Telegraph photo by ALAN GREENWOOD Nashua High School South principal Keith Richard Presents a diploma at Monday's commencement exercises at Stellos Stadium.

NASHUA – Soaking in the final memory of their Nashua High School South careers, the class of 2022 reveled in its commencement ceremonies last week at Stellos Stadium.

A perfect summer evening, with blue skies and warm temperatures, framed the event for upwards of 400 graduates, with more than 2,000 friends and family members looking on.

“This may be your last official event as a Nashua South student, but it’s not your last day as Purple Panther,” principal Keith Richard said, “you just have a new role after tonight. You become alumni of Nashua High School South, and remember – once a Panther, always a Panther.”

“It’s sad knowing that we won’t be making more memories with the same groups of people,” valedictorian Akhil Kammila said. “But graduating is also exciting because we’re starting the next chapter of our lives. We’ll meet new friends while still keeping in touch with old ones. And we have a completely clean slate – we’re still young and we haven’t screwed anything up yet! We’ll go onto college, the military, or a job, and before we know it, we’ll be looking back fondly on our high school days.”

Senior class officers Rhett Medling, Ram Prajapati and Elizabeth Brunelle, echoed that sentiment. As Medling pointed out, the Class of 2022 endured during unprecedented circumstances – but, the grads did maintain their sense of humor.

“I think it’s fair to say that it’s been a very interesting four years,” Medling said. “We have survived Covid, online learning, and probably worst of all – mask-acne!

“Online learning did have some benefits. You could roll out of bed at 7:18 and be in class on time for 7:20.”

“Our experiences at Nashua South have given us everything we need to succeed,” Prajapati said. “We’ve had great extracurricular programs to help learn more about ourselves. Really amazing teachers who have prepared us for the next step in our life. We are ready to take on the world and accomplish incredible things.”

“When one thinks of their high school experience the mind may wander to note taking, studying or lecture,” Brunelle said, “although beyond these aspects lie the small moments we shared with one another. To a stranger, our cafeteria appears to just be a lunchroom, but to the class of 2022 it was the venue of our first high school dance.

Our fields may just be patches of grass but they were also home to some of our greatest athletic victories.

“These shared spaces will forever be home to the exchange of our ideas, laughs and connection. As we leave South to pursue our futures, these fond memories remain.”

Winners of the Principal’s Awards included Lourdes Silverio Pilar, the Leadership Award; the Commendation Award, Meghan Conway; and the Panther Pride Award, to the 2021 South boys soccer team, which won the Division I championship.

Faculty members honored included the faculty speaker, Lex Duval, Malia Martel, Angela Walsh and Nancy Cox.