DERBY – Seventy-one seniors bid farewell to Derby High School during the school’s 150th commencement ceremony held Monday (June 15) at the Leo F. Ryan Sports Complex.
Under picture-perfect sunny blue skies, family and friends gathered on the bleachers and watched as the line of graduates – the girls clad in white caps and gowns and the boys decked out in Red Raider red – made their way around the track and took their seats on Lou DeFilippo Field.
The big red scoreboard at the back of the field was lit to highlight the class’ crowning achievement, with the visitor and home score boxes replaced with “26” for the year, “71” for the number of graduates. The time clock was replaced with “350” to commemorate the City of Derby’s founding on May 13, 1675.
Class valedictorian Carter Ruggiero told the crowd he could’ve played it safe by writing a generic speech about following your dreams, reaching for the stars, or never giving up. Instead, he drew inspiration from comedian Jerry Seinfeld who told Duke University grads in 2024, “you shouldn’t think about having, but becoming.”
Ruggiero said “having” implies a materialistic mindset that overshadows your growth as a person. But “becoming,” he said, “is all about enjoying the experience and the journey, embracing your ups, downs and all arounds.”
Ruggerio gave the class some advice to live by.
“Spend enough time around hardworking people, and you’ll work harder,” he said. “Spend enough time around kind people, and you’ll become kinder. Spend enough time around positive people, and their attitude starts to rub off on you. You can change how you speak, how you look, how you write, and how you act, but on the inside, you are still the same person and eventually find who you are.”
Class salutatorian Sara Poric also imparted some words of advice to her fellow grads.
“Our worth was never measured by a GPA, a ranking, or a title,” Poric said. “No matter what road you take, every path can lead to success. And maybe the biggest lesson high school taught us is this: growth is rarely comfortable. Growth looks like failing and trying again. We arrived here as students trying to figure out the future. We leave as people who understand ourselves a little more than we did before. And although we may not remember every assignment, every test score, or every homework deadline, we will remember how this place made us feel: challenged, supported, stressed, hopeful and ultimately, transformed.”
Class president Lazarae Delvalle urged her fellow grads to keep in touch, even when life moves fast.
“What makes today so hard is realizing this is one of the last times we’ll all be together like this,” Delvalle said. “Life will move fast from here. We’ll grow, change and end up in places we can’t even imagine right now. But I hope we don’t let go of this too easily. I hope we still check in. I hope we still recognize each other years from now and remember that we all started here, in the same place, at the same time.”
Delvalle ended her speech quoting a lyric from a Phoebe Bridgers’ song “Scott Street,” that she hopes her fellow grads will heed.
“Anyway, don’t be a stranger,” she said.
Keynote speaker (and Derby’s Teacher of the Year) Kristin Silvestri read a poem she wrote, weaving together bits of all the graduates’ own words they penned from an assignment she taught them in tenth grade, titled “Where I’m From.”
Here’s an abridged version of the poem:
We are from the smallest city in Connecticut
With the biggest heart
We are from feeling the heat of the stove while helping our grandmas cook.
We are from our aunt’s house,
Tasty brisket and pancit covered in foil,
And the noise of scrambling mahjong pieces in the living room.
We are from homemade pasta
And the buttered bread rolls from Altimari’s Little Italy
We are from busy families,
Always moving from one sports field to another
And never taking a break.
We are from doing our first stunts as a Tiny Mite,
To performing at halftime under the Friday Night Lights.
We are from the heart of the Caribbean, where the sun kisses the sea,
We are from Jamaican heritage filled with legacy,
We are a big family,
And it will continue that way.
No matter how flawed this little
Starry country may be,
We will be standing beside it flying free.
Here is a list of graduates provided by school officials:
Carter Reid Ruggiero
Sara Poric
Souzveen Mekael
Sofia Elizabeth Rudus
Gavin L. Lagliva
Brooklyn J. Fernandez
Kobe E. Detvongsa
Nedaat Masiat
Hailey Antonia Cartagena
Genesis A. Alvarado
Josephine C. Acevedo
Jayla N. Anderson
Steven Barillas
Malik B. Bennett
Charles Blake
Gerardo E. Brito
Aaliyah Carmon
Quincy N. Carter
Christian M. Castellini
Elijah Cordero
John Dedemarkos
Shaila P. Deleon
Donella K. Delija
Lazarae Delvalle
Yssabella Derby
Jayson Nathaniel Drayton
Christian Eason
Alison M. Echeverria Soto
Mounir Elias
Paige Elliott
Peyton A. Elliott
Jose D. Frias-Regulis
Alessandra A. Garcia
Korynne Marie Garrett
Jonathan D. Ghiggia
Horatio R. Glover
Devin Rosco Hicks
Brianna N. Hubbard
Gabriella M. Izquierdo
Kerwnny L. Jerome
Josiah O. Johnson
Javen Emory Jordan
Nikolas T. Kotucek
Jaden W. McAdams
Isaac L. McNeill
Jenalise Lyana Medina
Kevon Moore
Ja’Zaiah E Moreno
Sophie Marie Mraz
Derick A. Mullin
Juan Carlos Orea Gomez
Allison G. Ortega Benites
Karol Sofia Pastrana Amaya
Joseph Pawlowski
Breanna Marie Perez
Omari Petion
Xavier Pizarro
Joseph A. Reyes-Aquino
Elvin Josue Rivera
Justin Rivera
Jo’Haun Deshawn Robinson
Jada E. Rodriguez
Mikaila M. Rodriguez
Cam’ran J Ross
Cesar L. Rueda
Jorge Santiago Bolanos
Abriana Marie Schaller
Brandon Angel Tosado
Robert L. Voss
Chalace A. Walker
Joseph R. Young
The school district livestreamed the ceremony. Watch it below.