A LABAMA L EDGER
GRADUATION MAY 2023 2023
PAGE 4 www.AlabamaLedger.com
Sardis High School Valedictorian's Message For the Class of 2023 that I will spend in my heavenly home, so I hope that I have demonstrated to others how to live in the now.
By Caroline Johnson | Sardis High School I encourage you to consider the legacy you imprint upon others by the decisions you make and how you react to the many trials of life. While in the 9th grade a speaker once warned me of how fast high school would fly by. I listened, maybe even laughed a little, because the work seemed to be going by so slow. Now here I am, standing face to face with decisions that could forever alter the course of my future. Decisions that are also heavily influenced by past decisions and circumstances that molded me into the person I am today. Like a sitcom, my life is viewed in the present with the past replayed over and over by those who observed me. My actions and responses potentially affecting their decisions and choices. My earthly life is microscopic as compared to the time
No matter where you are, in good times and bad times, if growth is involved you are where you are supposed to be, where you need to be. When we mess up we are blessed that God is right there to pick us up and show us the right path so that we are able to continue to pursue His plan. Many of us at Sardis High School will be going to many different places, meeting many different people. I pray that the legacy you leave is not your name on a building one day or any accolades you received, but how God guided your actions and words to influence others for His glory. A legacy that honored Him and demonstrated to others that living a life without God is completely incomparable to having God guide your life. That living everyday with a purpose will one day prove to serve a greater purpose. “Think about your legacy, you are writing it everyday” - Gary Vaynerchuck. Students medal at state SkillsUSA competition Gadsden State Community College students earned eight gold medals, six silver medals and four bronze medals during the recent Alabama SkillsUSA State Leadership Conference and SkillsUSA Championships in Mobile. The theme for this year is “SkillsUSA: Our Time is Now.” Technical students from Gadsden State’s Ayers, East Broad and Valley Street campuses competed with students in over 80 different categories including industrial motor control, HVACR, automotive refinishing, robotics and automation technology, extemporaneous speaking, electrical construction wiring, nail care and carpentry. The SkillsUSA competition is an annual event, providing high school and college students an opportunity to showcase their technical skills training, leadership development and hands-on experiences in a series of competitive tasks. Gadsden State technical students were among other Alabama community college students earning 103 medals overall, including 49 golds at the state competition. The individual and team gold medal winners will represent Gadsden State at the 59th annual National Leadership and Skills Conference June 19-23 in Atlanta. “Gadsden State is proud to partner with Gov. Kay Ivey and Alabama SkillsUSA in working to fill the goal of placing 500,000 new highly-skilled Alabamians in the workforce by 2025,” said Alan Smith, Dean of Workforce Development at Gadsden State. “Through technical skills training, leadership development and employability, a structured program of citizenship and hands-on experiences, SkillsUSA and Gadsden State’s career technical education empower students to become world-class workers and leaders.” Students finishing in first place and earning gold medals are Jason Carbajal of Boaz in Carpentry; James Fuller of Heflin in Automotive Refinishing; Cynthia Hull of Anniston in Prepared Speech; William Jenkins of Altoona in Collision Repair Technology; Jarrod McBurnett of Lincoln in Heating, Ventilation, Air Conditioning and Refrigeration; Hayden Moore of Eastaboga in Extemporaneous Speaking; Zachary Norris of Steele in Industrial Motor Control and Landon Robinson of Altoona in Electrical Construction Wiring (Dual Enrollment / High School). Students earning silver medals and finishing in second place include: Hunter Day of Gadsden in CNC 5 Axis Milling; Christopher Milstead of Delta in Automotive Refinishing Technology; Brittany Satcher of Birmingham in Nail Care; Jonah Padgett of Fort Payne in Carpentry (Dual Enrollment / High School); the team of Shawn Martinez of Weaver and Olsen Spurlin of Heflin in Robotics and Automation Technology and the team of Christopher Briese of Ohatchee, Tyler Cate of Gadsden and Hunter Livingston of Piedmont in Automated Manufacturing Technology. Bronze medals for finishing in third place were awarded to William Poole of Jacksonville in Electrical Construction Wiring; Braxton Thompson of Scottsboro in Heating, Ventilation, Air Conditioning and Refrigeration; the team of Derek Reynolds of Oxford and Wes Simmons of Glencoe in Robotics and Automation Technology and the team of Seth Helms of Leesburg, Call Young of Centre and Mikey Reaves of Piedmont in Automated Manufacturing Technology. Students who represented Gadsden State at the skills competition and finished in the Top 10 include Hannah Dale of Gadsden in Technical Drafting; Jason Shuffield of Ohatchee in Industrial Motor Control and Keyerra Williams of Montgomery in Architectural Drafting. Program advisors for students competing include Zora Garner (Nail Care), Tim Hardy and Joseph Hulsey (HVACR), Bruce Hill and Brandon Patterson (Automotive Refinishing Technology and Auto Collision Repair), Tommy Hartline, Andy Robertson and Ralph Whitfield (Robotics and Automation Technology), Jack Mayfield and Tarina VanNatta (Industrial Motor Control), Todd Chandler (Electrical Construction Wiring), James Wilson (Automated Manufacturing Technology and Architectural Drafting), Daniel Anderson and Steve Caldwell (CNC 5 Axis Milling), Laura Ann Sullins (Extemporaneous Speaking and Prepared Speech) and Heath McDaniel (Carpentry).
I want to encourage my classmates not to wait to reach out to others, to pursue God’s calling, or even just to make a commitment to something. Strive to attack each day with God’s joy shining through you and on full display, regardless of any difficult circumstances, and know you are there for a purpose. A purpose you faithfully believe was manufactured in God’s hands, so that you can live in the now, not worrying about the future, completely trusting His plan. “You may not understand now what I am doing, but someday, you will” John 13:7. During trials you may fall apart, be overcome by worry, or feel you have reached your limit. Sin can get the best of you during times of weakness, but my hope is that in the end it proved to be a catalyst for spiritual growth.
Submitted Photos
West End High School recently named the Valedictorian and Salutatorian for the graduating Class of 2023. Meghan Rivera (left) is West End's 2023 Valedictorian and classmate Trudy George (right) is the school's 2023 Salutatorian. West End Valedictorian and Salutatorian
Submitted Photos
Southside High School recently named the Valedictorian and Salutatorian for the graduating Class of 2023. Jackson Griggs (left) is Southside's 2023 Valedictorian and classmate Ariq Chandra (right) is the school's 2023 Salutatorian. Southside Valedictorian and Salutatorian
Coosa Christian School recently named the Valedictorian and Salutatorian for the graduating Class of 2023. Matthew Wright (left) is Coosa Christian's 2023 Valedictorian and classmate Zachary Elrod (right) is the school's 2023 Salutatorian. Both have received scholarships to attend the University of Alabama next fall. The members of the Coosa Christian Class of 2023 include: Drake Albury, Emma Allen, Amira Augustus, Kaiden Bleas, Caitlin Cates, Millicent Douthard, Kailah East, Malaina Ellen, Zachary Elrod, Savannah Jackson, Judson Littlejohn, Paolo Malbete, Carson McDowell, Dalton McGraw, Jacara Mostella, Litia Neff, Brianna Powell, Dylan Reed, Thomas Skaggs, Ja'Coby Tucker, and Matthew Wright. Coosa Christian Valedictorian and Salutatorian Submitted Photos
COINS - MAGIC THE GATHERING
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