Before letting this year’s graduates of Glendale High School start on their next chapter in life, Benjamin Wolf, the school’s principal, told them to let go and embrace new things they will experience.
“If you decide midway through college that you want to change your major, let go of the fear that you are not sticking to your original plan,” he told the 530 graduates Thursday during the school’s commencement. “Everyone is afraid to disappoint. Everyone is afraid to change. Do not dismiss the value that exists in discovering what does not make you happy. Let go.”
About an hour before the ceremony, the soon-to-be graduates, dressed in either a black or red gown, gathered along Broadway in front of the John Wayne Performing Arts Center as they talked with one another about their plans after the ceremony.
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Alejandro Gomez shows off his diploma to a friend after graduating at graduation ceremonies for the class of 2017 at Glendale High School on Thursday, June 1, 2017. (Tim Berger / Staff Photographer)
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Graduates at graduation ceremonies for the class of 2017 at Glendale High School on Thursday, June 1, 2017. (Tim Berger / Staff Photographer)
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Carine Kibarian smiles during a speech at graduation ceremonies for the class of 2017 at Glendale High School on Thursday, June 1, 2017. (Tim Berger / Staff Photographer)
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Gallo Lopez adjusts his hat after jumping off the stage from the top step after graduating at graduation ceremonies for the class of 2017 at Glendale High School on Thursday, June 1, 2017. (Tim Berger / Staff Photographer)
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Keila Castillo Bautista is all smiles after graduating at graduation ceremonies for the class of 2017 at Glendale High School on Thursday, June 1, 2017. (Tim Berger / Staff Photographer)
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The crowd on the sunny side of the stage used what they could to shield their eyes on a bright but cool graduation ceremony for the class of 2017 at Glendale High School on Thursday, June 1, 2017. (Tim Berger / Staff Photographer)
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A graduate raises his hand when the graduates were asked if they remember kindergarten at graduation ceremonies for the class of 2017 at Glendale High School on Thursday, June 1, 2017. (Tim Berger / Staff Photographer)
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Principal Benjamin Wolf presents the class at graduation ceremonies for the class of 2017 at Glendale High School on Thursday, June 1, 2017. (Tim Berger / Staff Photographer)
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Melina Puchulutegui pumps her arms into the air after graduating at graduation ceremonies for the class of 2017 at Glendale High School on Thursday, June 1, 2017. (Tim Berger / Staff Photographer)
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Ninelia Teinourian searches for a friend after graduating at graduation ceremonies for the class of 2017 at Glendale High School on Thursday, June 1, 2017. (Tim Berger / Staff Photographer)
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Trenton Julian looks into the audience after graduating at graduation ceremonies for the class of 2017 at Glendale High School on Thursday, June 1, 2017. (Tim Berger / Staff Photographer)
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Graduate Janet Dominguez turns her tassel with her fellow graduates at graduation ceremonies for the class of 2017 at Glendale High School on Thursday, June 1, 2017. (Tim Berger / Staff Photographer)
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Graduates process at graduation ceremonies for the class of 2017 at Glendale High School on Thursday, June 1, 2017. (Tim Berger / Staff Photographer)
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Are Sarkisian runs through the graduates low-fiving all of them after he graduated at graduation ceremonies for the class of 2017 at Glendale High School on Thursday, June 1, 2017. (Tim Berger / Staff Photographer)
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Graduate Genesis Aguilar waves to a family member as she processes into graduation ceremonies for the class of 2017 at Glendale High School on Thursday, June 1, 2017. (Tim Berger / Staff Photographer)
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Maura Fernandez at graduation ceremonies for the class of 2017 at Glendale High School on Thursday, June 1, 2017. (Tim Berger / Staff Photographer)
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Valedictorian Yoora Jung during her speech at graduation ceremonies for the class of 2017 at Glendale High School on Thursday, June 1, 2017. (Tim Berger / Staff Photographer)
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Isabella Beltran sings with the A Cappella Choir at graduation ceremonies for the class of 2017 at Glendale High School on Thursday, June 1, 2017. (Tim Berger / Staff Photographer)
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Kecia Arevalo sings the National Anthem with the A Cappella Choir at graduation ceremonies for the class of 2017 at Glendale High School on Thursday, June 1, 2017. (Tim Berger / Staff Photographer)
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ASB President Mariam Ghapadtsyan welcomes the audience at graduation ceremonies for the class of 2017 at Glendale High School on Thursday, June 1, 2017. (Tim Berger / Staff Photographer)
Many of the students were sporting medals around their necks, with each medal signifying different accomplishments they had completed during their four years at Glendale High.
Natalie Honarchian, who plans to attend Glendale Community College in the fall, had four medals, including a large one for a dance competition the school had won and another was for biliteracy.
“Some have more than others because they put in more time, but that doesn’t mean that everyone else didn’t accomplish anything,” she said.
Though Honarchian said that she does not know what her major will be yet, she thinks the teachers at Glendale High have given her the tools to continue her academic career.
“I think that the school provides every kind of student with something that they’re interested in, whether it’s art, dance, technology, cosmetology or different academic programs,” she said. “It’s a very well-rounded school.”
Not too far from her was Amed Lopez, who in the fall plans to attend UCLA as an economics major. He was wearing several medals, which included one for 3,000 hours of community service and another for being in the school’s honor system.
He said he will remember all the memories he has had at Glendale High, whether it was winning various speech competitions or asking a date out to a dance while he was in a coffin.
Like Honarchian, Lopez said that his alma mater has prepared him for what lies ahead and has taught him to be unique, which he thinks is a key to success.
“Be unique, no matter how difficult it is or how ugly it looks,” he said. “That’s what’s going to get you places in life. There are too many people out there that think that doing the same system or following the same path over and over again will lead you to success. You need to find your own path, and being unique will get you there.”
anthonyclark.carpio@latimes.com
Twitter: @acocarpio
