Hempfield seniors take final walk through elementary school

What it lacks in pomp and circumstance, the Hempfield senior walk makes up for in heartfelt emotion.

There were smiles, tears, embraces and high fives Wednesday afternoon as a group of graduating seniors from Hempfield Area High School returned to Stanwood Elementary School. They gathered at 3 p.m in the New Stanton school most of them had entered as anxious kindergartners 13 years earlier.

This time, poised on the verge of a new chapter in life, more than three dozen seniors donned their blue and white caps and gowns over sneakers and shorts to march through the halls of Stanwood to the cheers of scores of excited, fidgeting K-5 students who lined the halls.

Senior Mia Logan said she was anxious to get one last look at Stanwood. She'll be leaving soon to attend Belmont University in Nashville.

“I needed to get some closure. I definitely got a lot of inspiration from teachers at Stanwood. My first music teacher, Mrs. Williams, is down here. Everyone that I can think of who went to Stanwood was planning to go,” she said.

One senior traveled from a neighboring school district when she heard about the event at her former elementary school.

Alexis Trout stood out in her red cap and gown in a sea of blue and white.

“I moved out of Hempfield, but I had to come back for this,” she said, hugging a pair of friends.

Hempfield is among several Westmoreland County school districts that hold senior walks. Seniors at Yough and New Kensington-Arnold already marched through their former elementary schools.

Robin Auckerman of Grapeville organized the first senior walk at Hempfield's Maxwell Elementary School in 2016 when her son Branson was graduating from Hempfield.

“I was on Facebook and there was a school in Texas that was doing it and I thought, ‘what a fabulous idea.‘ When my son was at Maxwell, he had a fantastic time. There were fantastic people there, fantastic teachers, and he wanted to do it,” Auckerman said.

“It was just great. You should have seen the looks on the faces of the little kids. You should have seen the teachers. There were a lot of tears in their eyes,” she said.

Auckerman, who is a photographer, posted photos of the walk on her Facebook page, Spartan Pictures, and her phone began to ring. Parents loved the idea.

“We had over 10,000 hits and it just spread like wildfire,” she said.

The following year, Hempfield families organized walks at each of the district's other four elementary schools.

“It just grew organically. It's been a great thing,” Hempfield senior class advisor Dave Uhring said.

For Hempfield senior Elijah Gilbert, 17, the Stanwood walk carried echoes of the past and suggestions of the future; he plans to pursue an elementary education major at California University of Pennsylvania this fall.

“I have a little sister, Grace Boots. She's in third grade, and this is for her. I'd really like to find her and walk with her,” Gilbert said.

Thursday, after commencement rehearsal, Hempfield seniors from other neighborhoods will break into groups and return to their elementary schools to march through the halls on the last day of school.

Senior Megan Monzo, who will march at Maxwell, was there for the first walk with her family when her brother Connor marched through the halls of their old elementary school.

“I loved the idea. I thought it was just awesome,” she said.

For her, it's a way of saying both goodbye and thank you to the teachers and staff that made elementary school what she calls “a blessing.”

She'll join her longtime friend Carrie Kowalyk for one last walk through their old school. Monzo is leaving for Dickinson College this fall, and her friend is headed to George Washington University.

“It's just something we wanted to do. I think it's great to see where your education began and for younger kids to see you,” Kowalyk said.

Debra Erdley is a Tribune-Review staff writer. Reach her at 412-320-7996 or derdley@tribweb.com or via Twitter @deberdley_trib.