Jubilant. Bittersweet. Optimistic. Few events run the gamut of emotions like a commencement.

At Lancaster Catholic High School, commencements are treated with a special kind of quiet and reverent honor.

On June 1, inside of Crusader Stadium on the school's campus, Lancaster Catholic conducted its 95th commencement by honoring 115 members of the Class of 2023. The ceremony, which lasted just over an hour, was attended by nearly 2,000 supporters.

"Our whole commencement is set up to be a solemnity, a solemnity meant to honor our seniors," said Lancaster Catholic High School principal Terry Klugh. "Honoring is different than a celebration. Not everyone goes through an event that honors them. It's kind of a quiet event that keeps the respect on the seniors. We've always had the focus on the students. It's calling attention to their achievements, what they have done and what they're about to do when they leave us."

Upon their arrival, members of the LCHS Class of 2023 gathered outside the field house behind the away stands at the stadium. Once organized, the standard bearer, rising senior Mary Bolesky, led the procession of the Class of 2023 - girls on one side and boys on the other - across the field to seats positioned near the home-side stands filled with relatives, alumni, administrators, members of the board of education, faculty memebers, local pastors and Dan Breen, the Diocese of Harrisburg's secretary for education.

The formal portion of the ceremony began with an invocation, followed by the singing of the national anthem, the reading of the Class of 2023 poem, the presentation of the class for graduation and the awarding of diplomas. The event concluded with a benediction, the Lancaster Catholic alma mater and the traditional throwing of caps skyward.

Matthew Mercer was honored as valedictorian, and Rebekah Noel Cistay was recognized as salutatorian.

"We try to impress upon them (the graduates), 'It's a high school diploma. You have achieved something great,'" said Klugh. "I would tell you from a Catholic point of view that commencement is a beginning. Faith is a journey. This truly is the beginning of the journey, and the journey continues. They continue to move toward goals, and they're ready for taking on the rest of the journey."

Lancaster Catholic also conducted an all-school, senior awards ceremony the day prior to commencement. During that event, the Class of 2023 was recognized for earning a total of $10.1 million in merit scholarships and for its 2,200 combined hours of service projects.

"If the Class of 2023 could be summed up in one word, that word would be 'perseverance,'" said Klugh. "They've had to persevere through so many interruptions along the way; their perseverance needed to deal with the adjustments, all the change. They've had to make sense of all of it and how it affects their lives."

It's a learned perseverance that will serve Lancaster Catholic's Class of 2023 well in the real world.