In his Commencement speech (watch it on YouTube), student speaker Jake Smith ’25 riffed on his class’s experience—those moments that are somehow utterly unique, and which transcend time. Below is an excerpt that captures his vision of Williston.

Williston is community, Williston is opportunity, Williston is weekends spent under the lights on Sawyer. Williston is Logan House and EMV sweeping Lip Sync (1). Williston is Ashton Reynolds and the Williston student section going viral. It’s Viktoria hitting a game winner from half field under the lights at the blackout game.

Williston is Bennett Bartlett and Mr. Dietrich dressing up as Buddy the Elf (3) for the Holiday banquet every year. It’s Luke Grabowski doing cartwheels in the library at 9:30 on a random Tuesday morning. Williston is Juli Tatar and Annika Stackmann’s unbelievable performances in the dance concert (5). It’s petting Max, the Beatons’ dog, on the way to class.

Williston is the stupid library door that takes four tries and your last nerve to open. It’s Jedi Master Simpson promoting Areté at Assembly. Williston is Robin yelling at someone for cutting the lunch line, then giving them a hug to make it all better (2). It’s Oscar and David’s awe-inspiring paintings; it’s Thursday nights in the writing center. It’s Spikeball on the quad when everyone yells at Annika Song for playing too much. It’s a genuine hello from a classmate or teacher walking by.

Williston is the nights by the fire with friends laughing for hours (4). It’s Pittman Alley doing anything and everything out of context. It’s the biggest smile and warmest hello from our forever mom, Ms. Motyka. Williston is the class of ’25, Williston is family, Williston will always be a place to call home. I will always cherish the friendships, knowledge, and sense of community we built here at Williston.