Elizabethtown townlively.com
JUNE 19, 2024
SERVING THE LOCAL COMMUNITIES SINCE 1954
Elizabethtown Class of 2024 urged to step out of comfort zone
VOL LXV • NO 19
Mount Calvary grads encouraged to reflect on growth BY CATHY MOLITORIS
Jaycen Conrad BY CATHY MOLITORIS
as well.” Mikaela Condran was named salutatorian. In her speech, she encouraged her classmates not to be intimidated by the current state of the world. “As we begin our young adulthoods in a complicated and turbulent world where college and work are only a part, we also have the responsibility to consider the See Elizabethtown pg 5
See Mount Calvary pg 3
Mikaela Condran
Jillian Wivell
action and create the future they want. “Do not simply wait around for an opportunity to fall directly on your lap,” he said. “The world before us is brimming with infinite possibilities and opportunities, and it is up to us to go and find them. Not just to find the opportunities that have been laid out for us, but to create them for ourselves - and maybe others
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“The world awaits, and at times when it seems dark, selfish and hopeless, we can choose to be the people that are remembered with fondness, the people that stepped out of the clique, out of society’s expectations and out of the crowd to be a positive influence in the lives of others,” she said. “Let’s leave our own original impact on our community and our world by stepping out of the safe zone with bold confidence in who each of us were created to be.” Jaycen Conrad was named valedictorian at the ceremony. He urged his classmates to look back on the time they spent in school, remembering the friends they made, the teachers they liked and the athletic or academic accomplishments they achieved. “I encourage you to take time to cherish the moments that are left in the past, because once you walk across this stage tonight, you are on a path straight to the future,” he said. He also told his peers to take
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embers of the Elizabethtown Area High School Class of 2024 were encouraged to take risks, work hard and step outside of their comfort zones in speeches delivered by students and faculty during a graduation ceremony held on June 4 at the LCBC Manheim campus. “Floating down this stream of life we are all in, through all the bends and turns, it is easy to let the water take you, close your eyes and relax as the current does the work,” said senior speaker Jillian Wivell. “Until you hit a rock, then another and then run straight into a log, all because you’re not paying attention but letting the forces around you do the work as you simply follow. On the contrary, it is far more difficult to swim against the current.” She encouraged her peers to go against the flow, noting that fighting upstream will make them stronger.
Speaking to her fellow Class of 2024 graduates, Mount Calvary Christian School valedictorian Alivia Rutt encouraged her peers to reflect on the past while looking to the future. “These past four years have gone by quickly,” she said. “Beginning as little freshmen wearing masks, we felt slightly disconnected during our first high school memories. But that is not where we have ended. Today, we are closer than ever. Through meaningful memories - Bible studies, holding hands during prayer or worshiping on the beach and streets during senior trip - God has had His hand in every moment, bringing us closer together in our love for each other.” Mount Calvary celebrated the graduation of 27 students on May 31 at the school, 629 N. Holly St., Elizabethtown. The ceremony included remarks from Chris Etter, secondary principal; an invocation by Elise McKelvey; Scripture reading by Abigail Yordy; and testimony by Kiley Etter. Ava Fouse and Alana Kelley provided special music. Bradley Burkholder, a member of the Class of 2005, delivered the commencement address. Alivia, the daughter of Jamie and Tiann Rutt of Elizabethtown, reminded her fellow graduates to never forsake God, no matter what the future brings. “We must always be intentional to act like Christ … and to act on God’s call and conviction