Three students from qathet School District's Class of 2025 spoke during a celebration marking their rite of passage earlier this month at Powell River Recreation Complex. Francesca Valing spoke to her fellow graduates, Lily Carlos shared a message to teachers and staff, and Hope Alescio delivered the following speech to the parents of graduates:
I reject the notion that you don’t choose your family. Many people believe that family is something you're simply born into—that your parents are your parents because you share the same DNA. But I don’t think DNA is what truly makes a family.
DNA is what led our parents to take us home from the hospital. But love is what made them take us to every extracurricular activity.
Legal requirements made sure they provided food for us. But love is what made our moms wake up early just to make sure we got to school safely.
Yes, the government says you have to send your child to school. But it was love that made our parents teach us never to give up, to always try our best, and to always be true to ourselves.
Our parents didn’t have to do everything they did for us—they chose to love us every single day. They chose to go the extra mile. Duty is doing what’s required. Family is choosing to love, even when it’s hard.
Most of us graduates wouldn’t be here today if our parents or guardians hadn’t made that choice. And that’s what makes a parent’s love so real. It’s not automatic. It’s intentional.
There were times we gave our parents attitude they didn’t deserve. Times when they could have responded with frustration and no one would have blamed them. But they chose to love us instead. Again, and again.
When others might have given up on us, our parents and guardians stayed. They've been by our sides since day one.
Being a parent isn’t just about biology. It’s about being there. It’s about showing up. It’s about loving someone through their failures, disappointments and mistakes. It’s about cheering for their hobbies, supporting their goals and believing in their dreams.
For some of us, the people we call mom or dad might not even share our DNA. But as I said, being a parent isn’t about genetics. It’s about choosing to love, even when it’s difficult.
So, parents, congratulations. The choices you’ve made up until now have led your kid to graduate. From that day you brought them home from the hospital to the day they will leave your nest, your choice to be a loving parent has empowered this generation to be the kind of people you raised us to be.
Thank you, Mom, Dad, for the countless times you chose to love. Without your sacrifice we would not be where we are today.
The next generation has the potential to do incredible things because of your choice to be the kind of parents we needed to succeed.
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