By James Lomuscio
Cheers from more than 3,000 well wishers and family members resounded off the rafters of Westport’s Staples High School Field House today as 405 graduates marched in to “Pomp and Circumstance” for the school’s 123rd commencement exercise.
Staples Principal John Dodig gives valedictorian Naveen Murali a hug today after he picked up his diploma. (CLICK TO ENLARGE) Lynn U. Miller for WestportNow.com
With cameras flashing and attendees fanning themselves with programs in 90-degree heat, the graduates in the bleachers remained upbeat from the opening senior Orphenians rendition of the “Star Spangled Banner” to the recessional march.
“It’s very exciting,” said Susan Colasurdo as she watched her son Casey James, who will be attending Fordham University, walk in with the class.
Despite the Field House being uncomfortably hot as it was filled to standing-room-only capacity, a spirit of optimism prevailed, underscored by the quote from Theodore Roosevelt on a banner hanging from the ceiling.
“The future belongs to those who believe in the power of dreams,” it said.
That seemed to be the thrust of Naveen Murali’s valedictory address as he told his classmates “to take action on every opportunity you have …to find your passion and to pursue it with unfettered ambition.”
“Success is defined by you,” Murali said.
That message was reiterated by Schools Superintendent Elliott Landon who stressed that students maintain “optimism for the future before you.”
“There are no limits on what you can become,” Landon said.
Taylor Ross was on crutches but that could not keep her away from graduation today. (CLICK TO ENLARGE) Contributed photo
At the same time Landon’s tempered his optimism with realism.
“The world you are about to inherit is a complex one replete with strife and uncertainty,” Landon cautioned.
He asked the students to include among their life’s goals “a commitment to making American education the very best it can be.”
The most poignant and personal remarks came from Staples Principal John Dodig who recounted his own hardscrabble childhood, a stark contrast to the privileges most of the graduates were fortunate to have.
Dodig recalled starting out life in a fifth floor, walk-up apartment on West 40th Street in New York City, small living quarters infested with roaches and mice.
He choreographed how his family moved several times due to his father’s itinerant jobs as a waiter. They moved from New York City to Port Washington on Long Island to Queens and eventually to New Haven where the family lived above a restaurant.
There, young Dodig recalled working alongside his parents at the restaurant where he cleaned shrimp and gutted plucked chickens.
He spoke about attending Notre Dame High School in New Haven, which, while though a private school, lacked many educational opportunities students have today.
Upon graduation, he attended Fairfield University where he was a commuter student dropped off by a friend. Dodig said he worked in the Quinnipiaic College cafeteria to pay his tuition, but had to leave because he could no longer afford it.
It was thumbs up for this Staples grad today. (CLICK TO ENLARGE) Lynn U. Miller for WestportNow.com
He finished at Southern Connecticut State College where the tuition was only $240 a year, and later returned to Fairfield for graduate school.
He also gave personal insights into his family life. His father, whom he described as extremely bigoted, walked out on the family, leaving Dodig’s mother to pay all the bills.
Dodig said that despite his father, his own growth was forged by his mother’s values and his exposure to Jesuit teaching.
“I can’t believe I’m standing here before you as your principal,” he said. “In my opinion, Staples has been good to you. For that you should thank your parents because they know what’s good for you.
“I love you and wish you well,” he added. “Live a good life.”
