Today, The DAILY LEADER continues its publication ofvaledictorian and salutatorian speeches from the Class of 2011.Today’s address is from Zoe Schroder, Loyd Star Attendance Centervaledictorian.

Welcome to our special guests, parents, teachers, friends andrelatives of the Loyd Star graduating class of 2011. Thank you forbeing with us tonight. It is a great honor to represent thisgraduating class on such a special night.

As I was preparing for this speech, I remembered a story that Iwould like to share with you. This story means a lot to me becausea special person in my life once shared it with me to inspire andhelp me through a tough time. The story goes like this …

Once upon a time, there was a wise man who used to go to theocean to do his writing. He had a habit of walking on the beachbefore he began his work.

One day as he was walking along the shore, he looked downthe beach and saw a human figure moving like a dancer. He smiled tohimself at the thought of someone who would dance to the day, andso, he walked faster to catch up.

As he got closer, he noticed that the figure was that of ayoung man, and that what he was doing was not dancing at all. Theyoung man was reaching down to the shore, picking up small objectsand throwing them into the ocean.

He came closer still and called out “Good morning! May I askwhat it is that you are doing?”

The young man paused, looked up, and replied, “Throwingstarfish into the ocean.”

“I must ask, then, why are you throwing starfish into theocean?” said the somewhat startled wise man.

To this, the young man replied, “The sun is up and the tideis going out. If I don’t throw them in, they’ll die.”

Upon hearing this, the wise man commented, “But, young man,do you realize that there are miles and miles of beach and thereare starfish all along every mile? You can’t possibly make adifference!”

At this, the young man bent down, picked up yet anotherstarfish, and threw it into the ocean. As it met the water, hesaid,” It made a difference for that one.” – Loren Eisley.

While the outcome of the story may seem hopeless, the meaningbehind it has had a profound impact on me. It has helped me realizethat every decision that we make, no matter how big, has atremendous impact on our lives and the lives of others.

As I reflected over the past few years, I discovered that peopleas well as memories have influenced and inspired our class. I willnever forget our hilarious driver’s ed stories like when one of ourclassmates ran into a deer. Or what about the numerous bus trips toProgress when they were building the junior high buildings? Thatwas fun … “not.” How about our very eventful field trips? Therewere more than one of those, good and bad. Oh and don’t forgetthose number 3 jokes in Mrs. King’s class! Those were endless! It’smemories like these that have influenced me.

But apart from good memories, there are also very tragic ones.In March 2009, we lost a beloved friend and classmate Tara Maxwell.Tara was loved by many and our class was devastated by the tragiccar accident that took her life. Every memory that we have sharedthroughout the years, no matter how big, small, good or bad, hasinfluenced and impacted each of our lives.

Our class has worked very hard to be here tonight. Throughoutthis year, we have begun making decisions about our futures. Wehave had to decide about majors, narrow down our college choices,apply for scholarships, or decide if we even want to go to college,much to the anticipation of our parents.

But apart from having to make these decisions, we have also madememories that we will take with us as we leave Loyd Star. We havemade new friends and had some teachers that we loved and othersthat we didn’t like so much, but whether it was from a teacher thatforced you to take 500 notes which made your hand feel like it wasgoing to fall off or the goofy teacher who always brightened ourday, or the teacher who was there for you on your worst day ever tohelp you get through yet another problem, each teacher has preparedand inspired us to do our best to be ready for the adventures weare about to take.

As we graduate here tonight, our class will begin to go theirseparate ways. Some of us are going to a community college, whileothers are going to a university, and others are heading off intothe work force. But as we take our different paths I know that thefriendships and the memories that we have shared here will remainwith us forever. Yes, we will return to Loyd Star, whether it isfor homecoming, attending a football, baseball or, in my case, asoccer game, or just to visit our favorite teachers. But aftertonight, we will no longer be students but guests at this schoolthat we have been a part of for so many years.

As we come to the end of our years at Loyd Star, we have madedecisions that are leading us down our paths. We all take somethingaway from our experience here, whether it is friendships,knowledge, memories, inside jokes, or maybe even all of these. Butas I leave here tonight, I come to realize that the young man inthe story I shared with you earlier represents Loyd Star and itsmany teachers who have helped us grow. The starfish represents thestudents who have been a part of this school. Loyd Star has been aninspirational part of our lives for many years, and just like theyoung man in the story, Loyd Star has made a profound difference inour lives, and for that we are truly grateful. Congratulations,Class of 2011! Thank you!

Zoe Schroder is the daughter of Robert and CynthiaSchroder.