24 Whitesville Trinity High grads 'one big family'
Friends and family assembled on Friday evening at the Saint Mary of the Woods Horn Community Center in Whitesville to watch as 24 graduates received their high school diplomas from Trinity High School (THS).
This year’s senior sponsor, a staff member that’s selected at the beginning of the students’ freshman year at the high school to follow the class through the years, Bridget Abbott, a science and agriculture teacher at THS said that she’s seen the class of 2024 students grow as the years have progressed.
“We’re one big family here at THS. We will always be here for these students no matter where life takes them. I want them to know that they all have Trinity behind them,” Abbott said.
The theme of the night was all about family.
“We’re such a small, close-knit community here in Whitesville, and everyone is supportive of Trinity,” said senior Hannah Nash, 18.
Nash was selected to provide the ceremony’s opening prayer. She plans to attend Owensboro Community and Technical College (OCTC) in the fall in pursuit of an associate of science degree before transferring to the University of Louisville for a nursing degree.
“Ultimately, I want to be a psychiatric nurse practitioner. I spent time shadowing someone in the field this year and I really enjoyed it,” Nash said.
She said that graduating from THS is “bittersweet.”
“I just consider everyone to be family. We’re all like family, and I’m going to miss everyone,” she said.
Nash also emphasized the importance that her education from THS has played in her journey with her faith.
“THS does emphasize academics,” said Nash, “but I also love that the school has helped me define my faith and make me into a much stronger and more faithful person.”
Twins Christian and Jonathan Miller are the latest among six generations of family members to graduate from THS. They both have plans to attend Murray State University (MSU) in the fall.
Christian Miller, who graduated cum laude and with a diploma of distinction, plans to study pre-veterinary science at MSU while Jonathan Miller says he’s still undecided but wants to get a bachelors degree before joining the Air Force as an officer.
“Everyone here is like family,” said Jonathan Miller. “We’ve all grown up together, so I love that we can celebrate this graduation together.”
Georgia Howard, 18, was the class of 2024’s designated student speaker. She plans to attend Kentucky Wesleyan College (KWC), majoring in exercise science, in the fall.
“I’ve had such a great experience here at THS,” Howard said. “I’m excited that we get to enjoy today because it’s what we’ve waited for all of these years, but it’s bittersweet leaving everyone behind to do new, exciting things.”
Howard said that the people, her classmates and her teachers, have made the experience at THS one to remember.
Providing an introduction to Howard’s speech, Nolan Huff, 17, also echoed the sentiments of his classmates — that “the best thing about school here at THS is how close everyone is and that we are all family.”
Huff, the senior class secretary, plans to attend OCTC in the fall as a pathway to becoming a physical therapist.
