High School Memories

of the Class of 2025

Parting Thoughts

Seniors ranking in the top six scholastic positions at Osmond High School traditionally share memories of their school days, express hopes for the future and thank those who were a part of their life journey thus far. The 2025 senior speakers left graduation guests with these messages: –––––

Erin Wagner

Good afternoon fellow students, friends, family, and faculty members.

Thank you all for coming out today to help us celebrate the memories, accomplishments, and graduation of the Class of 2025.

I would like to start by thanking all of the individuals that have helped guide me through this journey. A huge thank you to Dwight Kahny, our custodial staff, administration, and the rest of our faculty for all of the work you’ve done behind the scenes to help our school run smoothly and make our experiences memorable.

Thank you to all of my teachers for the important lessons taught both in and out of the classroom. You have each impacted my life in a special way and have challenged me to become a better student and person.

Most importantly, I’d like to thank my family and friends that have stood by my side through it all. Keely, thank you for showing me what true friendship is. You have been by my side for every high and low, every accomplishment and every failure.

You are the strongest, bravest, and most inspiring person I have ever met. You have brought such a bright light into my life and I am so grateful for everything you have done for me.

Not many people can say that they met their life-long best friend on their first day of kindergarten, and I am so blessed to have done just that. Jaxon, thank you for bringing out the best in me every day. You never fail to put a smile on my face and joy in my heart. Your determination, adventurous spirit, and kind heart have had a greater impact on me than you’ll ever know, and I am so grateful that I got to experience the adventures of senior year with you. Thank you for showing me how to appreciate the small things and be the happiest and most authentic version of myself. I love and appreciate you both endlessly.

Thank you to my sisters for being the best friends or bullies that I needed to become the person I am today.

Riley, thank you for being there for me when I need you most, even if that means skipping walking at your own college graduation. I hope you know you have been the best role model I could ever ask for and I continue to look up to you every day. Meagan, thank you for always being there to make me laugh, to provide the best playlists, and to yap with me for hours on end. I remember you bawling your eyes out when I left you in the car for my first day of kindergarten, so you can’t judge me if I shed a few tears as I leave you again for your final year of high school. I am so proud of everything you’ve done and can’t wait to see what you do next year.

Emerson, my mini me. Never stop being the wonderful goofball that you are. You are going to do great things and I cannot wait to watch you grow…but please don’t grow to be taller than I am.

And the biggest thank you goes to my parents. Thank you for your endless support and encouragement. You have taught me the true value of hard work, kindness, and determination. Mom, thank you for teaching me the power of my voice.

You have taught me the true value of self-confidence and creativity, and have shown me how to stand up for myself and for what I believe. You are the best teacher I could ever ask for, both in and out of the classroom.

Dad, thank you for teaching me the value of worth ethic and passion.

You have taught me how to pursue goals with my whole heart and have shown me how to walk through life with a witty attitude and a smile on my face. I am the person I am today because of you both. I want you to know that at every play production, every basketball or volleyball game, every concert and every speech meet, the first thing I always did was look for you both in the stands. You were there, without fail, every time. Thank you for always being there for me and for helping me succeed in all of my endeavors. I appreciate and love you both more than words can express.

As my high school chapter comes to an end, I am filled with a mixture of different emotions. I am both scared and excited to take on the new adventures of my adult life. I may not have a perfect map for the future, and I definitely don't have all of the answers — but I am looking forward to embracing the journey of unknowns. The Lord has a plan for my future, and that is all I need to know.

To the underclassmen, I would like to share with you a few things I have learned throughout high school.

Cliche as the saying may be, high school does fly by fast. Enjoy every moment you have with your friends and in your activities. Take advantage of the amazing opportunities that you are given to be active participants in your school and community. Try new things — whether that be a new sport, learning a new instrument, or trying out for a part on the speech or play production team. You may discover new passions and create new memories with the people around you. The most important piece of advice I have to give you is this: In whatever you do, be unapologetically passionate.

Do not be afraid to show your enthusiasm and take pride in the things you accomplish. If you put your full heart into everything that you do, you will never fail. Place your full efforts and energy into all of your endeavors, and don’t give yourself a reason to have regrets once these opportunities are over. Set no limitations upon yourself.

Work hard, stay determined, and enjoy every moment.

To my fellow graduates of 2025, I wish you all the best as you continue on your own paths. No matter how far our roads may stray from each other, they will always be entwined in this moment. You should all be proud of the personal growth and accomplishments that you have made over the past four years. I am grateful for the memories I got to make with each and every one of you, whether that be hunting each other down for senior assassin or drowning together in the foam pit at the trampoline park. I cannot wait to see what the future has in store for each of us. Congratulations Class of 2025, and good luck to you all on your next adventure.

Keely Gubbels

Salutatorian

Thank you Mr. Bremer, and welcome students, family, and faculty to today’s graduation ceremony.

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to Him, and He will make your paths straight,” Proverbs 3:5-6. If I had to align one verse with my years throughout school, it would be this one. It has taken me a long time to truly believe this verse and apply it to my life, which is why I will share some of my high school experiences and what these experiences have taught me.

To say I had the typical high school experience would be far from the truth. In sixth grade, I developed and was diagnosed with anorexia. I did not realize it at the time, but this was the beginning of what would be an extremely hard and long, nearly seven-year battle.

I can not pinpoint exactly what caused this unhealthy obsession with becoming the smallest version of myself, but it was likely from trying to fix what was never broken. What I mean by this is that I began to correlate my worth with external factors and an obsessive focus on my appearance. What I didn’t realize is that along with this came the loss of my personality, mistrust from my family and friends, and living in constant exhaustion and anxiety.

I spent years in and out of hospitals and appointments, but was never able to commit to recovery. I didn’t believe I could achieve it, nor could I learn to love myself. I faced the constant guilt from having to hide how bad I truly struggled and how sick I really was, trying to present to the world that I had the perfect, put-together life, not wanting to disappoint anyone.

The most difficult thing was seeing how it tore my family and relationships with all the people I love to shreds. Even though I tried countless times to recover for them, I was never able to, as you truly can not help someone else unless you can first help yourself.

Choosing to recover for myself and deciding to accept myself as a daughter of God, no matter what my mind told me, was the hardest yet most important thing I have ever done in my life. Trusting God saved my life, and if there’s one thing I’ve learned, it’s that everyone deserves to love themself. Everyone is worthy of God’s unconditional love, and there’s nothing anyone, including myself, can do to change that.

This last year has taught me so much about what I value. God saved me from the insecurities that were ruining my life and my chances of a fulfilling future. These struggles never completely go away, but I no longer let them stop me from living my life.

I don’t know where life will take me, but I know God will be my priority through it all. Home will always be where the people I love are, and I am so grateful to have this opportunity to thank each of them.

Countless people have supported me throughout my journey, so I simply do not have enough time to thank each of you. The endless letters, phone calls, and comfort from all of you mean more than you can know.

Mom and Dad, there are simply no words to express how much I love you, and how grateful I am that God gave me you as my parents. There isn’t a doubt in my mind that I would be the outgoing and determined person I am today without you. You never gave up on me, even when I had given up on myself; you saved my life.

Kooper, my lifelong accomplice in all shenanigans, I hope you know how much you mean to me. I love spending time with you, even if that means tagging along to Norfolk on a trip with the boys. Kait, I feel like I was just playing Barbies with you in second grade, and now you’re entering middle school. You are such an incredible, beautiful, and sassy young lady who inspires me to be a better older sister every day. Kolby, I’m so glad that at least one of my siblings shares my love for fishing. Your personality is so unique, and when you set your mind to something, your willingness to achieve it is astounding. I am beyond excited to see where life takes each of you.

I also have to give Erin a special thank you. I couldn’t ask for a better friend. You have always been cheering me on in every way possible, especially through my biggest struggles.

I will never forget the daily letter blogs you mailed to me when I was in the hospital, and the unconditional support you have always embraced me with. You’ve truly been through it all with me, so thank you. And to everyone, do not let the doubt, both from yourself and others, stop you from trying new things. Give your life to God and see what happens.

Thank you.

Sophia Gansebom

Third-Ranking

Good afternoon everyone! I would first like to thank all of you for taking the time to come celebrate this special day with my classmates and I. I would also like to thank those who have helped me get to where I am.

Without my parents, siblings, and other family members, I would not have been able to be where I am standing today. Four years ago, we began our high school careers.

I do not know how everyone else felt, but I was in awe. My sisters, Lillie and Grace, were seniors at the time and I never thought I would one day be in their places.

You never realize how fast it goes until you’re standing on the stage during graduation and receiving your diploma. It feels like just last week, my classmates and I were making our senior year schedules.

Looking back on my high school career, I feel a sense of nostalgia.

Whether it is the friendships, memories, or discovering who I was as a person, I am extremely grateful to have had the high school experience I did.

All these people and experiences have not only helped me in high school, but will continue to do so as I enter the real world. The biggest lesson I have learned is to surround yourself with people who bring out the best in you.

One of the people who I know for a fact exemplifies this is my best friend Klaire Johnson. She is a light to this world and is always helping me evolve into the person I dream of becoming.

High school can be super good one day, and have you stressing out the next. Having people that support you and offer their assistance are truly the reason you get through most days.

Even when I was not stressed about school, having teachers, classmates, and other people each day that made me feel better is something I will never be able to express all my gratitude for.

As all of you know, life is short.

If I could give one piece of advice to my classmates, it would be to embrace your journey. Everyone will accomplish and experience different things in life, but what matters is that you enjoy it. Each day is a new opportunity to achieve all that you can and live life to the fullest.

I know after today we will all be going our separate ways, but it is for the better so each of us can grow to our fullest potentials. Personally, I know that no matter what I do and what lies ahead of me in the future, God has a plan for me. I am eternally grateful for all the blessings he puts in my life and pray he continues to bless all of you as well.

To conclude, I would like to leave you all with a quote from Ephesians 3:16. “I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being.” Thank you.

Keli Aschoff

Fourth Ranking

Thank you Mr. Bremer, and thank you all for joining the Class of 2025 on this special day. If you look around the gym today, you see people whom you may have only talked to a couple of times, or ones you know fairly well, maybe you’re looking at your best friend. However that person means to you, there is always something you will remember or take away from knowing them.

How about a teacher in the crowd that always made you laugh in their class. A para that was always the sweetest to you and everyone they encountered. Those classmates that would always be down to play a game of pitch or rummy during any period.

What about those people that spent countless hours with you at practices and games? Even the people that ate up the stage with you during one-acts.

These people shared moments and memories with you that will always be a part of them and their journey through school.

Now whether these memories are good or bad are entirely up to you.

The impact you leave on others is a choice. It is a choice that our parents, teachers, and others choose everyday for our sake.

When we walked into a classroom for the first time, we were little goof heads that rather roll around in the grass, or rubber for all y’all non St.

Mary’s kids, then learn any day. I have so much respect for lower elementary teachers.

But anyways, skip ahead to junior high and we’re in that in-between of little goofball and young adult. We’re awkward to say it simply. You were all thinking it, don’t lie.

These high school years are when you differentiate your tastes, interests, style, relationships, etc. You become influenced and you also influence as well.

What’s beautiful about my class is that each of us have a different story, a different way we were influenced. We all have someone who impacted us so much that we were inspired to change.

The first people we looked up to were our parents and the impact that they were making on the people around them. So thank you mom and dad, or stepparents, or any other guardian in our lives that were the first one to be there for us. We learned a lot about living from all of you, and will continue to do so even outside the home.

Next, I want to thank the teachers, paras, and faculty that changed our perspectives and made going to class fun. Your generosity and ability to create a warm and welcoming environment will never be forgotten.

Lastly, I want to thank those people that came and went. Those people who we knew briefly, and gave us a tangible truth about living life well.

The people that were there when they needed to be.

The Class of 2025 would not be who we are today without all of you.

Though we are all different and will venture out on different paths after today, know of how thankful we are for your impact, whether it’s great or small. To end my speech today, I have to thank the Lord for all of you, my classmates, and the gift of being here today. Thank you!

Cody Gansebom

Fifth-Ranking

Good afternoon, friends and family, it is my honor to welcome you to the graduation ceremony for the class of 2025.

I feel truly blessed to celebrate all the hard work we’ve put in over the years here at Osmond Community School. I thank God for guiding us, giving us strength, and seeing us through both the challenges and the victories.

As I look ahead to the future, I am hopeful and confident, trusting that God will continue to lead us in the next chapter of our lives. I pray that He blesses each of us as we move forward, and I thank Him for the support he gives us through our Osmond community.

Congratulations to all of my fellow graduates — this is just the beginning.

Jaxon Vinson

Sixth-Ranking

Good afternoon, everyone.

Today is a special day. We, the Class of 2025, are graduating from Osmond Community School. It’s hard to believe how fast the time went. It feels like just yesterday we were starting our first day of high school. Now, we’re here, ready to take our next steps.

We’ve had fun, worked hard, and faced challenges together. We’ve made memories that will stay with us forever. We couldn’t have done this without our teachers, families, and friends. Thank you for helping us grow and for believing in us.

As we leave this school, let’s remember where we came from. Osmond will always be a part of our story. No matter where we go, we’ll carry these moments with us.

I want to leave you with a quote from Dr. Seuss: “You’re off to great places, today is your day. Your mountain is waiting, so . . . get on your way!”

Congratulations, Class of 2025. The future is waiting — let’s go meet it.