"Today is the most celebratory day of the school year," said Potomac Falls Principal David Spage as a sea of purple and silver-cloaked seniors sat before him.
He was right. Potomac Falls' Class of 2005 left high school in style at its Monday ceremony at the Patriot Center in Fairfax.
The Class of 2005 had 310 members. Eighty percent are going to college with an additional 10 percent joining the military.
"You've certainly left your mark on Potomac Falls High School and your community," Spage, concluding his first year as principal, said.
But the graduates have also left a mark on themselves, as Superintendent Edgar Hatrick noted.
"You've been writing a book for the last 13 years," he said. "A lot of things have been written in that book. .... Only you know of which you are most proud."
Potomac Falls has two valedictorians this year, Emily Senz and Robert Edmonds.
Senz chose to read Dr. Seuss' encouraging "Oh, the Places You'll Go!" as her valedictorian address.
"I couldn't write better than what I found in a book I read when I was 5 years old," she said.
Senz will attend New York University this fall.
EDMUNDS TOOK the more traditional, funny-poignant graduation address approach.
Edmunds, the school's first-ever male valedictorian, recalled the times he's had to work hard for something. He was rejected 13 times before getting his first girlfriend. He was always picked last in sports, a comment that drew sympathetic "awws" from the audience. He had to work hard on his studies to become valedictorian.
"I've never had natural skills," he said.
But he never gave up, no matter how much he wanted to.
"Do you know how many times I wanted to slack off?" he said. "Everyone does. It's normal."
He urged his fellow graduates to do everything they do in life "with intensity."
Edmunds will join the U.S. Air Force after graduation.
Keynote speaker Brig Owens, a former Washington Redskins player, drew parallels to actor Jamie Foxx's acceptance speech after winning the best actor Oscar for "Ray."
"Did you notice when he said it was his grandmother who played a strong role with him?" Owens said. "It was his grandmother who made him practice that piano. When that door opened, he was prepared."
Likewise, Owens noted, the teachers who pushed students the hardest are the most likely to help them succeed — and the most likely to be remembered.