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his friendliness was greeted by friendliness on most
occasions. There were times Keaton was made to
appear foolish; he believed people to be honest and
caring. When he realized that a prank or joke had
been played on him, he was crushed. He has now
learned to forgive, something we should all practice.
He has decided that he can speak to the persons who
were involved in those hurtful situations. In his heart
he forgives them, and will share that he can speak to
them because he has “moved on with his life’.
In his junior year, we saw him tapped for the National
Honor Society, and he was selected to be a marshal
for graduation. Keaton attended several dances with
his friends, prior to his senior year.
In his last year of high school he attended the
homecoming ball game at which he was crowned
“Homecoming King”; an honor that had been voted
on by the entire student body. He attended this dance
as the Homecoming King. In the spring, Keaton had
a date for dinner and for the senior prom. Before the
prom, his parents and grandparents went to the state
park to take pictures of the couple in their formal
attire. In his senior year he received the school’s most
prestigious award: Most Valuable Cougar. This was
decided by the senior class, faculty and staff. No
words of mine can explain how proud and happy we
were for Keaton to receive this award. Later, I will
introduce the words of someone who could.
It is customary for the student selected as Most
Valuable Cougar to speak at the graduation ceremony.
Once again, family and friends were present in the
stadium to hear Keaton’s speech. We each felt that we