Congratulations, Graduates! Juan Diego Catholic High School

IC photo/Laura Vallejo

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DRAPER — As the clock ticked down the last few minutes prior to Juan Diego Catholic High School’s graduation ceremony, each seat in the auditorium was filled.

Family members and friends of the Class of 2018, patiently waiting, read the program and cheered and smiled as they found their student listed there.

Juan Diego Catholic School Vice Principal John Colosimo welcomed everyone. He described how, as their families and friends were gathering in the auditorium, the members of the Class 2018 were proceeding to the grotto where the school carillon would sing “Salve Regina” in honor of Mary, the Queen of Tender Mercy, “who show Jesus to us as we complete our journey,” he said.

At the grotto, the Class of 2018 offered a prayer together and each student placed a rose at the foot of the statue of Our Lady of Guadalupe. (The rose petals will be dried and distributed to the incoming JDCHS freshmen in the fall).

“From the grotto each student enters the school, where they inscribe their name in the Book of Graduates. This book will also be signed by future graduating classes and become part of the Juan Diego Catholic School legacy,” Colosimo said.

The graduates had previously attended a farewell Mass on May 18.

“We all have fears,” senior Jered Mariani said at the Mass. “We all have something that stands as a wall between us and some unknown life on the other side. People like Dr. Colosimo, Mrs. Flanagan, Coach Dado, Dr. Arnold, Ms. Fank and Mr. B … they can see us standing on the other side of our walls …  on the other side of our fears. They can see it ... when sometimes we cannot.

“So many of the faculty and coaches and staff … they see us on the other side of our walls ... on the other side of our fears,” he continued. “That, to me, is what Juan Diego is all about. That is what sets us apart, that distinguishes us. That is why we are really here at this school.”

At the graduation, as the seniors took their seats on the stage in the auditorium, their stoles, which were fashioned in the JDCHS colors and embroidered with the school cross, made them stand out.

After the procession of the administration and faculty of JDCHS, the national anthem was played. Sister Catherine Kamphaus, CSC, associate superintendent of Utah Catholic Schools then gave the invocation. Dr. Galey Colosimo, Juan Diego Catholic High School principal, greeted the audience and presented the valedictorian and salutatorian of the Class 2018.

Salutatorian Matthew Tsortanidis started out by saying that his last name has always been pronounced in many different ways and that is what has made him who he is. “It’s a great honor and privilege to deliver this address today,” he said.

Tsortanidis reflected on how many of the graduates are the same age as the school. “What’s truly unique about where we all come from is that we will be the graduating class where many of us were born in 1999, the same year the school was founded,” he said. “We are exactly as old as the school we are graduating from, which will never happen again. We are the only class in the history of Juan Diego where the graduating class grew up simultaneously with the school. All of us, in varying degrees, have seen the school from its beginning to what it is now. We have been watching the school grow as the school has watched us grow.”

In her address, Valedictorian Elainna K. Ng talked about a sense of identity and how the education they received at Juan Diego helped her and her peers develop it.

“The teenage years are a time of discovering our identity,” she said. “This is the time that we begin to develop our character, and that is where Juan Diego’s mission becomes imperative. This school strives to develop the person holistically, and not just through academics.”

Mark Longe, superintendent of Utah Catholic Schools, and Dr. Colosimo conferred diplomas and presented awards to the JDCHS Class of 2018. The 182 graduates will attend universities and colleges around the United States, including the United States Naval Academy.

2018 Juan Diego CHS Awards 

Senior Farewell Mass:

Saint Joseph Award: Abigail Rose Shemwell

Saint Joseph Award: Jose Francisco Galang

Katharine Drexel Award: Justin Andrews

Saint Francis Assisi Award: Rachel Angellique LeMelle

Amyntor Award: Zachary R. Hoffman

Saint Christopher Award: Katrina Rose Price

Christ the Teacher Award: David Hausser

Baccalaureate Mass:

Saint Juan Diego Boy Award: Christian Oliver Carabajal

Saint Juan Diego Girl Award: Abigail Rose Shemwell

Our Lady of Guadalupe Award: Ms. Sherrita Magalde

Commencement:

Saint Sebastian Award: Zachary R. Hoffman

Saint Cecilia Award: Thomas Moore

Saint Thomas Aquinas Award: Jose Francisco Galang

Saint Teresa of Avila: Elainna K. Ng

Spiritus Donorum Dinner:

These awards are part of the school wide awards and are mentioned at Commencement but were given to the recipient back in December.

Saint Michael the Archangel Award: Blake York

Spiritus Donorum Award: Chris Long

SCC Employees of the Year: Emperatriz Nava and Susana Vasquez-Martinon

Teacher of the Year: David Hausser