July 2, 2025 at 9:04 a.m.

LIVE WITH A PURPOSE

SALUTE TO GRADS: Catholic Central School Valedictorian and Salutatorian speeches

Catholic Central School Valedictorian Macey Burns and Salutatorian Isabella Lape

By Macey Burns

Catholic Central School Valedictorian

Let me begin with a few thank-yous to the people who made this possible.

First, I want to thank all of our teachers and faculty, but especially Mr. and Mrs. Hannah, Mrs. Rizzo, and Mr. Novotny for not only their support in the classroom, but for taking time away from their own lives to support our Crusader community.

Thank you to Mrs. Aileen Ryan for creating a safe place for me in my early years at Catholic High. Thank you to Mrs. Bariteau for being the backbone and heart of CCHS. No one loves this school like you do.

Thank you to the two best athletic directors around — Mrs. Becker and Mr. Mahoney — who work tirelessly together to make Holy Trinity Pride something to be truly proud of. My best high school memories have taken place on the softball field and volleyball court, and none of them would have been possible without either of you. And a special congratulations to Mrs. Becker on not her first … but her second retirement. We wish you all the best.

Thank you to all my teammates and coaches past and present. I have been so lucky to put on purple and gold with you. And a big shout out to my BOOM sisters — our dugout days will always be our best days. As I reflect on how lucky I have been to have shared the court with all of my teammates the past six years, I carry the memory of the late Danielle Marceline. I am lucky to have called her a teammate and a friend, and she has left an everlasting mark on CCHS volleyball.

To my best friend, Skyler, for being the sunshine in my rainy days the past five years.

To my Mimi, Pop, Aunt Mary and the rest of my extended family — because it truly does take a village.

To my sisters — Maddie and McCayla — who cheer so loudly for me that I’ve never noticed who hasn’t.

Lastly, I want to take a moment to thank the strongest person I know — my mom. Mom, you have held my world together through every failure and every success. You have given me strength, patience and love beyond words. Thank you for being my rock, my support system, my biggest cheerleader and my best friend. I hope today, you’re as proud of yourself as you are of me — because I couldn’t have done this without you.

We’ve had a lot of people behind us but now it’s time to look at what we’ve done, and what it’s meant to be part of this class. We celebrate the last four years. We celebrate our Crusader victories — basketball sectional and state championships, a flag football sectional title in their first season, a Powderpuff shutout, bonfires and unlimited s’mores, and school dances that always ended too soon. However what I’ve learned the past four years is that success isn’t about perfection — it’s about presence. And grief, as hard as it is, taught me that love leaves echoes we carry forward.

As we find joy in the diplomas, memories and achievements, let’s not forget the late nights, moments of failure and quiet victories.

The truth is, if the last four years of your life were anything like mine, the hardest parts happened when no one was watching. From the outside, it looks like I have it all together. But on the inside … my life can feel like a mess. To be honest, when I found out in March that I was sitting at No. 1, when applying for scholarships, Mrs. Becker asked me if I was going to pass out because I looked whiter than a ghost. I then considered tanking my classes for a solid 10 minutes just to avoid giving this speech and well … here we are.

We’ve all been shaped by different things, most of them always getting overlooked by transcripts and attendance records. Some of us have lost loved ones, navigated family challenges, or had a hard time holding on to friendships. Some of us have carried the weight of grief, anxiety or depression to school with us every single day. We all showed up. We all kept going. We’re all here.

Three weeks ago, I found out — on the same day — that I was valedictorian and a softball Section II All-Star. Only four players in the Colonial Council get that title and it’s something that I have been striving for since seventh grade. Then my day continued like every other day for the past 18 years, and I thought, “What now?”

That’s the thing, though, isn’t it?

Society makes us believe that success is found in numbers. Success is measured by your GPA, your class rank, your sports stats or the money in your bank account.

But the truth is, one day none of this will matter.

• Not the test that made you anxious for a week.

• Not the serve or free throw you missed.

• Not the number of times you were late to first period (which, for me, was nearly every day; shout out to Mrs. G. for still greeting me with a smile and good morning Macey despite the chaos I brought through the door.)

Yes, success is measured in numbers. Just not the ones we think.

Our greatest successes are found in:

• The one friend who had your back no matter what.

• The number of people you made feel like they belong, even just once.

• The number of times you said yes, even when fear said no.

• The number of times you got back up after falling.

• The number of times you choose courage over comfort.

For me, my biggest success is in the number 90.

Umpires always ask me, “Why 90, that’s not a softball number.”

Ninety was my dad’s football number and now it’s the number I wear with pride. It’s the number that makes me, me — more than any title or award.

On a regular Wednesday in January, 10 years ago, I lost my dad in a snowmobile accident. A day that has changed me in every way imaginable.

Loss has a way of clarifying life.

Grief has a way of overwhelming all other emotions.

But the beautiful thing about grief is: it wouldn’t exist without love.

We’ve all grieved something over the past four years.

• We grieved the move from Troy to Latham.

• We grieved normalcy during COVID.

• We grieved the “lasts.”

• The last time we had our favorite class.

• Our last prom.

• The last time we walked the halls filled with elementary schoolers.

• The last time we stepped onto the field or court.

But as Winnie the Pooh once said, “How lucky we are to have something so special that makes saying goodbye so hard.” If you’re struggling with saying goodbye to something or someone, that kind of love won’t go away — you carry it with you.

If we take just a few things we’ve learned from grief into the next chapter, let them be these:

• All we have is now. Tomorrow isn’t promised.

• Don’t wait to be who you want to be.

• How we love, how we live and how we show up today matters more than we realize. Presence is power.

• Be kind — always. We don’t know what others are going through, and kindness might be the thing that carries someone through their hardest days.

• Quiet strength is still strength. You don’t have to be loud to be brave. You just have to keep going. And if somedays all you do is survive — it will always be enough.

As we leave Catholic Central and head into whatever comes next — college, work, uncertainty — I hope you choose to live with a purpose, not just by habit. To be kind without needing credit. To pause and breathe and to show up for the people who matter.

And never forget — once a Crusader, always a Crusader.

Put yourself out there

Isabella Lape

Catholic Central School Salutatorian

I would like to thank all of you who have been an integral part of our lives for taking the time to join us on this special moment. From the teachers to the friends and family, your impacts on these fellow students’ lives will live on with them forever. I’d like to take this time to thank someone who loves this school more than anyone and has been the cornerstone through it all, Mrs. Ginny Bariteau. I would especially like to thank the teachers for putting up with us and our antics for the past couple of years. I know it wasn’t easy. Even if we didn’t always pay attention in class, or were too busy playing games like chess on our chromebooks, I can say on behalf of the graduating class, we all love and appreciate each one of you. As the daughter of a teacher myself, I know firsthand the amount of effort, blood, sweat and tears you put into making us the best young men and women you possibly can. It does not go unnoticed.

I would also like to congratulate my fellow classmates for surviving one wild rollercoaster ride, getting to our high-school graduation. There is one funny senior quote that I think resonates with our experience: “This was nothing like the movies!” While none of us wore pink on Wednesdays, or got the chance to vote for Pedro, our high-school journey felt like it could have been a blockbuster. First of all, from seventh grade to ninth grade, we survived history, the covid pandemic. From two weeks to two years, our lives flashed before our eyes, as we entered high school. Now I know for me, the transition from being on a computer in my pjs all day to actually waking up and going into school in person, was a challenge, but to others I know they missed the human interaction.

Now in all good movies there is a plot twist. Ours was the day we learned that our quirky yet beloved Troy campus buildings were being sold to be turned into surprisingly nice apartments. None of us could have seen it coming, just like Luke and his father, but in Crusader spirit, we picked ourselves up and jumped right into it. Now as we transferred over to the Latham location, it had its own unique features like the one-and-half hallway, the “gymateria” and that bathroom by Mrs. G’s desk. Joking aside, I felt nothing but welcomed when I joined this community at St. Ambrose. I will miss seeing the young faces of the elementary students in the hallways. They always brighten up my day with their cute smiles and nonstop giggling I could hear in their classrooms. The future looks bright.

As some of you may know, I am what they call a “jack of all trades” when it comes to activities and sports. For the four years I attended here, I participated in multiple clubs, including Masterminds with Dr. Kujan, Mock Trial with Mrs. Rizzo, and Yearbook Club with Mrs. Rauche. Thank you all for being so kind and welcoming throughout the years, and special thanks to Mrs. Rauche for letting me stop in her classroom and answering my weird questions. I also received the honor of being a part of VITA with Mr. Hannah and the National Honors Society with Mr. Novotny for the past two years. Both your leadership and guidance whether it was coming up with ideas for fundraisers or when I had a tricky tax return will always be appreciated. And don’t worry Mr. Hannah, “I’ll be back,”

Also during my time here, I have made countless memories being a part of the varsity softball and volleyball teams. I have been playing sports for what seems like forever at this point, but my favorite memories will always be my time as a Lady Crusader and as Holy Trinity. Thank you to all my coaches throughout these years, for helping me build confidence in myself and hone in my skills. I will miss the bus rides to and from games and practices and the lively energy everyone brought in the dugout and on the court. I have made new friendships and have learned lessons that I will always carry with me even after we graduate today. A special thanks to Coach Mahoney, for making Holy Trinity sports possible and to Coach Becker, for always inspiring and supporting me throughout my career especially on those hard days. Your words shined brightly and I appreciate all the rides you gave me during volleyball, plus the trips to Dunkin’.

To my classmates graduating with me today, I am proud to call all of you my friends. We have grown up together, basically family at this point. I don’t think any of us would have survived high school without having each other’s backs. We have laughed, cried and crammed for tests together. While we didn’t always see eye to eye, we all had the same goal in mind, make high school the best experience we could possibly have and we did just that. We persevered through the thick and thin of our own high school musical experience. As we stand here today, on the brink of new beginnings, let’s not forget the lessons we have learned and the bonds we have formed. The friendships we have made within these walls will be our greatest memories and our anchors, as we navigate the challenges, and celebrate the victories that lie ahead of us.

Lastly, my all time favorite memory here at Catholic Central was, as some of you might have guessed it already, Halloween. My first year at Catholic Central, I learned about the Halloween Costume Contest through a sheet of paper on the bulletin board. Thinking it would be a fun idea to join in, I went to my dad and told him, “Hey, I want to be a stoplight for Halloween this year.” He said “A stoplight?” A stoplight. Ever since then, I continued the tradition of the Halloween spirit with costumes like a hot air balloon, Amelia Earheart’s plane and the cherry on top of it all, becoming Zoltar. Seeing the community come around and celebrate a holiday I hold dearly to my heart was always touching and I hope I inspired a few underclassmen to carry on the legacy and to not be afraid to put yourself out there and be creative.

For every ending there is a new beginning. Ours begins as we walk across this very stage and step into a new light as high-school graduates. Let’s celebrate what we as a class accomplished and how we have left our mark here. Whether you have roamed the halls since sixth grade, or as recently as a junior, you should all be proud of the person you have become. As we step into the next chapters of our lives, let’s carry the courage, constancy in the right, honor and sacrifice that Catholic Central High School has instilled in us. While this may not be the end of our story, that’s a wrap for the Class of 2025. Thank You!