Thankful for local traditions

The last couple of weeks of the school year, things get a little nutty for folks with students in their lives. This is the time of year those of us at the Herald-Gazette work to produce the graduation special section which is in today’s paper.

It’s one of the more difficult sections to put together. But it’s certainly worthwhile to give our readers a chance to see which kiddos Jack County is sending off into the wide world each year.

One of those happens to be mine, she’ll walk the stage tonight and get her diploma, but I don’t think it’s fully hit me yet that I have a kid who will soon be leaving home.

I’ve talked to my mom about this a bit lately, asking her how she was able to just let me wonder off to college when she knew full well I was still an idiot child.

She said it was a lot harder for her than she let on and that a dear family friend, Ray Sanderson, who has since passed on told her often at the time simply, “You raised her right; she’ll do fine.”

I have enjoyed all of the different traditions the community of Jacksboro has to make this time special for the members of the graduating class and their parents.

The high school does an excellent job with the senior assembly and baccalaurete. Three churches — Church of Christ, Christian Missions and First United Methodist — host meals for the entire class the week leading up to commencement. 

Through donations, local businesses support the class’ senior celebration event which takes place after the graduation ceremony to give the new grads a way to celebrate safely. 

The school even opens up one night during the week for “senior prank” allowing the seniors to play hide-and-seek in the dark and “decorate” the school. I thought that was crazy until my husband said it makes sense to let them do that sort of thing in a controlled environment instead of letting them loose to “decorate” the town unsupervised.

So it has been a busy, fun yet exhausting couple of weeks for the graduating seniors and their families and we all owe a big thank you to the greater community for making it possible.

I too am truly thankful it all concludes with a three-day weekend.