Welp, we made it. Through the school year, through finals week, and all the way to the actual-factual graduation day for Natalie!<\/p>\n\n\n\n
But a quick re-cap back to the previous Friday – I didn’t have any photos from the senior dinner, but snagged some from one of the teachers who got lots of all the graduates receiving honors, so these are those:<\/p>\n\n\n\nngg_shortcode_0_placeholder\n\n\n\n
Friday was a half day at school, and the afternoon was spent on final preparations: Natalie had lots of primping and curling of hair and lashes, and I had a few last minute items to pick up at the store for her gift basket, and then since Dollar Tree was right next to McDonalds I figured it would make a quick supper for the crew since the grads had to be at the school by 5pm, and the rest of us by 5:45. There were cards to pass around and sign, and Paul went to pick up Ana and bring her back to our house for a few minutes before heading over. I got a text from Laurent saying she was on the way to get balloons, and she met us there after a mighty struggle getting them all tucked into her little car for the drive over!<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Our seats were in the back row of the floor seating of the auditorium (where there is handicapped seating) so I couldn’t have had a better view, either of the stage or of the entrance walk, which went right behind my chair as they came into the building! It was a treat to see all the faculty process in wearing their academic regalia – there were a whole lot of degrees in that room!<\/p>\n\n\n\nngg_shortcode_1_placeholder\n\n\n\n
There were some opening remarks, and then the student and faculty chorus performed a beautiful choral rendition of “For Good” from the musical Wicked<\/strong><\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\nngg_shortcode_2_placeholder\n\n\n\n I was so happy I got to sit right behind fellow-mom, Katie, so I could give her a congratulatory hug after her daughter (and Natalie’s best friend) Kaylyn, gave a wonderful Salutatorian address. SO PROUD!<\/p>\n\n\n\n The Valedictorian, Sergio Montalvo, Jr., is such an impressive young man who, besides founding the robotics club on campus, graduated summa cum laude with 30 college credits! The sky’s the limit for that one.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The commencement address was given by a fantastic member of the community, whose name I had heard over the last decade but had never met personally. Cande de Leon gave a truly inspirational address, and I wanted to include here the notes from the program about his life and work.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Mr. Cande de Leon is the author of Heart of the Mission: Simple Ways to Bring People to Jesus<\/strong><\/em>. I’ll just include here the biographical info from the program, because it was so fascinating to learn more about him. He currently serves as the Chief Mission Engagement Officer for the Society of St. Vincent de Paul in Phoenix, Arizona, supporting Volunteer Operations, Community Engagement and 80 Vincentian conferences, including, of course, the one for the Cathedral, where Paul works every Tuesday. Prior to this, Cande served as the Chief Advancement Officer for the National Eucharistic Congress and the Executive Director of the Office of Mission Advancement for the Diocese of Phoenix, raising over 200 million dollars throughout his career for mission driven projects.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Cande has a unique blend of business acumen and ministry experience with proven strategies in teaching mission advancement through capital campaigns, annual appeals and parish stewardship. Cande has received international recognition with several awards from the International Catholic Stewardship Council, and is often requested to give missions and workshops throughout the U.S. Catholic Church.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Cande served four years in the United States Marine Corps, graduated from Texas A&M Corpus Christi with a BBA, and earned a Master of Arts Degree with Holy Apostles Seminary and College in Theology, Sacred Scripture, and an MBA from Grantham University, Arkansas. Cande has been married to his wife Rosemary for 29 years and they have four daughters.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\nngg_shortcode_3_placeholder\n\n\n\n At last it was time for the conferring of diplomas. I was so happy to be able to photograph each class member as they crossed the stage. Especially our NATALIEEEEEE!!! Graduating Cum Laude, with cords and awards galore, we moms were in tears of joy and pride. I am SO thankful Ana was there beside me for this fantastic milestone!<\/p>\n\n\n\nngg_shortcode_4_placeholder\n\n\n\n All that remained was to present the graduates of the class of 2026 and cheer them out the door. A magnificent night indeed!<\/p>\n\n\n\nngg_shortcode_5_placeholder\n\n\n\n We milled around in the courtyard a little afterward… the sun had gone down far enough that the heat was no longer oppressive. Unfortunately it was quite crowded, and I had only my long lens on the camera, so the few photos I got outside were unexpectedly close-ups!<\/p>\n\n\n\nngg_shortcode_6_placeholder\n\n\n\n We decided to hold the party until Monday when Laurent had the day off. She and Ruben spent what looked like a million hours over the weekend, making 4 kinds of Rice Krispy bars and giant cookie-cakes! She put up streamers and the kids had fun filling balloons with helium. To my knowledge there were no squeaky voices, which I find tragic. Jeff brought beverages. I went and picked up a big order of Chipotle for dinner – it was a lot of food, and I should not be shocked that we managed to consume it all, but there it is, and we did, and it was extremely delicious, and that wont be happening again for at least a year (It’s Jordan’s turn in 2027!).<\/p>\n\n\n\nngg_shortcode_7_placeholder\n\n\n\n I think we have truly celebrated properly and am so thankful to God for his mercies and love poured out upon our familia!<\/p>\n\n