Marina’s Class of 2023 proclaim triumph over high school and challenges at the height of the pandemic
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Jayden Manisuba rode five hours with her family from Las Vegas to Boswell Field to see Anaya Togia receive her diploma from Marina High School on Thursday. Nothing would stop her from cheering on her graduating cousin, not even a well-ingrained sense of manners.
“Excuse me,” she said as she tapped a man leaning on a fence in front of her on the shoulder. “That’s my cousin coming up right there, and it’s about to get really loud. You might want to plug your ears or something. Sorry, I’m so sorry.”
She, the graduate’s sister Alanna Togia along with a pack of cousins, aunts and uncles erupted moments later, waving signs and shouting “Anaya!” at the top of their lungs. Their joy echoed across the field, causing their relative to cringe only slightly as a beaming smile took hold of her expression.
She was among 534 members of Marina’s Class of 2023. They entered high school at the height of the pandemic, and had to adapt to distance learning and other unprecedented challenges, senior speaker Jake Lauper said.
“When no path was laid before us, we paved one,” Lauper told his colleagues during Thursday’s ceremony. “When no light was shining at the end of the tunnel, we lit one. When all odds were against us and when all seemed lost, we did not falter. We faced darkness and isolation, and we prevailed. Our proof is in our caps and gowns.”
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