It was overcast and windy on Saturday, June 3 at Barrett’s Park. However, that did not stop excited family members, friends and teachers from turning out to honor Kyra Blake, 18, and Jonathon “Jonny” Rines, 18, as they graduated from Boothbay Region Adult & Community Education with their HiSETS, which replaced the general equivalency diploma (GED) in Maine in 2014.

Lizzo’s “Special” played as the pair walked arm-in-arm to the park’s gazebo in their matching pink cap and gowns. Why pink? Rines explained, “We have to be fierce, you know? Pink is a very out-there color, and Kyra and I are definitely out-there people.”

The celebration, planned almost entirely by Blake and Rines, is the first the program has had since 2019, due to the COVID-19 pandemic. “(The program) had really started to decline before COVID, and when the pandemic hit we kept it on life support but this is really the first year we’ve had teachers,” said Director Raye Leonard.

Leonard emphasized the importance of offering adult education and a path to high school completion, especially as the stress of the pandemic caused many students to unenroll. Out of the 10 students who joined the program this year, four are from the class of 2023 and two would have been part of the class of 2022. “To be able to make this possible is vitally important. It’s a safety net.”

In addition to struggles with mental health, motivation and connecting with peers, Blake and Rines also pointed to the pandemic as a reason for their departures from the traditional school system. “I remember being so excited to start high school and actually being motivated to learn. A high school career is supposed to be four years and mine consisted of six months,” Blake recalled during her graduation speech. 

“I hate that phrase ‘dropping out,’” she continued. “It sounds so harsh and disgraceful. I didn’t drop out. I moved on and did what was best for me.”

Blake and Rines’ speeches were filled with gratitude toward the people who helped them throughout their journey. Both passed out pink geraniums to their teachers as a symbol of their thanks, including Margit Ahlin, Ingrid Merrill, Molly Thibault, Tanya Thibault and Katy Winslow. The program offers one-on-one student-teacher mentoring so Merrill and Tanya Thibault also made speeches to honor their individual graduate.

Blake and Rines could not have done it without each other. “I get to (graduate) with somebody I love, that I’ve known since kindergarten, that’s way more welcoming,” said Rines. 

Boothbay Region Adult & Community Education plans to host celebrations for its other HiSET graduates later this month.