Kendall Toineeta (center), CHS 2015 Valedictorian, was honored for her classroom excellence during the annual CHS Academic Awards Banquet on Tuesday, May 19. She is shown with her parents, Sunshine (left) and Bruce Toineeta. (AMBLE SMOKER/One Feather)
By AMBLE SMOKER
ONE FEATHER STAFF
Cherokee High School held their annual Academic Awards Banquet on Tuesday, May 19. Fifty-seven students who held a 90 or better grade point average through the first three quarters of the 2014-15 school year, were recognized and honored for their exceptional work inside the classroom.
Shannon Swimmer, a 1997 graduate from Cherokee High School, delivered an emotionally heartfelt personal story on overcoming obstacles and busting through the adverse statistics set against Native American children. The story centered on her personal struggles with despair and the perseverance she commandeered to help write a better ending for herself. She shared with the students, “You’re at the beginning of your lives. An opportunity is laid out before you. Things might not always go as planned but that doesn’t mean you should give up. Life might get hard and you might want to quit, but you’re important and the world needs you.”
The following students were honored:
12th grade: Lacey Arch, Reagan Bernard, Dre Crowe, Avery Davis, Olivia LaCombe, Kaycee Lossiah, Alexis McCoy, Kendall Toineeta, Peri Wildcatt.
11th grade: Michael Arch, Kristen Driver, Christian Ensley, Virginia Grant, Davis Littlejohn, Chloee McEntire, Jason McMillan, Annleata Montoya, Autumn Payne, Samantha Rauch, Kieran Sequoyah, Alexis Smith, Autumn Smith, Laurel Welch.
10th grade: Payton Bradley, Avery Guy, Dan Long, Kendra Ayanna Panther, Aaron Smart, Richard Smith, Mikhail Swimmer, Jayce Watty, Lukas Ray Woodard.
9th grade: Shannon Albert, Tony Bernhisel, Tristin Bottchenbaugh, Isaiah Bowman, Marley Bradley, Riley Crowe, Josilynn Driver, Jordan Grant, Scarlett Guy, Gabriel Lebron, Samantha Lee, Christina Littlejohn, Kaley Locust, Tye Mintz, Cherith Owle, Ashenee Pheasant, Lidia Ramirez, Robin Reed, Kyra Sneed, Jerome Thompson, Tiarra Toineeta, Natasha Walk, Anya Walsh, Macie Welch, Shelby Wolfe.
To view or purchase photos from this event, visit:
https://onefeather.smugmug.com/2015-Community-Events-and-News/CHS-Academic-Awards-May-20/
