OSAGE CITY, Kan. – In front of family, friends, classmates and well-wishers, the Osage City High School class of 2022 closed one chapter of their lives and opened the next on Sunday, May 15, 2022.
The class’s two honor students, Hannah Jones and Bryson Murphy each described their sadness and fears about the end of their Osage City school years, but encouraged their classmates to not forget the good times and relive the happy moments.
“When I think about my time here at Osage I remember the good times,” Murphy said. Reviewing some of the good memories of his high school years, “It was everything to me,” he said. But as the class was making memories, they were also preparing for the next chapter, Murphy said he realized recently.
“I am ready for college,” he said. “I am ready for what’s next to come in life. But I am not ready to leave this. Leave family. Leave this home.”
He urged his friends to see how much they’ve grown, but to continue to grow.
“Let’s all take a deep breathe together,” he said. “It is time for us to begin our next chapter – not alone and afraid, but together and afraid.”
Jones thanked those who helped the graduates get to the final pages of their high school chapter. “Each of us have helped us get to this day,” she said.
Jones reviewed the class’s four years at Osage City High School, noting their junior year presented unexpected challenges.
“The school year began with temperature checks, masks and social distancing,” she said. Subsequently, the students learned about contact tracing and quarantining, all of which led to online learning.
“As the school year progressed, this became the new normal,” Jones said.
Jones thanked Osage City High School Principal Tony Heward for choosing the 2022 class as his last at the school, as he was there for all of the class’s high school years.
“Four years goes by quickly,” Jones said, noting one important lesson she learned was “how important it is to live in the moment. Don’t rush or wish time away. Because it goes by plenty fast by itself.”
But she urged her friends to notice, “Even though it doesn’t seem like it now, high school is just a tiny part of our lives.”
“Our time has come to move onto the next chapter in our lives,” she said.
Hello, my name is Josie Thompson. I am from Osage County and was a member of the Willing Workers 4-H Club for 12 years. I was involved in many projects over the years, but my favorites were livestock and food and nutrition. I am so excited to be a 4-H intern and make many connections with 4-H members.
My name is Hailey Gillespie, and I am the 4-H Youth Development summer intern in Anderson County this summer. Over the last several years, I have been an active member of the Seekers Not Slackers 4-H Club and Anderson County FFA. In 4-H, I was involved in numerous projects, but the sheep project was always my favorite.
Hi, my name is Ethan Hatfield and I am the 4-H Youth Development intern for Franklin County. I was born and raised in Pomona, Kan., where our family runs a small Hereford cattle operation. Throughout 4-H, I have been involved in numerous projects and events, but the one I enjoyed the most was showing cattle.
