And the award goes to ...

c

Claire and her friend Zach won the award for top athlete in Middle One.

What a surprise! Thank goodness my friend Aeli brought HER camera. Bad mum am I to forget; but, my excuse is that this was my very first Prize Day and had no idea what to expect. What a thrill to have Claire's name called out and have her walk on stage.

I think she was equally surprised. And delighted.

***

As for the event? What a long-drawn-out affair.

There were 135 students graduating out of grade 12. Of them 117 are Ontario Scholars (a student is to obtain an aggregate of at least 480 marks in a total of six approved courses). Pretty impressive. In a nutshell, that is the reason we chose Appleby for our children.

The speeches took f.o.r.e.v.e.r. Certificates of achievement and prizes took f.o.r.e.v.e.r. We were in the hockey arena because the fields were so wet - just saturated - that chairs would have sunk into the ground if the ceremony were held in the traditional outdoor location.

In the end, three hours later, students, family, faculty and staff burst out of the arena to the start of summer holidays, and for the graduates, the start of a new chapter in their lives!