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Lake Geneva Badger grads have own style on their day

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Badger High School's class of 2010

Badger High School held commencement ceremonies June 6, 2010 for its class of 2010.

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LAKE GENEVA — The threat of thunderstorms pushed the Badger High School graduation ceremony indoors, but the fluorescent lights and spinning ceiling fans and flowery sundresses and khaki shorts still made it feel like a beachy Sunday afternoon in the city by the lake.

Family and friends filled the bleachers from the hardwood gym floor to the rafters. They stashed flowers, cards and balloons at their feet. They readied digital cameras and video recorders.

Almost 300 graduates in burgundy caps and gowns flooded the doorways and marched in to the regal strains of “Pomp and Circumstance.” Some displayed nervous smiles. Others breathed sighs of relief.

Words of wisdom

It didn’t matter if they were a brainiac or a meathead, an artist or an athlete, the life of the party or the class clown. It didn’t matter if they were going to college, the military or the working world. It was their day.

“Today is our day,” said valedictorian Tyler Cucili. “Today is one last time for us to join together for one last hurrah.”

“Life is a journey—a one-way trip, no looking back,” said salutatorian Lane Sailer. “Good luck and Godspeed.”

Fancy footwear

It might have been all business on top, but it was all party on the bottom for almost all of the graduates.

Bejeweled flip-flops, casual tennis shoes and metallic ballet flats peeked out from underneath the required graduation ensembles. Steel-toed cowboy boots and patent-leather pumps stood out in a sea of fashionable footwear. Black lace-up dress shoes and black high-heels still had their place for such special occasions.

But it was about more than the shoes for one graduate.

Ashley Ebersol decorated her mortarboard with streaks of silver glitter—the only one to jazz up the otherwise traditional graduation garb in a class of almost 300.

More than the motions

Graduation for many is about going through the motions. For others, it’s about making a mark.

Some did it in actions.

Ricardo Hernandez purposely tripped on his way out of his seat.

Nick Schneider brushed his mane of long, dark brown hair away from his face to shake hands with the principal and superintendent.

Michael Bell flashed a peace sign as he crossed the stage.

And some did it in words.

Alec “Thundercat” Storms and Alex “The Dinosaur” Warner got big laughs from their classmates and the crowd.

Turn the tassel

It was time.

Brooke Pankau stood before her classmates. She lifted her tassel, and they followed suit. “Here we go,” she said.

They turned their tassels from right to left—and in that moment, they also turned a corner from student to graduate, from child to adult, from one journey to the next.

Pankau stretched out her arms as if parting the Red Sea before her.

“We did it!” she exclaimed.

She and her classmates tossed their caps into the air in celebration and exited into the world awaiting them.