Before graduating from Princeton High School, Lucy Fleming visited her orthodontist for the last time.
As she prepared to leave the doctor's office, the receptionist smiled and said, ‘Have a great life’
“Have a great life,” class speaker Fleming repeated to her 352 classmates at Princeton High School’s Class of 2012 commencement on Monday evening. “Suddenly instead of wishing us a happy vacation or saying ‘Have a great summer,’ everyone is telling us, ‘Have a great life.’”
Confused as to where to find this ‘great life,’ Fleming created her own list of what makes life great.
Chocolate Chip Cookies. Sunlight. The book you can’t put down. Hot apple cider. Late night discussions. Smiling. Jumping into pools. The list goes on.
But most of all, a good life is about people, said Fleming, who along with Handy Pierre and Sadik Shahidian was selected by the Class of 2012 as the student commencement speakers.
“When high school starts to fade away, what you’ll remember most is the people you met,” Fleming said.
One person the graduates likely will not forget is classmate David Stevens-Parker, 20, of Cranbury who earned a standing ovation from his classmates as he stood to receive his diploma.
It took Stevens-Parker five years to complete high school and he admits he had a lot of fun but little motivation. He failed all of his freshman courses and had to repeat the year. He passed more courses sophomore year, but still had to repeat some.
Then last year something clicked in Stevens-Parker's mind. He requested and received permission to attend the Thomas J. Rubino Academy, an alternative school in Ewing, for his final year.
Taking a combination of classroom courses during the day and online courses at night, he earned a staggering 62.5 credits in one year- nearly double the average course load.
"I always knew I would graduate, I just didn't know when," said Stevens-Parker, who now hopes to either join the U.S. Marine Corps. or enroll at Mercer County Community College.
Now David and the other members of Princeton High School's Class of 2012 are ready for their next chapter of their lives.
“Your work here is done,” Principal Gary R. Snyder said. “The world awaits your spirit, your talents and your leadership.”
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