St. Lawrence University: Commencement

Adam Casler ’06
Winner: Joan Donovan Speech Contest

Good morning friends, family, faculty, fellow Laurentians, and most importantly, the Class of 2006. We made it! Some of us will say that these four years have gone by in the blink of an eye. Others will say that this moment couldn’t have come any sooner. Regardless of which end of the spectrum we all might fall, we’ve made this incredible journey together, of that, I know we can agree.

This journey that we’ve made has been one of fun and games, heartbreak and sorrow. We’ve lived, loved and sadly, lost. Three classmates lost their lives during their time as a Laurentian, and I’d ask you to join me in a moment of silence in honor of our friends and classmates, Will O’Brien, Emily Mounce and Adam Falcon.

Thank you all for that. Despite the heartbreak and sorrow that these losses have caused us, they brought us together as a class. The passion with which they lived their lives inspired us, and made us work harder to live up to the standards they set for themselves, and the friends that they held in the highest regard. We realized, even if for a brief moment, the importance of those closest to us, our friends. As the Beatles so aptly said, “I get by with a little help from my friends.” Whether it was our first night on the Quad, skipping a seminar on the geopolitics of Eastern Europe to go to Lampson Falls, staying up all night to study for that final in Cultural Anthropology, cheering on the hockey teams, or reconnecting with old friends during Senior Week, it has been the friendships formed at this place that will remain in our memories for a lifetime.

As we prepare to enter the so-called “real world,” I’d challenge those who dismiss college as simply a “carefree” time period in our lives. Although the stresses of exams, finding a way to pay tuition, finding a decent dorm room year after year, and the occasional blow up between friends may seem trivial to some, it has only further enhanced our abilities to tackle issues with an open mind, and an open heart, something that St. Lawrence has been teaching its students for 150 years.

Now, we stand on the verge of taking on a new set of stresses. Whether it is graduate school, finding a job, finding an apartment or simply saying goodbye, I know that each and every one of us has the ability to use the lessons we have learned from our professors, family and friends to ensure that our next set of experiences are as rewarding as those that we have had here in LarryLand.

Although we have had some amazing experiences here at St. Lawrence, make no mistake about it, we have been challenged. We have been challenged to look critically at beliefs we once held as sacred, and to rethink the problems facing the world, our community, and ourselves. We have been challenged to open our hearts and minds by faculty members who knew all along that we were able to think critically and creatively. We have been challenged by administrators to find our collective voice, which I think we have accomplished more times than not. We have been challenged by our parents and family members to grow into the people they always wished we would become. Most importantly however, is that we have been challenged by each other. From the first moment we stepped onto campus as first year students, we have learned how to live, work and play together, despite the differences among us. We’ve all learned pivotal lessons regarding race, class, sexuality, and gender from our experiences with our classmates. These are the lessons that will be the most applicable in our futures.

Over the past four years we have formed new, and sometimes surprising, friendships that have taught us so much more about the world that we are about to enter than a textbook ever could. Next year will find us scattered all throughout the country and world. From Japan to London; San Francisco to Kentucky to Boston, we will all be moving to new areas, with new people. I urge all of us to make the same type of friendships and connections that we’ve made here, and learn from these new friends. Apply what they teach us into our greater responsibility of making this world a place that everyone can be proud of.

Today marks our last official day at St. Lawrence. It is now the past. As much as we wish we could have done something more, or done something differently, we can not. What we can do, is learn. We can learn from the missteps we have made along the road so far, and not make those same errors. We can learn how to find that ever-elusive balance between work and play. We can learn how to adapt to this next phase of our lives by giving it our all, just as we did here at St. Lawrence. We can learn from new mistakes, and then learn again. We’ve got the brains, skills and desire to make the world a better place no matter what profession we enter. Life will throws us some challenges, as it already has, but we will get through it; in good spirits and surrounded by good friends, for we are the Great Class of 2006.

Return to Commencement	Adam Casler ’06 Winner: Joan Donovan Speech Contest Good morning friends, family, faculty, fellow Laurentians, and most importantly, the Class of 2006. We made it! Some of us will say that these four years have gone by in the blink of an eye. Others will say that this moment couldn’t have come any sooner. Regardless of which end of the spectrum we all might fall, we’ve made this incredible journey together, of that, I know we can agree. This journey that we’ve made has been one of fun and games, heartbreak and sorrow. We’ve lived, loved and sadly, lost. Three classmates lost their lives during their time as a Laurentian, and I’d ask you to join me in a moment of silence in honor of our friends and classmates, Will O’Brien, Emily Mounce and Adam Falcon. Thank you all for that. Despite the heartbreak and sorrow that these losses have caused us, they brought us together as a class. The passion with which they lived their lives inspired us, and made us work harder to live up to the standards they set for themselves, and the friends that they held in the highest regard. We realized, even if for a brief moment, the importance of those closest to us, our friends. As the Beatles so aptly said, “I get by with a little help from my friends.” Whether it was our first night on the Quad, skipping a seminar on the geopolitics of Eastern Europe to go to Lampson Falls, staying up all night to study for that final in Cultural Anthropology, cheering on the hockey teams, or reconnecting with old friends during Senior Week, it has been the friendships formed at this place that will remain in our memories for a lifetime. As we prepare to enter the so-called “real world,” I’d challenge those who dismiss college as simply a “carefree” time period in our lives. Although the stresses of exams, finding a way to pay tuition, finding a decent dorm room year after year, and the occasional blow up between friends may seem trivial to some, it has only further enhanced our abilities to tackle issues with an open mind, and an open heart, something that St. Lawrence has been teaching its students for 150 years. Now, we stand on the verge of taking on a new set of stresses. Whether it is graduate school, finding a job, finding an apartment or simply saying goodbye, I know that each and every one of us has the ability to use the lessons we have learned from our professors, family and friends to ensure that our next set of experiences are as rewarding as those that we have had here in LarryLand. Although we have had some amazing experiences here at St. Lawrence, make no mistake about it, we have been challenged. We have been challenged to look critically at beliefs we once held as sacred, and to rethink the problems facing the world, our community, and ourselves. We have been challenged to open our hearts and minds by faculty members who knew all along that we were able to think critically and creatively. We have been challenged by administrators to find our collective voice, which I think we have accomplished more times than not. We have been challenged by our parents and family members to grow into the people they always wished we would become. Most importantly however, is that we have been challenged by each other. From the first moment we stepped onto campus as first year students, we have learned how to live, work and play together, despite the differences among us. We’ve all learned pivotal lessons regarding race, class, sexuality, and gender from our experiences with our classmates. These are the lessons that will be the most applicable in our futures. Over the past four years we have formed new, and sometimes surprising, friendships that have taught us so much more about the world that we are about to enter than a textbook ever could. Next year will find us scattered all throughout the country and world. From Japan to London; San Francisco to Kentucky to Boston, we will all be moving to new areas, with new people. I urge all of us to make the same type of friendships and connections that we’ve made here, and learn from these new friends. Apply what they teach us into our greater responsibility of making this world a place that everyone can be proud of. Today marks our last official day at St. Lawrence. It is now the past. As much as we wish we could have done something more, or done something differently, we can not. What we can do, is learn. We can learn from the missteps we have made along the road so far, and not make those same errors. We can learn how to find that ever-elusive balance between work and play. We can learn how to adapt to this next phase of our lives by giving it our all, just as we did here at St. Lawrence. We can learn from new mistakes, and then learn again. We’ve got the brains, skills and desire to make the world a better place no matter what profession we enter. Life will throws us some challenges, as it already has, but we will get through it; in good spirits and surrounded by good friends, for we are the Great Class of 2006.
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