By Nate Jones
Staff Writer
Sunny skies and warm temperatures made a perfect backdrop for graduation ceremonies on Sunday, as South Portland High School (SPHS) and Cape Elizabeth High School (CEHS) graduates marched into the next chapter of their lives.
Graduation marshals Galey Thompson and Joe Wolanki, both juniors, led 145 jittery CEHS graduates through a large audience to their seats on the concrete steps at Fort Williams. Parents, friends and classmates crowded close to the graduates despite the intense heat.
For some graduates, such as Rhys Ainsworth, who said he is looking forward to “chilling with family” for a while, the ceremony marked the beginning of a break from schoolwork. Others, such as Blair Griffin, who plans to attend Simmons College in Boston, will spend most of the summer gearing up for their college experience. Griffin said she is looking forward to seeing old friends and meeting new people at the university.
“It’s hard to go to school in Boston without having friends close by,” she said.
Principal Jeffrey Shedd took time not only to recognize the achievements of the seniors in the stands, but also other Cape Elizabeth students who graduated elsewhere, including Steven Whitten, who finished his studies in Florida.
“There is more than one route to success,” Shedd said. “There is not one right path, there are several.”
More than 180 South Portland seniors rallied in the gymnasium next to their football field. Boat horns, bells and cheers caught the attention of people filing into the stands before the students emerged and made their way onto the field.
Class President Molly O’Brion and Vice President Jessica Aceto smiled and giggled to one another as they led their classmates in front of the cheering crowd, although O’Brion, who plans to attend the University of New Hampshire, said graduating is “bittersweet.”
 Seniors George Murray, who plans to attend film school, and Emilio Rodriguez, a future student of Bowdoin College, sat in the front row and waved vigorously to their family and friends in the stands. When asked if they were sad or glad to leave SPHS behind, Murray and Rodriguez agreed they were “a bit of both.”
A speech by Valedictorian Dorothea Crowly followed Brianna Wing – who read her essay comparing her classmates to fragile teacups being unwrapped – and Thomas Biskup – who encouraged his classmates to take graduation day “for what it is, a chance to celebrate.” Crowly, the fifth in her family to graduate from SPHS, including her grandmother who was valedictorian more than 70 years ago, said her academic success was not an easy road.
“It’s about going home every day and doing your homework,” she said.
Crowly plans to attend Boston University to study biomedical engineering.
Forty-two South Portland graduates each received a $100 scholarship from the South Portland Project Scholarship at an awards night three days before. It was the first time the organization, which intends to offer scholarships for every graduate in the future, had issued the awards.
“Our very lofty, long term goal is to award $2,000 for each of two years to all SPHS grads who are pursuing post-secondary education,” Rob Cabanna, who awarded the scholarships with his son and several other South Portland students, said.