More than 250 members of the Gettysburg Class of 2025 marked the end of high school during a sunny ceremony held at the district’s Warrior Stadium on Thursday evening.
The evening focused on closing one chapter and opening another while remembering the lessons they learned at Gettysburg Area School District.
“Each of us, whether we realize it or not, has become part of this beautiful story,” Student Council Vice President Mercedes Tresise said during her speech. “Each of us has had a voice that someone needed to hear, the presence that made a space feel safer, the friend who stayed, the person who showed up.”
Tresise encouraged her peers to be real, consistent, and kind to make a lasting impact.
Mirena Kahn, student committee choice speaker, took to the podium next, confidently–an accomplishment she never imagined four years ago as she faced the fear of public speaking. She thanked her mother for encouraging her to sign up for speech and debate and told her peers that with hard work and a strong support system, anything is possible.
“If you are scared of failure, you will never succeed because you never took that first step,” Khan said.
She told her fellow graduates to never hesitate to connect with their high school friends.
“Both of you are waiting for the other to reach out first,” Khan said.
The class’s top student is known throughout the state for her wrestling skills. Zoey Haines earned the title of valedictorian while also becoming the PIAA girls wrestling state champion in 2024 and 2025. Haines told her classmates that what matters most in life is how you evolve as a person, but to do so, you have to have passion.
“Over the past four years, I’ve accomplished many of my goals in wrestling and a lesson that I’ve learned is that you have to fall in love with the process of becoming great and the term ‘great’ isn’t defined the same for every person, it just simply means to become the best version of yourself in whatever you want to do in your life,” Haines said.
Principal Jeremy Lusk focused on the theme of “work” during his remarks. He also remembered two members of the class who passed away, Christopher Rickrode and Stephanie L. ‘Cian’ Green. Rickrode received his diploma before his death on May 15, Lusk said. Before sharing his own words of wisdom, Lusk quoted Rickrode.
“Life is challenging, give it all you got,” Lusk said.
As the Warriors face life’s next challenges, Lusk reminded them how far they have come and what it took to get there.
“I commend you for working to the finish line, your diploma,” Lusk said. “I encourage you to work to identify your next goal and work towards that.”
Featured Image: Students march to Gettysburg Area High School Commencement on Thursday.
Alex J. Hayes has spent almost two decades in the Adams County news business. He is passionate about sharing stories focused on the people in our communities and following local governments in an age when few journalists report on their meetings. Alex is also a freelance writer for several other publications in South Central Pennsylvania. Alex encourages readers to contact him at ahayes83@gmail.com.