The top academic student in the 2002 graduating class for Central Kitsap High School had a problem.

Valedictorian Andrew Guerra had checked hundreds of quotations for a bit of wisdom for his classmates. From James Dean to Ghandi. He had looked and didn’t like what he found.

“Some sayings even contradicted each other,” Guerra told almost 4,000 people gathered June 14 at the Kitsap County Pavilion.

“I challenge you to find your own wisdom,” Guerra said, ending his short speech.

The speeches were short because the roll call of students — all 418 graduates — was long.

CKHS Principal John Cervinsky said the choice for overall outstanding senior was an easy one — Stephanie Wallace.

“She fit all the criteria,” Cervinsky said.

Wallace alluded to events of Sept. 11 in her short speech to graduates and gathered loved ones and family.

“We are about to enter a world in turmoil,” Wallace said. “Let us not forget our friendships. A special thank you to our teachers and administrators who have made a special investment in our futures. We take a different path when we go, but we take a little of each of us everywhere.”

In accepting the CKHS class of 2002, CK School District Superintendent Catherine Davidson told the students, “We trust incredibly in you.”

As the roll of graduates was called — from Cassandra Amalia Abbott to Matthew John Zook — each received a few catcalls and cheers from family members and friends, had their pictures taken, and were given their diploma noting their K-12 education from CK School Board members.

Outside the packed pavilion, the graduates let their hair down, literally and figuratively. Standing on the back of pickups, holding massive balloon bouquets, or crying in each other arms, the students had passed a milestone, even if it didn’t quite register that they would never again ALL gather in one place.

“It hasn’t hit me yet,” said graduate Ashley Temple. “I feel like I’ve achieved something though.”

Temple will go to Olympic College this fall on a full scholarship to study physics. Earlier in the day, when she gave her high school physics teacher a final hug, Temple had her first emotional moment.

“It hit me hard,” Temple said of the end of her high school career. “That was the first time I cried.”

Her classmate Judson May will enroll at BYU University in Provo, Utah this fall.

“It doesn’t feel like it has really happened yet. The ceremony went by a lot quicker than I thought it would,” May said.

May said the hardest part of his senior year was the beginning, not the end.

“Just keeping on track the whole time and not losing my momentum,” May said, was his biggest senior challenge.

May wore a lei around his neck like all of his fellow students. His mother Janice had stuffed it with $24.

“Nothing significant,” she said. “It was all I had. I’m so proud of him. With all the things that students have to put up with these days, it is quite an accomplishment these days.”

If any teacher in the Central Kitsap School District is entitled to give an impression of the CKHS Class of 2002, it is J.D. Sweet. He has taught at the high school on Bucklin Hill Road for a quarter century.

“This class had energy,” Sweet said, an hour after the ceremony ended. “The class had spirit, a lot of positives and a lot of bright stars. When they come back for reunions, I have a feeling that they will be tight.”

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