PVHS plans graduation ceremony

When asked why they are glad they attended Pequea Valley High School (PVHS), the three seniors who were selected to speak at this year's graduation ceremony had similar answers. "All the relationships I have made stand out for me," said Tre Rosa, son of Rebecca and Ben Rosa of Gordonville. Tre noted that with only 96 members, the PVHS Class of 2023 is one of the smallest in decades at a school that is smaller than many others in the county.

Kyleigh Jarvis, daughter of Kari and Jason Jarvis of Kinzers, agreed. "Connections and relationships," she said, adding she has built amazing friendships at the school.

Karli Martin, daughter of Tanya Martin of Paradise, credited the school with fostering the chance to build friendships by offering a variety of activities. "I feel like no matter what you're involved in, you will find a family to have good experiences with," she said.

All three students will address family, friends, and fellow classmates at the PVHS graduation ceremony at Thaddeus Stevens College of Technology, on Wednesday, May 31, at 6:30 p.m. Tre will offer opening remarks and accept diplomas on behalf of the class.

Karli, who plans to major in medical laboratory science at HACC, Central Pennsylvania's Community College, in the fall has not yet given her speech a title, but she will focus on perseverance and adaptability. "(It's about) adapting to change and persevering through any hard challenges you have faced or might face in the future and doing the best you can as life goes on," said Karli, who noted she was partly inspired by her sister, Marina, who spoke at the Class of 2021's ceremony.

Kyleigh has titled her speech "Being Comfortable With Being Uncomfortable." "Inevitably as humans we are all looking at our next step," she said, noting that this is especially true of high school seniors. "I still feel like a kid, and it's scary to go out in the big world," she admitted. "But you don't want to hold back from reaching your full potential." Kyleigh explained her speech was inspired by personal experience, having attended a private school before coming to PVHS. "I have experienced being uncomfortable and having to adjust," she said, noting that getting involved in a number of clubs helped her to find her niche. In the fall, she plans to attend University of North Carolina at Charlotte to study sports marketing with hopes of working to promote a professional sports team.

Tre, who is scheduled to attend Penn State Berks in the fall to study agriculture and extension education, hopes to become an agriculture teacher. He calls his speech "Cherish Every Moment." "I will talk about everything we've been through in high school," he said. "(It's about) taking a step back from everything going on around you and looking forward into your future and back into your past and remembering where we are in this moment and everything we've accomplished," he said. Tre shared that he was inspired to write the speech by seeing himself and his classmates caught up in applying for colleges and looking at the next step rather than really living in the moment during their last few months of high school.