Approximately 230 Laurel Highlands High School seniors Tuesday night said goodbye to high school friends as they stepped from the halls of the hallowed school and started a new chapter of their lives. “What did you learn in high school?” asked 2008 class valedictorian Emily Merti. “I expect to hear it taught you to be a friend.” Merti said while the education they received has formed an amazing foundation for their future, their true friends will hold their hands while heading towards a new destination. “If you found one true friend, don’t let them go,” Merti said. She encouraged the graduates to work to their fullest potential and be proud of whatever brought them to commencement. Cassandra Wallace, 2008 class salutatorian, compared involvement in sports with the future that lies ahead for the graduates. Wallace said an athlete receives training from coaches and encouragement from loved ones, but the athlete has to be in charge of their own performance. “This race is over, but the next is waiting,” Wallace said. Dr. Gary Brain, Laurel Highlands School District superintendent, hopes the graduates take the knowledge they accumulated during the last 13 years on their life’s journey. “Your experiences here will help you meet your goals,” Brain said. Brain expects the graduates to head out of the region to further their education or gain new experiences but he also hopes they will return back to the Uniontown area, an area that has lost many of its young people to jobs elsewhere. Brain said the area is growing, becoming more accessible to Pittsburgh and Morgantown, W.Va., and jobs are starting to appear. “You can always come home,” Brain said. Michael Morris, president of the National Honor Society, said that a masterpiece is a great piece of art. The most important thing about every masterpiece is that they are all unique. Morris said the time the graduates have spent at Laurel Highlands was much like being part of a masterpiece. He said the mistakes that were made throughout the years were added to the canvas to make their masterpiece truly unique. “Enjoy this moment tonight,” said Laurel Highlands High School Principal John Diamond. “You worked hard to get here, but what about tomorrow?” Diamond shared with the graduates the core values of successful people — doing what you love in life if it’s a job or rasing a family, believe in yourself, embrace change, travel and explore, be humble and help others. Kayla Kadar, 2008 senior class president, told her peers they were on a scary border of choosing between being an adult for the first time or being a kid for the last time. “We have come so far and have much more to do,” Kadar said. She said the class of 2008 is full of future doctors, educators, lawyers, journalists, CEOs, politicians and even stars of the stage and screen. “We’re diverse, driven and, above all, talented.”

---

Copyright ©2026— Trib Total Media, LLC (TribLIVE.com)

---