The sudden end to their last year at Litchfield High School has left a void for seniors who are mourning the loss not only of the end of their sports careers, but other milestones like graduation and prom.
“We went to our last day of school, and we didn't even know it,” Litchfield boys tennis captain Ben Nelson said.
In the middle of March, Gov. Tim Walz extended spring break by a week so that school districts could develop distance learning plans. A few days later, Walz issued an executive order for distance learning until April 30.
Last week, another executive order shuttered school buildings for the rest of the year. That ended hopes for prom — which would have been this past Saturday — and a normal commencement ceremony.
“It's a very disappointing time for (the seniors),” Litchfield High School Principal Jason Michels said. “I will say on a positive end, as far as the seniors have handled it, I've had conversations with many of them and they're not blaming anybody. They're disappointed, they're frustrated, but they know that it's not their fault. I will commend them and tell them that they've handled it really, really well.”
The Minnesota State High School League suspended the spring activities season March 25, and last week it canceled the season.
A few sports, like softball and track and field, had started preseason practices before fears of the coronavirus coming into Minnesota.
“Having our senior seasons, like we don't get to compete one last time,” track and field captain Colby Christensen said about missing her final track season. “Going to state was a bunch of people's goals this year. Like to not even have the chance for that, is hard.”
That sentiment was shared by other seniors.
“It just (is disappointing) because baseball is what I've been looking forward to mostly this year,” said Bret Wendlandt, a captain of the Dragons baseball team. “We got a great group of guys and I love playing with them. I think we could go far. But to not have that, yeah, it kind of (hurts).”
Michels held out hope for prom as long as he could, knowing many students already had picked out their dresses, which many now might not get to show off. But some students are getting creative on how to have that special moment.
“My boyfriend, he actually lives next door,” Litchfield girls golf captain Vaida Behnke said. “So, we are still going to plan doing a little prom in my backyard. Just us two and nobody else, just doing a little special night like that.”
May 31 was the scheduled date for graduation at the high school. With distance learning extended until the end of the school year, May 31 is out of the question for a physical commencement, but Michels said that administrators are trying to find a different format to recognize the seniors.
“We are in the process of putting commencement together but in a different format,” Michels said. “I don't want to go into specifics right now, but that's really been for me in the last two or three weeks (a goal), is trying to find a way to celebrate the successes of our seniors in a different way. Because that's a very, very important thing, probably in some ways more important than the other things. But I can tell you that there is a vision and a plan, and there are conversations that are taking place. We are communicating with the kids, some general approaches maybe this week, but we are spending a lot of time on trying to recognize the seniors and do it in a good way."
Graduation is the culmination of years of work, and receiving a diploma in the mail or as a PDF, likely does not carry the same weight, for most students, as going on the stage and basking in glory.
“It's definitely going to be weird,” Nelson said. “You work your whole life to be able to do that, not necessarily for the ceremony, but to be able to graduate high school. I almost feel like it'll feel a little unfinished in a sense. Every graduation that I've ever experienced, they finish classes, they walk at graduation, they get their diploma, they shake hands with the principal and everyone else. And then, to not experience that, I feel like it's a little incomplete.”
Despite the circumstances, the class of 2020 remains optimistic about the future.
“I've been talking with my tennis coaches, and one thing that they've always said is, 'don't be sad that it's over, but be thankful for all the things that we already got to experience,'” Nelson said. “Regardless of us missing the last two months and you know, it's hard, but the reality is there's so much that we did get to experience, and I'm thankful for that. More than I'm sad about missing the other stuff.”
