‘Remember how you got to this point': Greene Central grads cross the stage

SNOW HILL — Greene Central High School graduates made sure to thank the people who helped guide them at home and in the classroom as the seniors turned their tassels last Saturday morning.

Almost 360 graduates received their diplomas, marking achievements that started amid pandemic-induced lockdowns and ended in triumph during the ceremony on the school’s football field.

Valedictorian Timothy Edmondson, who will pursue a construction engineering degree at North Carolina State University in the fall, said he really got to know his fellow graduates walking the halls of elementary, middle and high school. He praised them for their toughness as well as their initiative in finding new ways to succeed.

“We have a lot of strong willed people in this class from what I’ve learned being around it for so long,” Edmondson said. “We have students in this class starting their own foundations, first-generation college students and students who have impacted our community in many ways.”

Both Edmondson and Joey Rackley, chairman of the Greene County Board of Education, also made sure to recognize Greene Central’s baseball team, which claimed the North Carolina 2A state title with a two-game sweep of Burns High School.

“Many of them have been playing since T-ball and with hard work and dedication, look at what they were able to accomplish,” Edmondson said.

Saturday’s commencement was a community affair attended by representatives of Greene County’s six schools as well as elected officials on the Greene County Board of Education and Greene County Board of Commissioners. U.S. Rep. Don Davis, a Snow Hill native who represents North Carolina’s First Congressional District, was also in attendance.

In a welcome address, graduate Cameran Lane told family and friends on behalf of the Class of 2024 that he was grateful for their help along the way.

“Graduation is an important milestone and we thank you, our friends and family, for your encouragement and support throughout the years,” Lane said.

Edmondson seconded that notion. He thanked teachers, who he said “do more than teach,” as well as administrators and his parents who set a positive example and “pushed (him) every single day” to work hard and treat others with respect.

“The most important thing I’ve learned in my 18 years of life is that at times you have to humble yourself and remember how you got to this point,” Edmondson said. “As we graduates stand at this point today, we are ready to embark on new adventures in life and we can never forget who helped us get here. We are all blessed enough today to graduate as a whole, not just individuals.”

“I have confidence that this class will have no issue in succeeding at whatever this life brings us.”