PITTSFIELD, Mass. — Pittsfield High School Principal Henry Duval assured the graduates on Sunday that they won't be known as the class that lost to COVID-19.

 

Speaking in a prerecorded graduation video broadcast on Pittsfield Community Television, Duval told the 180 members of the class of 2020 they had a right to be angry and sad that the pandemic had disrupted their final months and canceled the traditional pomp and circumstance. 

 

"It's certainly a unique experience and one that none of you deserve," he said. "All of you have lost out on your senior  experiences that the rest of us have always taken for granted. It is OK to be angry. And it is OK to be sad. What you cannot do is let this define you. You do not have to be known as the senior class that lost out to the COVID-19 pandemic. That is not who you are and it will not bee your legacy at PHS. As a class and as individuals, you have accomplished great things. And your futures are limitless." 

 

Emily Mazzeo, recipient of the Superintendent's Award, didn't see that connection with the pandemic as something to forget but rather to embrace.

 

"I would like to propose an alternative mindset, as we progress past today," she said. "Don't worry. Whether we go to college, trade school, the military or start working right away — we will be unique. 

 

"Whenever someone asks what year you graduated in, your two syllables will carry meaning: 2020. Without any explanation, they will perceive your ingenuity and perseverance."

 

The class has been forced to shift its values, learning that some of the things they thought most important were not at all (while proving to parents the value of social media). Class trips, proms and banquets may seem irreplaceable now but the values that have been "instilled in us will carry us so much farther through life."

 

"We get to decide how we want to be remembered," Mazzeo said. "It might seem like an impossibly daunting task at the moment, but it is one that we are more than prepared to tackle."

 

School officials have pledged that PHS and Taconic High School will have a celebration later in the summer when circumstances safely permit. 

 

Those sacrifices were not for nought, School Committee Chairwoman Katherine Yon told the graduates of both high schools. The plan had been to eliminate some of the speeches, including hers, to streamline the event. 

 

"But this is clearly not the year not to address our graduating seniors. This is a year not like any other year. You are a class not like any other class. This year is the year everything has been turned upside down," she said. "My message is one that applies equally to all of you, West Side or East Side."

 

They had learned the meaning of sacrifice — "the ultimate illustration of selflessness, the stuff of which heroes are made" — by giving up much so others could survive the pandemic. 

 

The experience has taught them the importance of community, Yon said. "It was only by working together ... that we will be able to save our community. A community that now wants to come together to honor you and celebrate you in the way you so richly deserve."

 

Class President Mary Hines reflected on their four years as they learned what it meant to be a General. Even though they didn't get the final senior moments they'd expected, the class was still leaving with many memories of their time at PHS. 

 

 "We finished our year at home. Our last day of high school was on a random Friday in the middle of March. We stayed connected through Zoom and Google Meet, TikTok and Twitter. We spent days in our houses wishing more than anything to be back on the uncomfortable stools in the science classroom," she said. "But we are now in a different world we are about to enter as adults to lead and change to the best version it can be. 

 

 "Over the past four years at Pittsfield High School, we have prepared for this, and whatever your future entails. I cannot wait for you all to succeed and become the people we always dreamed of becoming."

 

The video included the naming of the top 10 students and a listing of all the graduates names. There were also congratulatory comments from U.S. Rep. Richie Neal and actress Elizabeth Banks, who graduated from PHS in 1992. 

 

Mayor Linda Tyer acknowledged this wasn't the expected celebration.

 

"The occasion would normally be marked by a day of joyous festivities at Tanglewood with a sea of purple and white transforming the majestic landscape," said the mayor. "I know how much you looked forward to having your moment of deserved recognition."

 

The class hadn't expected the challenges of remote learning, the loss of sports and other school activities, or waiting for their graduation moment. 

 

"Each of you today symbolizes your triumph. You rose above the disappointments and the challenges that lined your path to make it here today," Tyer continued. "The resiliency that you have forged through this unprecedented experience will not disappear after today. Rather, it will serve as your foundation, your strength, and the encouragement you need to help you in the unknown times that lie ahead. ... You will make it."

 

Superintendent of School Jason "Jake" McCandless said the school and the city had weathered storms in the past. PHS had been opened in 1931 by a community willing to spend "the then monumental sum of $1.3 million" in the midst of the Great Depression.

 

The community has continued to have faith in that educational promise of the future, he said, and the class of 2020 will be its comfort and hope in a time of adversity.

 

"You have our collective admiration in how you have handled all of this. From the moment we closed down on Friday, March 13 to this very day, you have faced loss and change with maturity, and a renewed dedication to each other, to your family, to our community, and to your school," he said. "Like thousands of Pittsfield High School graduates before you — you enter our world well equipped for the challenges in front of you. And like those graduates before you — the world needs you.