This is our fifth story in a series highlighting exceptional students from the 2016 graduating class.
When it was time for Mary Cormier, Loyola Academy’s (LA) 2016 valedictorian, to prepare the speech she would deliver to a packed auditorium on May 23, she knew just what to do.
“I just Googled ‘how to say goodbye,’” Cormier says with a laugh.
Though that sounds like the most 21st century approach ever, modern civilization’s problem-solving panacea, Cormier used the resulting four-step formula she found on wikiHow.com as a baseline for crafting a speech filled with personal stories, Loyola inside jokes, and sincere sorrow for the people and place they were all now leaving behind.
“A lot of us don’t really want to say goodbye,” she says. “Either to our friends or because of how comfortable we are at Loyola. But we were only meant to be there for four years, so we have to say goodbye.”
Mary Cormier
That was step one of the wikiHow guide, “Recognize when it’s time to leave.” Step two was “Talk about the good times you’ve had.” Over the previous four years, Cormier had crafted quite a diverse group of experiences to reflect upon.
She joined the basketball team freshman year and graduated to the varsity team her junior year. Ever since freshman year, she’s also participated in Loyola Academy’s service programs. Her first year she tried on several versions of helping others; she visited a nursing home, she tutored younger children from other schools, and she assisted in a therapeutic horseback riding program for children with disabilities. Ever since then, she’s focused mainly on the tutoring side of service, as that’s what really spoke to her. Cormier’s dedication to education isn’t simply about the inherent value of learning or a belief in bettering oneself.
“A lot of people put a lot of time into giving you the opportunity to have that education, so I don’t think it’s even an option to waste it,” Cormier says. “It’s your responsibility to apply yourself.”
Perhaps that feeling of responsibility to the community around her and her desire to do her part is something that was ingrained through the many service projects she undertook through LA. The belief in the strength of the support system around her is exactly what she credits for her success. LA Principal, Kathryn Baal, Ph.D, said as much while introducing Cormier during the commencement ceremony.
“Though she shines in many areas, Mary will never take credit for herself,” she said from the podium. “When she does well on the basketball court, she says it’s because she was coached well. When she does well in the classroom, she says it’s because she had a stellar teacher. And when her gracious, caring attitude shines, she says it’s because she was raised well.”
The support system to which she gives so much credit obviously did its job well. At the podium that day, Cormier stood tall and spoke on behalf of herself and the 517 other students assembled. Though they really didn’t want to say goodbye, they knew they’d been taught the skills to do so and move forward successfully.
This fall, Cormier is headed to Northwestern University to study in the Weinberg College of Arts and Sciences.