Lee High Class of 2022 Lovingly Referred to as 'Looney Tunes'
LENOX, Mass. — Lee High valedictorian Emma Puleri was at a loss for words while writing her commencement speech and consulted her peers. They suggested that she rap her remarks, walk up to the podium and say nothing, and pass the microphone to several other students.
This led Puleri to the conclusion that the class of 2022 is the Looney Tunes.
"Each one of us is different and unique. We all are total goofballs in our own way, yet we still accept each other for who we are as individuals," she said during Saturday's graduation under the Koussevitzky Music Shed at Tanglewood.
"And I think that this is what makes our class so special. We are open-minded and inclusive, and nothing ever bothers us for too long."
Puleri shared stories of her classmates, many of whom she has gone to school with since kindergarten. Their antics included running a dodgeball tournament, nick-naming Principal Gregg Brighenti "Grogg," and hitting golf balls at prom.
"When you feel like nothing can go right and there is no good left, remember that you are a Looney Tune of the class of 2022. You are strong, You are determined. You are passionate. Prideful. Creative. Unique. Kind. And you will make it. " she said to the 56 classmates.
"We have spent the last four years here together and for many of us several more, but now it's time. We are ready to go on new adventures and broaden our horizons, and continue to achieve. As bittersweet as this moment is, I consider myself lucky to have something that makes saying goodbye so hard. Each one of you has impacted my life in ways that I will never forget."
Similarly, salutatorian Emma Puntin felt that her four years at Lee High were like watching a television show. She shared memorial details about select peers, one not being able to live without musician Harry Styles, another eating yogurt every day for lunch, and another being "freakishly" good at climbing trees.
"Each of these little things may have seemed small, or even insignificant, but I can tell you that they weren't," Puntin said.
"The same way you learn those so-called meaningless facts about your favorite character in a book or show, we all learned facts about each other, and they are things that we'll never forget. Because in forty years I don't think I'll remember the chemical formula of glucose, but I think I'll remember those little things."
Brighenti recognized that he was glad for the ceremony to be back at Tanglewood for the first time since 2019.
He believes that the graduates will be just fine in our "chaotic" modern world.
"Now, seniors, you're entering a world that's more chaotic than anything we've seen in a very long time. A pandemic, warnings of world war, political upheaval, rising oceans and burning forests, the cycle of violence doesn't seem to end, each day seems to come with a barrage of bad and worse news," Brighenti said.
"But you know what? I'm actually not all that worried about how you will do out there. I'm confident that you will find the peaceful center of the storm that is our modern world and I know that you'll help create that center when needed by standing up and defending yourselves in the things and the people that you love. I've seen that in you already."
Chosen class speaker Carter Geoghan said the pandemic showed the class to value the small things and urged them to pursue a path of happiness, not wealth.
"We can't just ignore all the small things that make us feel complete, as they can all be applied to the path we decide to take in our lives. Just as our restricted school year wasn't able to completely fill in that missing piece, we should grasp the fact that money will not do it either," He said.
"Instead, we should step into our lives by beginning to focus on what makes us feel whole. We should focus our lives on the things we enjoy and not which occupations have the largest salaries. As much as the saying is passed around, money really does not buy happiness."
He closed by telling his peers to work towards whatever brings them joy and work to love life, not just live it.
Senior Class President Ariana Hall presented an ivy plant to Junior Class President Catalina Quevedo. This long-held tradition is in remembrance of the ivy walls on the town's first public high school on High Street and represents students' continuous efforts to climb higher in life through learning and teamwork
The "Star-Spangled Banner" was sung by Emma Condron and the Pledge of Allegiance was led by Luke Pires.
The Lee High School graduation band, directed by Mrs. Joanne Nelson-Unczur, performed "Pomp and Circumstance" by Edward Elgar and "Rondeau" by Mouret to accompany the march of the seniors.
Lee High School Awards & Scholarships
Class Steering Committee
Carina Tamara Brown
Emma Rose Condron
Ariana Christine Hall
Brianna Marie Kelly
Caroline Celia Maloney
Emma Nicole Puleri
Emma Summer Puntin
Hayden James Siok
Evan Michael Trombley
Lee High School Class of 2022
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