OAC and Alternative Education graduates were honoured at commencement ceremonies. Many received bursaries and scholarships (see list in this edition of the paper).
Valedictorian Neil Ivall walked the audience of about 400 people through the great times the class of 2002 had been through at RRHS. “In grade nine we thought it would take forever for us to get through (high school). How fast time flies.”
He said high school is about growing up and thanked great teachers for making that happen. He specifically thanked retiring history teacher Marvin MacDonald for his wealth of information and also noted how special teacher Paul Elliott was to them both in the class room and in the Owl Theatre productions of Dracula and Anne Frank.
Ivall also noted that the many parents and volunteers that supported them as they grew throughout their high school careers needed to be thanked.
His final advice to his classmates was, “Be ready to expect the unexpected in the future.”