Spending time together safely

In the same order, graduation ceremonies are on June 26 and June 25.

Liverpool high school Principal Terry Doucette is organizing the event again. Teachers Christine Ford and Barbara Rhodenizer are co-organizing the North Queens Rural High School Safe Grad event.

Ford sums up Safe Grad. “Sometimes, it’s the last night some of them will be together… the last night they’ll be able to spend time with their friends doing safe, supervised activities.”

The Liverpool Regional High students are leaving the school at about 10:15 p.m. The first stop is Pizza Delight in Bayers Lake followed by the Debut Release of Transformers II at Empire Theatre from 12:30-2:30 a.m. From there, they head to Kartbahn for go-kart fun and Fairlanes Bowling for glo-bowling. At five a.m., they return to Queens Co. for a buffet breakfast at White Point Beach Resort. “It’s nice to support local businesses,” Doucette says, “and the kids are excited about it as well.”

In fact, he says year after year the community and local businesses have made the important event possible. “The community has been very generous with donations to fund this safe grad, as is the norm, and the kids have sold tickets and washed cars to raise funds for the cause.”

He says nearly all the grads are participating, adding Safe Grad is important for obvious and not-so-obvious reasons. “It keeps everybody together and safe for at least the night of grad. We haven’t had any accidents from Liverpool Regional High School on that particular night for the last numbers of years.”

In addition, he says, “It’s important for students to draw closure to their senior high years and be together in that capacity.”

As usual, he is grateful for the volunteer teachers who stay up all night.

Christine Ford explains the North Queens Rural High event.

The graduates are leaving Caledonia at about 10:30 p.m. The first stop is Boston Pizza in Bridgewater followed by Kartbahn and Putting Edge in Bayers Lake for go-karts and glo-golfing. They are also heading to Fairlanes for some “cosmic” glo-bowling. Their early morning breakfast “overlooking the beautiful harbour” in Lunenburg is at Dockside Restaurant.

She, like her counterpart at Liverpool Regional, says, “We got a great response from local businesses and the kids did various fundraisers as well” to pay for the activities.

Nearly all of the graduates are participating. Ford says four chaperones are helping; she wants to thank them because finding them is getting more difficult. “We definitely appreciate volunteers who are willing give up a night and spend it with the grads. Everybody that goes has a great time.”