I’m not sure how I manage to be so lucky, but every school year I somehow find myself subbing in one of the elementary school buildings on the day of the Graduate Parade.
Anyone who reads my blog regularly is familiar with this very fun and meaningful tradition. Parade Day is a chance for our Webster Thomas and Schroeder seniors to revisit the elementary and middle schools where they began their Webster School careers.
This year I was helping out in the library at Plank North Elementary when the Webster Thomas High School Class of 2026 came parading through. This was an especially meaningful year for me since it was the first time I was in a building where I had actually worked when these students were in 5th grade. So, for the first time, I actually knew many of these kids and some of them remembered me.
It’s really an experience to see these young people stream through the halls. Nodding to the fact that it’s sometimes difficult to recognize these tall, mature adults for the freckle-faced young people they once were, each senior wore a sign with his or her name and post-graduation plans. As they paraded down one hall, then another, they passed hundreds of cheering and applauding preK through fifth grade students, many of them holding signs of congratulations. Every so often the parade was slowed when a graduate stopped to take a photo or get a long hug from a favorite teacher.
After the seniors headed back outside, it didn’t seem like anyone wanted to leave. Friends clumped in small groups to take a final Plank North photo together, and a handful of teachers took the chance to catch up with some of their former students. Finally, everyone gathered in front of the building for one last photo, a final memory of the place where their school journeys began.
What a wonderful way to celebrate our seniors, congratulate them on their success, and remind them how much they’ve accomplished.
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(posted 6/13/2026)
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