A Falcon Farewell

This school year has taken an abrupt and unexpected turn of events. The world around us, both in and out of Ferguson, is changing every day. In such times of uncertainty, we must be sure to hold our most cherished memories closer than ever. 

Our school life has been forced to adapt to these unforeseen changes and that includes teachers, students, and other members of the Ferguson community. Due to these changes, we have learned to appreciate the things we may have taken for granted and thought we’d never miss like the endless cafeteria lines, squeezing through packed staircases, and the student parking lot traffic. We appreciate our teachers, who worked diligently to make our transition to distance learning as smooth as possible, and the incomparable dedication of our administration. Ferguson’s staff has worked tirelessly to ensure every student could successfully continue their education and finish the school year. 

Our newspaper staff has worked hard to produce quality stories for our paper throughout this year and even during distance learning. We’ve been blessed to have a group of writers that have been abundantly generous with their talents and have shown to us what it means to be a student journalist. Their commitment, enthusiasm, and willingness to learn has set the standard for years to come and in doing so has made them an unforgettable staff. 

As your editor-in-chief, it has been an honour to be a part of this exceptional staff. Every writer, editor, and photographer has given so much of themselves to this program and that effort is reflected in the quality of our newspaper. None of this would have been possible without them and I thank them for making my senior year as editor-in-chief the best experience I’ve had at Ferguson. Your trust in me helped me grow as a writer, a leader, and as a person; for this, I am forever grateful. I would like to personally thank Lage for being an incredible adviser. Ever since sophomore year when I gave him my first article and he told me I was “editor-in-chief material” he has been the best mentor anyone could ask for. He supports our work and our vision for this program unconditionally and he will always be there for a comforting chat or sarcastic comment whenever you need him. This became especially important when I, like the rest of our senior staff, had to cope with the loss of the latter half of our last year in high school. During this difficult time, Lage went above and beyond to ensure we kept our end-of-year traditions and that the spirit for the program was kept alive. He is an exemplary adviser and I am grateful that he believed in me and trusted me in a role as all-encompassing as this one. 

Looking forward to what lies ahead as the program begins a new chapter, there is no one more fit to lead this program than the next editor-in-chief: Emily Rivera. She worked alongside me this year as my co-editor-in-chief and I know she will take this program to new heights. All year long she inspired me with her achievements and has shown me the spirit of a true writer through her passion and commitment to journalism. I am honoured to be able to call her a good friend and I can’t wait to see the growth of this program under her leadership. There is no doubt in my mind that next year will be even greater than the last and I am excited about the changes to come. Although it is not easy to leave I know the program is in the best hands possible.

We would also like to thank our readers for their continued support. We would not be able to quantify our impact without them. We also extend our gratitude to anyone who contributed to our articles. Cooperating with interviews, giving our staff your opinions, and reading our stories ensures that this program and student journalism will never die.

A special congratulations goes out to John A. Ferguson’s Class of 2020. The Talon would like to congratulate them on their monumental achievement. 

Until next year, Falcons!