‘Do what you love’: 71 Greenfield High School graduates told to find their passion

By CHRIS LARABEE

Staff Writer

Published: 06-04-2023 6:57 PM

GREENFIELD — A simple piece of advice was imparted on the 71 graduates of Greenfield High School Class of 2023 on Saturday morning: Find your passion and stick to it.

With students receiving suggestions from countless people in their lives, Superintendent Christine DeBarge, told the graduates it is up to them to decide what they do with that advice.

“Take the lessons you have learned, the challenges you have overcome, the successes you have experienced during your time in Greenfield and do what you love,” DeBarge said. “You all have the talents, skills and knowledge to embark on a new path. … I hope that path leads you to the thing that you love. When you find what you love, you will find happiness.”

The class speakers were twin sisters Ava and Brielle Widelo, who were also named salutatorian and valedictorian, respectively. In her speech, Ava Widelo reflected on the anxiousness many students feel when they begin high school and how soon, the graduating class may feel those same anxieties as they move onto their next chapter. However, just like how they acclimated to high school, she said she believes her classmates will do the same in their next chapter.

“The first time you walked the hallways of Greenfield High School it was daunting — filled with many classrooms, stairways and students,” added Class President Kaitlyn Collins. “As we are graduating today, GHS has become just one small, but significant portion of our lives. We navigated through its halls, walking until we reached the graduation stage. Each of us will begin to conquer a new stretch of seemingly endless hallways, each end inevitable, but fulfilling.”

To conquer this new chapter, Valedictorian Brielle Widelo told the graduates to trust themselves and build confidence in who they are and what they believe in.

“The most important thing in life is to be satisfied with yourself and your choices,” Brielle Widelo said. “Class of 2023, to achieve a satisfied life, my advice to you is this: Take risks so you can grow, be confident in yourself so that you can thrive, and most importantly, follow your heart to fall in love with who you are and who you are becoming.”

Graduates

Katie Jennifer Adams, Dylan Michael Archer, Ashlee Elizabeth Bowen, Jacob James Bracy, Aneesa Kyanna Brewer, Deion T.D. Brewington, Ethan Carter Bross, Leah Grace Brown, Emerald Juli-Anna Camero, Eric Ivan Carballo, Azemina Cecunjanin, Cassidy Virginia Cloutier, Josefine Alice Cloutier, Kaitlyn Marie Collins, Crystal Marie Colón, Kailee Brooke Corey, Alice Miona Crawford, Eli Cruz, Nore A. Cruz, David R. Damkoehler, Cassandra J. Decato, Leonardo Mauricio Diaz, Samantha Robbins Disciullo, Rachel Grace Dodge, Clara Rose Donivan, Ingrid S. Ellingboe, Domenic W. Ellison, Alexis Paige Everett, Alexis Ann-Marie Figueroa, Matthew Frank, Zaday Fuentes, Jason Garcia Jr., Orianys A. Guzmán-Rodríguez, Dwayne A. Harris, Alexis Cassandra Heath, Jocelyn Abigail Henry, Miles Ruben Jekot, Lillia Evelynn Kachelmeyer, Lucy M. Karieva, Eric Sean Kelly, Diana Kovrizhnykh, Trevor David Kuchieski, Damien Michael Lanzi, Matthew R. Lavoine, Kenneth Joel Legarreta, Bridget Keegan Wynn Mahoney, Natalie Payton Miscavage, Alexander James Monkiewicz, Kahlil Josue Morales, Maya Gabrielle Morey, Edminton Carlton Namasaka, Nora Rose Noble, Abigail Claire Ortiz, Ryan Theodore Stanley Ozdarski, Tye David Pereira, Hannah Ruth Perlberg, Kaleb Michael Podolski, Ryan Thomas Pulizari, Karisma Rein Santana, Jedidiah Lee Schacht-Vega, Ashley J. Schwabe, Jayson James Smith, Henry C. Spencer, Sabriel Lynn Spring, Makayla E. Valente, Joseph Wayne White, Ava Grace Widelo, Brielle Lynn Widelo, Kaelan R. Wolfe, William R. Woodall and Vladyslav Yakimov.

Graduation Night Awards

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Honors: Dylan Archer, Leah Brown, Samantha Disciullo, Clara Donivan, Matthew Frank, Jocelyn Henry, Lillia Kachelmeyer and Matthew Lavoine.

High Honors: Josefine Cloutier, Ashley Schwabe and Sabriel Spring.

Highest Honors: Ethan Bross, Cassidy Cloutier, Kaitlyn Collins, David Damkoehler, Cassandra Decato, Rachel Dodge, Alexis Heath, Lucy Karieva, Bridget Mahoney, Abigail Ortiz, Hannah Perlberg, Ava Widelo, Brielle Widelo and Kaelan Wolfe.

Blanker Memorial Award: Brielle Widelo; Principal’s Service Award: Brielle Widelo; Frederick W. Porter Memorial Awards: Trevor Kuchieski and Ava Widelo.

Class Night Awards

Smith College Book Award: Maree-Ellis Benitez; Saint Michael’s College Book Award: Ainslee Flynn and Tristan Toomey.

Honor Cords — Art: Alice Crawford, Bridget Mahoney; Business: Rachel Dodge, William Woodall; Culinary: Alice Crawford, Ingrid Ellingboe; English: Kaitlyn Collins, Abigail Ortiz, Hannah Perlberg, Kaelan Wolfe; English Language Learner: Orianys Guzman-Rodriguez, Diana Kovrizhnykh, Vladyslav Yakimov; Exceptional Learning: Alexander Monkiewicz; Film Studies: Lucy Karieva, Kaelan Wolfe; Foreign Language: Cassidy Cloutier, Kaitlyn Collins, Lucy Karieva, Brielle Widelo; History:Alexis Heath, Lucy Karieva, Ryan Ozdarski; Mathematics: Rachel Dodge, Matthew Frank, Kaelan Wolfe; Music: Alice Crawford, Ingrid Ellingboe, Lucy Karieva; Industrial Arts: Ryan Ozdarski; Physical Education/Wellness: Karisma Santana, Joseph White; Science: Rachel Dodge, Hannah Perlberg and Ava Widelo.

U.S. President’s Educational Gold Award: Dylan Archer, Deion Brewington-Simon, Ethan Bross, Leah Brown, Cassidy Cloutier, Josefine Cloutier, Kaitlyn Collins, David Damkoehler, Cassandra Decato, Rachel Dodge, Clara Donivan, Matthew Frank, Alexis Heath, Lillia Kachelmeyer, Lucy Karieva, Matthew Lavoine, Bridget Mahoney, Abigail Ortiz, Hannah Perlberg, Ashley Schwabe, Henry Spencer, Sabriel Spring, Ava Widelo, Brielle Widelo and Kaelan Wolfe.

U.S. President’s Educational Silver Award: Aneesa Brewer, Alice Crawford, Ingrid Ellingboe, Alexis Figueroa, Dwayne Harris, Eric Kelly, Trevor Kuchieski, Kahlil Morales, Maya Morey, Ryan Ozdarski, Ryan Pulizari, Jayson Smith, Makayla Valente and William Woodall.

Book Awards — English Department: Kaitlyn Collins; Foreign Language Department French: Kaitlyn Collins; Foreign Language Department Spanish: Alexis Heath; Mathematics Department: Brielle Widelo; Physical Education and Wellness Department: Trevor Kuchieski; Science Department:Ava Widelo; M. Ross Burns Book Award: Sabriel Spring; History Department: Ava Widelo; Library Research Skills: Alexis Heath; Music Department John P. Sousa Award:Alice Crawford, Ingrid Ellingboe; Dalton Chemistry Award: Rachel Dodge.

Tristan Molongoski Achievement Award: Alexis Figueroa; American Legion Scholarship: Cassidy Cloutier, Josefine Cloutier, Hannah Perlberg; Thomas Suchanek Athletic Scholarship Fund: Dylan Archer, Kaitlyn Collins, Cassidy Cloutier, Josefine Cloutier, Rachel Dodge, Lillia Kachelmeyer, Trevor Kuchieski, Matthew Lavoine, Makayla Valente, Ava Widelo, Brielle Widelo; Varsity Trophy: Matthew Lavoine; Sears Roebuck Trophy: Lillia Kachelmeyer; GHS Field Hockey Award: Brielle Widelo; Stephen Golosh Memorial Football Award: David Damkoehler; Bete Fog Nozzle Hockey Scholarship: Matthew Lavoine; Michelle Dupont Memorial Scholarship Award: Rachel Dodge, Karisma Santana; Gary Stacy Memorial Softball Scholarship: Rachel Dodge, Abigail Ortiz, Brielle Widelo; Greenfield Tennis Association Scholarship: Kaitlyn Collins; GEA Scholarship: Cassidy Cloutier, Josefine Cloutier, Kaitlyn Collins, Trevor Kuchieski, Matthew Lavoine, Ryan Pulizari; Greenfield Kiwanis Club Awards: Hannah Perlberg; William A. Carlson Scholarship Awards: Clara Donivan, Trevor Kuchieski, Bridget Mahoney, Ava Widelo, Brielle Widelo; Daniela Zinn Memorial Scholarship Award: Alexis Heath, Abigail Ortiz; David M. Petrin Memorial Awards: Dylan Archer, Cassidy Cloutier, Josefine Cloutier, Kaitlyn Collins, Trevor Kuchieski, Matthew Lavoine, Bridget Mahoney; Aaron Franceschi-Green Memorial Award: Cassidy Cloutier; Silver G Awards: Cassidy Cloutier, Josefine Cloutier, Kaitlyn Collins, Rachel Dodge, Alexis Heath, Trevor Kuchieski, Hannah Perlberg, Ava Widelo, Brielle Widelo; Student Council Scholarship: Kaitlyn Collins, Bridget Mahoney, Hannah Perlberg, Ava Widelo, Brielle Widelo; Massachusetts Student Council Commonwealth Awards: Kaitlyn Collins, Brielle Widelo; George G. Jonelunas Scholarship: Rachel Dodge, Brielle Widelo; Jennie L. Bascom Fund: Matthew Frank, Ava Widelo; Class of 1977 Scholarship Award: Clara Donivan, Hannah Perlberg, Kaelan Wolfe; Nancy Mauri Robertson Memorial Award: Hannah Perlberg, Ava Widelo; Gail Steinbring Memorial History Award: Lucy Karieva; Weymouth Science Fund Award: Kaitlyn Collins; Jonathan W. Malloy Memorial Award: Alexis Figueroa; Scott K. Woodcock Memorial Award: David Damkoehler; Gary Bitzer Memorial Music Award: Ingrid Ellingboe; GHS Memorial Music Award: Alice Crawford, Lucy Karieva; Barney & Evelyn K. Michaelman Award: Dylan Archer, Aneesa Brewer, Deion Brewington-Simon, Leah Brown, Cassidy Cloutier, Josefine Cloutier, Kaitlyn Collins, Alice Crawford, Cassandra Decato, Rachel Dodge, Clara Donivan, Ingrid Ellingboe, Alexis Figueroa, Matthew Frank, Alexis Heath, Lillia Kachelmeyer, Lucy Karieva, Eric Kelly, Trevor Kuchieski, Matthew Lavoine, Bridget Mahoney, Natalie Miscavage, Abigail Ortiz, Ryan Ozdarski, Hannah Perlberg, Ryan Pulizari Karisma Santana, Jedidiah Schacht-Vega, Jayson Smith, Sabriel Spring, Makayla Valente, Ava Widelo, Brielle Widelo, Kaelan Wolfe; Greenfield High School Award: Kaitlyn Collins; A.K. Warner Fund Scholarship: Cassandra Decato, Ava Widelo; Abigail and John Adams Scholarship Award: Ethan Bross, Cassidy Cloutier, Kaitlyn Collins, Alice Crawford, David Damkoehler, Cassandra Decato, Samantha Disciullo, Rachel Dodge, Ingrid Ellingboe, Matthew Frank, Alexis Heath, Lucy Karieva, Hannah Perlberg, Sabriel Spring, Ava Widelo, Brielle Widelo, Kaelan Wolfe; Wells Trust Award: Dylan Archer, Emerald Camero-Rivera, Cassidy Cloutier, Josefine Cloutier, Kaitlyn Collins, Crystal Colón, David Damkoehler, Cassandra Decato, Rachel Dodge, Clara Donivan, Matthew Frank, Zaday Fuentes, Lillia Kachelmeyer, Lucy Karieva, Trevor Kuchieski, Bridget Mahoney, Karisma Santana, Jayson Smith, Sabriel Spring, Ava Widelo, Brielle Widelo, Kaelan Wolfe; Haskins Scholarships: Matthew Lavoine, Abigail Ortiz; Don Maynard Memorial Award: Hannah Perlberg; Ethel Raymond Orcutt Scholarship: Alexis Heath, Hannah Perlberg; Bill Massey Memorial Award: Deion Brewington-Simon, Trevor Kuchieski; Greenfield Elks Lodge 1296 Sandri, Ulrich, Russell Scholarship: Ava Widelo, Brielle Widelo; Greenfield Elks Lodge 1296 Henry J. Burns Memorial Scholarship: Karisma Santana; Szawlowski Farms Agricultural Foundation: David Damkoehler, Abigail Ortiz; Mary Stuart Rogers Foundation Scholarship: Sabriel Spring; Russell H. Kimball Memorial Scholarship: Hannah Perlberg; Graduation Program Design: Matthew Frank and Lucy Karieva.

Academic Awards

Dylan Archer: Wellness; Ashlee Bowen: Library Internship, Culinary; Deion Brewington-Simon: Weight Training; Emerald Camero-Rivera: Wellness, Oceanography; Cassidy Cloutier: AP Spanish Josefine Cloutier: Wellness; Kaitlyn Collins: French IV, AP Literature, Advanced European History; Kailee Corey: Work Experience, Math, English; Alice Crawford: Band, Drawing, Business, Wellness, Culinary; David Damkoehler: ELA 12, Health B, Culinary, AP Calculus; Cassandra Decato:Culinary; Rachel Dodge: Wellness, ELA 12, Business, Advanced European History, AP Calculus, AP Chemistry; Clara Donivan: Watercolor Painting, ELA 12, Creative Writing, Precalculus; Ingrid Ellingboe: Band, Business, Wellness, Culinary; Domenic Ellison: Work Experience, Math, English; Alexis Everett: Work Experience, Math, English; Alexis Figueroa: Painting 1, Creative Writing; Matthew Frank: Wellness, Painting 2, Advanced European History, Advanced Precalculus; Alexis Heath: Advanced European History; Miles Jekot: Conceptual Art; Lillia Kachelmeyer:Culinary; Lucy Karieva: Wellness French IV, Business, GHS-TV, Painting 1, Advanced European History, Band; Diana Kovrizhnykh: Wellness, Creative Writing; Trevor Kuchieski: Assistant AD, PE Intern; Matthew Lavoine: Business, Wellness, Culinary; Bridget Mahoney: Health A, Library Internship; Natalie Miscavage: Culinary; Alexander Monkiewicz: Wellness, RISE Program; Abigail Ortiz: Wellness, Oceanography, Advanced Precalculus; Ryan Ozdarski: Business, Culinary, Manufacturing, Wellness; Hannah Perlberg: Wellness, Weight Training; Ryan Pulizari: Business; Karisma Santana: Health B, Academic Support, Wellness; Damien Lanzi: Business; Jayson Smith; Wellness, Oceanography; Sabriel Spring: ELA 12, Advanced European History, Culinary; Makayla Valente: Wellness; Joseph White: Wellness; Ava Widelo; Wellness, AP Biology, AP Literature, Advanced European History; Brielle Widelo: AP Spanish, AP Literature, Advanced European History, AP Calculus; Kaelan Wolfe: AP Statistics, ELA 12, Environmental Ecology, Film Studies, Library Internship; William Woodall: Wellness, Business, Culinary.

National Honor Society: Cassidy Cloutier, Josefine Cloutier, Kaitlyn Collins, David Damkoehler, Rachel Dodge, Alexis Heath, Lucy Karieva, Bridget Mahoney, Abigail Ortiz, Hannah Perlberg, Sabriel Spring, Ava Widelo and Brielle Widelo.

Student Council Awards: Kaitlyn Collins, Bridget Mahoney, Hannah Perlberg, Ava Widelo and Brielle Widelo.

Key Club Awards: Deion Brewington-Simon, Cassidy Cloutier, Josefine Cloutier, Rachel Dodge, Clara Donivan, Lillia Kachelmeyer, Trevor Kuchieski, Abigail Ortiz, Hannah Perlberg, Ryan Pulizari, Karisma Santana, Ava Widelo and Brielle Widelo.

Athletic Awards

Dylan Archer: 4 Golf, 3 Hockey; Ethan Bross: 4 Cross Country; Azemina Cecunjanin: 3 Soccer; Cassidy Cloutier: 3 Field Hockey; Josefine Cloutier: 3 Field Hockey, 3 Basketball; Kaitlyn Collins: 3 Tennis; David Damkoehler: 4 Football; Rachel Dodge: 4 Volleyball, 4 Softball; Lillia Kachelmeyer: 5 Field Hockey, 4 Basketball, 3 Track; Trevor Kuchieski: 3 Hockey, 3 Baseball; Matthew Lavoine: 4 Hockey; Ryan Pulizari: 4 Football, 3 Track; Karisma Santana: 4 Volleyball; Jayson Smith: 3 Hockey; Makayla Valente: 4 Soccer, 3 Track; Joseph White: 4 Football; Ava Widelo: 3 Soccer, 3 Track; Brielle Widelo: 5 Field Hockey, 4 Softball.

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