PRESIDIO — Last Friday night, a crowd packed the Blue Devils Gymnasium to send off the Class of 2024 in high style. Tears were shed, hugs were hugged, and customized graduation caps glittered throughout an emotional ceremony that celebrated the accomplishments of Presidio’s newest crop of graduates.
Superintendent Carmen Rubner gave the opening address, welcoming friends and family to the special event. “You are ready for the next stage,” she said. “Celebrate your accomplishments and continue to learn and grow into adulthood.”
The alumni guest speaker at this year’s ceremony was Dr. Nakaya Flotte — who herself was surprised that she had been asked to speak. “When I received an email from one of the students asking to become this year’s graduation speaker, I thought, ‘Do you really want a rebel like me?’”
Flotte is a Harvard-trained anthropologist and a postdoctoral fellow at the University of Texas at Austin. With roots in Ojinaga and Manuel Benavides, she has been inspired to trace her Indigenous heritage and encourages others to do the same. To open her speech, she gave a few remarks in Lipan Apache, a language that she has been working to reconstruct in hopes of providing a window into the region’s history.
Flotte’s moving speech recounted her fight to be educated in the United States, highlighting the struggles of students who cross the border daily between Presidio and Ojinaga for school despite legal and physical barriers to entry. She was an avid athlete and recounted how her mother slept in the car so she could pick her daughter up from the bus that would come back from far-flung competitions in the middle of the night.
She capped off her speech by encouraging Presidio youth to power forward, regardless of any financial, political and personal obstacles in their path. “Many people will attempt to burst your dreams,” she said. “Do not believe them.”
Before the formal hand-off of diplomas began, Salutatorian Anton Morales and Valedictorian Valerie Armendariz gave their own heartfelt remarks. Morales gave a special shoutout to his family and friends and encouraged everyone in the audience not to take their memories together for granted. “Time flies way too quickly,” he said.
Armendariz spoke next, poking fun at Morales for their spirited academic rivalry over the years. She recounted funny memories of her classmates and family, from snack runs at the DY to dissecting a pig in biology class. Above it all, she encouraged everyone to stay true to their roots. “Each memory is a testament to the bonds we’ve forged and the lessons we’ve learned along the way,” she said.