Valedictory Address

"Valedictory Address" (19 May 2010): 1-2. (UA Case 68, Box 1).

Welcome graduates, faculty and staff members, family and honoured guests. Today we embark upon a bright future of opportunities.

I am honoured to stand in front of you on behalf of the 2010 graduating class. I am so grateful for this opportunity, yet when initially bestowed this privilege, I found it extremely difficult to draft something inspirational, motivational and humorous enough to make my speech unforgettable.

I finally realized that regardless what I say during the next five minutes, the majority will not recall it after today. Instead, we will always remember the people that grace us with their presence and who gave us this amazing opportunity;
• Our proud parents and families who supported us throughout the years;
• The faculty and staff members who have helped us adjust and cope during these
last few years;
• And, finally those who could not be here today, but made a positive difference in our
lives.

I am sure all of you, like myself, owe these catalysts of opportunity a great deal of gratitude.

More specifically, the Class of 2010 are fortunate that the faculty and staff here at UNB are more than phenomenal. They really do make the extra effort and genuinely care for the well-being of their students. They take pride in what they do and unlike many other universities, they actually know the names of their students which has made all the difference in our education. To all faculty members, we owe our sincere thanks.

Secondly, we also owe our appreciation to the creators of YouTube and Facebook, without which, we would not have been able to procrastinate nor pointlessly extend our presentations just by throwing in a YouTube video over the last couple of years. And it was extremely convenient that Facebook was created the month most began our University career in September 2006. So to the creators, thank you for your helpful assistance.

Finally, thank you to our friends and families for playing such an important role in our lives. Like the majority of my fellow grads, I know I could not have made it through these last four years without the friendships I developed, the unlimited support and guidance my parents have given me and the fortunate opportunity I have had to have such wonderful role models to emulate.

As this Valedictorian speech is all about opportunities, I would like to do something a little bit different. I have the unique and sole opportunity, to take a photo of the graduating class, as well as our supportive families and friends in order to help us remember such an important day in all of our lives! And by us, I mean this will be on Facebook tomorrow for you all to see!

As Dr. Seuss once wrote, "you have brains in your head. You have feet in your shoes. You can steer yourself in any direction you choose. You're on your own. And you know what you know. And you are the one who will decide where to go."

Thanks to UNB, we are extremely privileged to leave here knowing what we know. We must recognize the amazing opportunity we have all had to attend such a prestigious university where, I am sure, we all have learned some of our best parking skills.

We all have the chance to change someone's life the same way the UNB experience has changed ours.

I challenge you today, as we all begin the rest of our lives, to recognize the privileged opportunity we have to be graduates of the University of New Brunswick; the oldest English-speaking University in Canada and one of the oldest public Universities in North America. And if I have learned anything over the last four years, it is to reference my work, so thank you Wikipedia!

I challenge you to capture the opportunity to use what you have learned throughout university and simply remember you know what you know.

And finally, I challenge you to create your own opportunities to make a difference in the lives of others in the same manner the faculty and alumni have done for us, and in the way our families and friends have done throughout our entire lives.

Today is our first day of unequalled opportunities, let us not squander them.

Congratulations to the 2010 graduates of Education, Kinesiology and Business Administration and thank you again for this opportunity!