Merritt Herald Graduation 2026

Good evening, everyone.

I would like to acknowledge that we are gathered here tonight on the traditional and unceded territories of the Nlaka’pamux and Syilx peoples. We honour their relationship with these lands and waters. We also recognize and value the Metis peoples for their contributions to our community.

My name is Kolt Alexander, and I have the honour and privilege of being the valedictorian for the class of 2026. Tonight is one of the most important nights of our lives. After today, we will officially be heading into the reality of adulthood.

MSS has over 120 graduates this year. We’ve

always been a large class. From day one, we filled classrooms, hallways, the MPR, and almost every other space MSS has to offer. With that came endless energy, a lot of noise, and a presence that was impossible to ignore.

But what really defines us isn’t just our numbers, it’s what we’ve been through together. Not every graduating class can say they have experienced what we have endured. We started high school at the tail end of COVID, trying to reconnect and relearn how to be around each other. We needed to figure out and redefine what normal meant.

Just as things began to settle, a few months into grade eight, our community was hit with a devastating flood that changed lives overnight. We had to take residence at CMS where it is was pretty much just a small school filled with every grade eight student. This gave us the opportunity to connect with the entire grade and to cause some chaos that only grade eights are capable of.

Through the years to follow, we

Valedictorian

dealt with many other challenges. Through every disruption, every setback, every moment that could have pulled us apart, we were there for each other.

We weren’t always perfect, and maybe not always on time... but we showed up. We showed up for our classes, for our friends, and for each other. We showed up when it mattered most.

What stands out the most to me isn’t just that we made it through those challenges, but how we did it. We adapted and we supported one another through the tough times. We found ways to laugh, even when things felt uncertain. In doing so, we built something stronger than just school memories; we built a community of 2008s.

To our teachers and EAs: thank you for sticking with us through it all. You didn’t just teach lessons; you provided stability when things felt unpredictable. You believed in us, even on days when we didn’t believe in ourselves.

To our families and care givers: thank you for your patience, your

support, and for being our foundation through everything. None of us would be here without you.

To our principals: thank you for dealing with our shenanigans for the last five years. We weren’t perfect but I hope we didn’t put you through too much.

To our support workers and counsellors: thank you for always being there for us when we needed you. You play so many roles in our lives, and this night wouldn’t have been possible without you.

To the secretaries: maintenance staff, bus drivers, and everyone else who works to make the school run, thank you for hard work and dedication.

To the rest of our invited guests: thank you for coming out to support us and watch us graduate tonight. It means more then you know.

And finally, to my classmates: there might only be one valedictorian, but this moment belongs to all of us. Every late night, every challenge, every small victory along the way... all of it led to this.

We didn’t just have gradua -

tion handed to us. We earned it in ways that go beyond grades or transcripts. As we look ahead, the future might still feel uncertain. Some of us might take a gap year, some of us might hit the workforce, and some of us might head to post-secondary to continue our education.

If the past five years have proven anything, it’s that we are capable of facing the unexpected. We know how to adapt, how to persevere, and how to keep moving forward, even when the path isn’t a straight line.

So, wherever life takes us next, let’s carry that with us. Let’s remember that we overcame so much more than we ever thought we could. And let it remind us of what we’re capable of achieving anything.

Class of 2026, we are more than just graduates of Merritt Secondary. We are a class that endured, adapted, and came out stronger.

Congratulations. We made it. Thank you.

CONGRATULATIONS CLASS OF 2026

From the Nicola Valley Teachers’ Union

Your teachers watched you learn, grow, overcome challenges and achieve your goals

As you begin the next chapter, we wish you success, happiness and confidence in all that lies ahead.

You are the fruit of our labour. Your teachers wish you success in the future

Indigenous Valedictorian

here today to celebrate this monumental achievement.

Let us begin with a land acknowledgment. Today we are gathered on the traditional, ancestral, and unceded territory of the Nɬeʔkepmx and Syilx Peoples. We honor them and their relationship to the territory, and we with open hearts appreciate their stewardship in the past, present, and future. And to the Métis community, we also acknowledge your contributions, history and culture that continue to enrich this region.

To our principal and vice principals, we thank you for your leadership and hard work ensuring that our place of education can run smoothly so that we can learn, grow, and thrive.

Mason Bradley

Henle, way̓ good day and welcome. I would like to thank all those in attendance here today, our honored guests, Indigenous Elders, teachers, school staff, our families, caregivers and ancestors, as well as fellow graduates. It is an honor to see so many faces

To our teachers and the rest of our school staff, thank you for teaching us not only from the textbook but from the heart as well. Your knowledge has helped us more than you may know. We thank you for answering all our questions and guiding us along our educational journey and ensuring our experience here was the best it could be.

Graduation has always felt like some-

thing far away, that there would always be more time for us, more to be had on these grounds. And when the time came, future versions of us would be prepared to take on the world. And yet, it’s here now, and the chapter is changing; our lives are moving forward.

Grads, we’ve shared countless experiences. Our school’s filled with memories, victories, and learning opportunities. We’ve made friends and relationships that will last into the distant future. We’ve enjoyed countless school-wide events and field trips in our classes which have memories that warm the heart and ease the soul for years to come. But most of all we were all students here, watching each other grow, seeing loud and disorderly grade 8 and 9 classes become focused senior classes.

When we entered this high school, we had just been through a flood, fires and a global pandemic. These past 5 years, while filled with many good memories, have not been the easiest, but they were ours. We’ve made the most of it all. We have persevered, and we’ve changed for the best, molded thought our experiences

into the strong, smart, and capable individuals that you see here today.

Some of us are continuing to postsecondary education; others are entering trades, work, or going on an entirely different path. It’s more than exciting; it is invigorating. But it’s also nerveracking and frightening to leave behind what we have become accustomed to, but that’s alright, we’ll face the challenges presented to us and we’ll deal with the same as we’ve always.

We have proven our abilities, our learning, our dedication, our adaptability, and our drive to reach our goals.

So, as this chapter ends and the next begins, let us go forth and carry with us these fundamental lessons into our futures so that we can move with confidence and continue to grow through life.

To my fellow graduates, this moment belongs to us, so let’s enjoy it as best we can.

So, I leave you with this: Congratulations, class of 2026. May our futures be beautiful and thank you for the experience of a lifetime.

CONGRATULATIONS

to two EXTRAORDINARY GRADUTES

May you always have the confidence to pursue your dreams, the wisdom to learn from every experience, and the courage to follow your own path.

The future is yours to create, and your journey is only just beginning.

Scholarship Recipents 2026

SCHOLARSHIP AWARDED TO

Alberta (Berta) Fraser

Amen Lalli Memorial Award

Arnica Contracting

Isabel Chemago and Reegan Miller

Daniel Skotnicki

Hayden Briscoe, Jesse Peters

Best Western Mason Bradley

Beta Sigma Phi

Charles M. Suttie

Christine Perkins

City of Merritt

Crime Stoppers

CUPE - Local 847

District Authority Scholarships

Douglas Lake Cattle Co.

Elks Lodge #441

Eves Family Bursary

George Armstrong

Harris and Co.

Hospital Employees Union

Indigenous Advisory Council (Cherish Oppenheim)

Infracon

Infracon - Lower Nicola Site Service

Jamara Joyal

Jeremy Bain Memorial

Kamloops Blazers Hockey

Merritt Sikh Society

Merritt Minor Hockey

Merritt Volleyball Association

Mohinder Basi Memorial

Monte McLean Memorial

Mr. Mikes

Nicola Masonic Lodge #53

Nicola-Similkameen Principal &

Vice Principal Association

Nicola Valley Cruisers

Nicola Valley Dirt Riders Association

Nicola Valley Healthcare Auxiliary

Nicola Valley Holding Co. Bursary

Tyler Eisinga

Mason Bradley, Emily Marinusse

Brooklyn Dodding

Jayda Starrs, Henry Hodson

Ella Kinakin

Ryan Ouimet

Kolt Alexander, Mason Bradley, Hayden

Briscoe, Swayam Chauhan, Isabel Chemago, Andrew Denton, Kayla Dunlop, Nolan Garcia, Kenny Hilton, Henry Hodson, Josh Lemmens, Brady Nendick, Ryan Ouimet, Alexis Marshall, Kylie Pater, Jesse Peters, Justice Robertson, Alex Schweitzer, Von Semke, Talon SpahanSpence, Evan Sterling, Kessa Zakall

Duke Parkes

Brooklyn Dodding, Nevaeh Parr

Brooklyn Dodding, Jack Parsons, Jayda

Starrs

Evin Ahuja

Nevaeh Parr

Alexis Marshall, Kylie Pater

Mason Bradley, Reegan Miller, Griffin Stump

Von Semke

Jayda Starrs, Griffin Stump

Victoria Baxter

Andrew Denton

Evan Sterling

Swayamsinh Chauhan, Andrew Denton

Andrew Denton, Gavin Mouland

Alexis Marshall, Evi Slanzi, Kessa Zakall

Andrew Denton

Henry Hodson, Madison Johnson

Nolan Garcia

Gavin Mouland, Brooklynn Dodding

Kessa Zakall

Evan Sterling

Hayden Briscoe

Brooklyn Dodding, Madi Johnson, Reegan

Miller

Hayden Briscoe

NVIT Brayden Black, Hayden Briscoe, Heath

SCHOLARSHIP AWARDED TO

Garcia, Kenny Hilton, Nevaeh Jackson, Estrella Jackson-Alvear, Rayanna Meeker, Reegan Miller, Jack Parsons, Rayne Readman, Devan Rohrke, Daniel Skotnicki, Ava Spinks, Jayda Starrs, April Swakum, Jaiden Veinotte, Aeva York, Wyatt Heard Ludtke

Nicola Valley Teacher’s Union - Member Andrew Denton

Nicola Valley Teacher’s Union - Non-Member Swayam Chauhan

Nicola Valley Teacher’s Union - Service Brooklyn Dodding

Nicola Valley Teacher’s Union - TA Emily Marinusse

Nicola Valley Teacher’s Union - Trades Hyden Briscoe

Old Time Fiddlers

Patricia #33 Rebekah Lodge

Rock Solid Industries

Rotary Club of Merritt

Broman, Calvin Brooks, Mario Camastro, Isabel Chemago, Sienna Desilets, Nolan

Nolan Garcia, Ryan Ouimet

Austin Davis

Griffin Stump, Von Semke

Henry Hodson, Madison Johnson

Royal Canadian Legion Kolt Alexander, Jesse Peters, Ryan Ouimet, Joshua Lemmens, Von Semke, Alexis Marshall, Hayden Briscoe, Daniel Skotnicki

Suki Randhawa

Teck Highland Valley Copper

Thompson-Nicola Regional District

Ty Pozzobon Memorial

Yellowhead Community Service Society

- Education/Healthcare

Kolt Alexander

Nolan Garcia

Emily Marinusse, Isabel Chemago

Josh Lemmens

Kyleen Viray

Yellowhead Community Service Society - Trades Jason Karlson

Cmolik Foundation Scholarship

Beedie Luminaries

Daniel Skotnicki and Alexis Marshal

Brooklyn Dodding and Kylie Pater

Schulich Illuminaries Scholarship Nominees Henry Hodson and Kylie Pater

Congratulations to the Graduating Class of 2026!

Shackan Indian Band are proud to celebrate your hard work, dedication, and accomplishments. Graduation is an important milestone that reflects your strength, perseverance, and commitment to your future.

As you move forward into new opportunities and adventures, remember to carry your knowledge, culture, and community pride with you wherever life takes you.

We wish each graduate continued success, happiness, and bright futures ahead.

Graduates, you’ve trained hard, played the long game, and reached the championship round. Congratulations on earning your diploma! May your future be filled with wins, opportunities, and unforgettable memories. Game On!

Congratulations Graduates!

Like any worthwhile journey, success comes through hard work, perseverance and dedication. Douglas Lake Cattle Company is proud to recognize the achievements of DUKE PARKES and AEVA YORK and celebrate this milestone with them.

May your future be filled with opportunity, adventure and success. Congratulations on a job well done, and best wishes to all graduates in the Class of 2026!

Ceremony

Ware, BSc, CPA, CA

2032 Quilchena Avenue, P.O. Box 700, Merritt, BC V1K 1B8

Tel: (250) 378-2215

• reception@carrieware.ca

Wishing you both all the success and happiness as you begin this exciting new chapter. May you always believe in yourself, follow your dreams, and make the most of every opportunity that comes your way. We are so proud of you and can’t wait to see what your future holds.

Congratulations Jacob Davis and William Stewart on your graduation!

From all of us at Highland Valley Copper—proud to support the next generation of leaders and innovators.

teck.com

GRADUATES!

May your future be bright and prosperous CONGRATULATIONS GRADUATES!

GRADE 12 (Dogwood)

Remington Dahlen

Atreyu Davies

Aereahna Frank

Nicola Garcia-John

Kail McIvor

Mary-Jane Webster

Storm Wynne

Lily Gilchrist

Talon Spahan-Spence

Certificate

Adeline Seward, HCA

Diploma

Simon Cisco Jr. ENRT

Lizzie Shuter, Assoc. of Arts

Undergraduate (Bachelors)

Ericka Boggs, Civil Engineering

Shawa Harris, BSW

Graduate (Masters/Doctorate)

Aly Ledene, MSW

Danielle Jensen, Master of Occ Therapy

Sue Sterling-Bur, Dr. of Phil

Best wishes on your future! Congratulations

From the Upper Nicola Band - We are so proud of all that you’ve accomplished.

and resume, post-

participating bands the opportunity to gain hands-on experience in up to four areas of interest while building valuable workplace skills. Designed to be flexible and tailored to individual goals, the program provides paid training, mentorship, a Certificate of Completion, and an Employment Reference Letter upon successful completion.

(congratulations) to the class of 2026!