BRUNSWICK

Hundreds of family members and friends packed the Watson Arena at Bowdoin College on Friday night to see members of the Brunswick High School Class of 2015 graduate.

Before diplomas were handed out to students, however, class member Sarah Judd asked soon-to-be graduates to turn and give a round of applause to those in the audience who have helped them through high school.

“At any given time, BHS has at least 360 athletes actively playing a sport,” Judd said. “Brunswick has over 46 clubs and activities. Members of our class have been inducted into seven different honor societies celebrating music, language, art and academic achievement.”

She calculated the class has spent 720 days at Brunswick High School and “with us for those 720 days has been the undying support of the 124 faculty staff who work at Brunswick High School. They have made graduation of the 206 members of the Class of 2015 a possibility.”

Judd noted, “A lot of time this evening will be spent applauding the accomplishments of the members of the Class of 2015, which are certainly significant. But I believe it’s important to begin with gratitude for those who have made this moment possible. Thank you, for the innumerable rides to school and practice, the endless support in homework, the undying confidence in our abilities and for everything else that you did for us. So fellow students of the Class of 2015, please stand up, look around you, and help me by applauding our friends and family who have worked so hard to get us to this point.”

“Dust in the wind. All we are is dust in the wind,” said Salutatorian John Murphy, sharing these “immortal words of Kansas,” which he said tell us all we are in fact, mortal.

“As we pass our time upon earth, we will each make only a tiny impact and we will soon be forgotten within the decades after our lifetimes,” said Murphy, adding that this inevitable fact does not put a damper on graduation, “but rather it is a challenge for each of us to overcome our predicted oblivion. We must remember that every action we do impacts someone in either a positive or negative way. It is through a positive impact that immortality can be achieved.”

Mohandas Gandhi, for example, led nationwide campaigns in India in the early 20th century, working toward independence from England and led movements in favor of easing poverty, expanding women’s rights and building religious equality, Murphy said. His ideas are still alive today. His philosophy remains powerful in many countries, showing his spirit continues to make significant impact in our world today.

Students will also leave behind a positive impact. The Class of 2015 has totaled more than 14,000 hours of community service during the last four years — one year and seven months spent giving back to the community, Murphy said. Several have made an international impact already.

“As we go forth from here, whether to college, work or volunteering, let us remember that we all have a purpose, a legacy, a specific way that we can make our own impact in the world,” Murphy concluded. “And always remember that mortality can be defeated.”

Valedictorian Ruth Ann van Kampen joined the Class of 2015 two years ago. Friday, she talked about gardening as a metaphor for the process that got students to graduation. Every student has been nurtured for the past 18 years by gardeners — teachers, parents and loved ones, she said.

“You begin as saplings walking through the doors of our kindergarten classrooms, a little anxious and blinded by the bright lights of the greenhouse in which we found ourselves,” van Kampen said. “As we grew older, taller and more experienced, sometimes we found the pots we were in a little tight and begged to have the freedom to explore our surroundings. But the gardeners knew what was best for us,” and knew the outside world was a little too harsh.

“Today, we are leaving the greenhouse and are being planted in the earth,” she said. That will be at college or a job for some. “Class of 2015, we are being planted in soil that we have not touched before.”

While there will undoubtedly come a storm, a snowfilled winter, sweltering summer or blustery day threatening harm, “we cannot give in. We must face the weather of our lives with courage and wisdom,” van Kampen said. “We must never forget about our roots; the roots we have had since birth, the very foundation of our lives.”

“To the gardeners here today, thank you for the wisdom, guidance and lessons you have taught us,” van Kampen said. “The knowledge you have given us in invaluable and won’t soon be forgotten.”

dmoore@timesrecord.com