Blue caps spiraled in the air under the bright sunny sky when Union Catholic’s Class of 2023 graduated during a ceremony held in front of the school on Wednesday. 

 

The 161 members of the Class of 2023 let their emotions flow as they celebrated their memorable achievement with classmates, family, friends, and members of the Union Catholic faculty and staff on a beautiful day on the campus.

 

Union Catholic’s 58th annual Commencement Ceremony was an emotional, exciting, uplifting, and reflective event as a huge crowd gathered to honor UC’s Class of 2023, and members of UC’s Class of 1973, who celebrated their 50th anniversary.

 

To watch the entire graduation ceremony, go here

 

The day was also filled with inspiring, passionate, and heartfelt speeches from Principal Sister Percylee Hart, RSM, UC senior Gabriella Mouris, the Valedictorian, Olivia Cassidy, the Student Council President, and Commencement Speaker Tonna Obaze.

 

Obaze, a member of UC’s School Consultative Board and a Union Catholic graduate from the Class of 2015, is an entrepreneur, investor and advisor focused on helping underserved communities discover their potential and pursue their purpose. Obaze is Founder and CEO of Tonna&Co — an impact advisory firm providing management consulting and strategic services to purpose driven organizations.  She has served as a chief of staff, an investor and strategist at Goldman Sachs, has consulted and collaborated with various Fortune 500 companies and executives from Google, Harvard Business School, the University of Pennsylvania Center for Social Impact Strategy, and Mount Sinai Hospital.  

 

Obaze gave the Class of 2023 some great advice, and said life is filled with roads, highways, and stop lights that force you to stop, pause, and go. 

 

“This graduation is your stop light. It's the last one before you get on the highway,’’ said Obaze. “But it's far from the last stoplight you will face. This is your moment to take it all in. You’ve been going and going since Freshman Orientation. And in those final weeks of senior year, I’m sure you felt the light turn yellow. Instead of looking to speed up, you wanted to slow down —to savor the memories and moments just a little bit longer.

The light is about to turn green now. You can’t stand still. You can’t stop time. But you can take a breath, reflect, and decide what direction you’ll take. The green light on your future, the next part of your story, the road to your purpose begins today. Life is your highway, and Class of 2023, we are all so excited to see where you’ll go.’’

 

Sister Percylee Hart delivered a special message to the Class of 2023 with her usual passion and great words of wisdom.

 

"Class of 2023, here at Union Catholic, things are better, change abounds, and advances have been made because of you,'' said Sister Percylee. "Your presence will be missed as you pursue your college and career goals. But your many contributions will remain as a valued  testament of your talents and gifts you so generously shared with the UC Community. Graduates, I wish you much success and happiness, and may God Bless you all the days of your lives. And don’t forget to come back to UC. You are always welcome.’’ 

 

Cassidy, who will attend the University of Connecticut, talked about how perspectives change over the years and how the Class of 2023 has unlimited potential.

 

“I came into Union Catholic wanting to be liked by everyone, trying to please everyone, needing a perfect grade in every class, and not being true to myself,’’ said Cassidy. “Now I can say, I am able to stand up for myself, I am able to speak my opinion and fight for what I want, I am able to take challenges that have brought me down and rise back up, and I picked people to bring with me into college who will help me grow even more. My whole perspective has changed. What matters to me changed, my dreams changed, and my ambitions changed. We will always be able to adapt to new circumstances and challenges. Maybe not right now, but maybe 5 years from now when we have a new perspective to the situation. Life is all about continual growth.

 

Union Catholic has brought in the class of 2023 as a group of kids with one perspective and now is helping them depart with a whole new one. A perspective that can handle just about anything with a collection of values that will carry us throughout college and the future. There is no end to our potential. 

 

On behalf of the Class of 2023, I would like to thank all of our teachers, faculty and family for your unwavering support throughout the past four years.  Thank you to all my classmates.  Every single one of you has either touched my heart, taught me a lesson, or helped me think about the world a little differently. I wish you all the best in the future and congratulations to Union Catholic High School’s class of 2023!’’

 

Mouris, who will attend Boston College, said love will guide the Class of 2023 into the future.  

 

“As we embark on the next chapter of our lives, let us remember that love is not only a force of the past but also a guiding light for the future,’’ said Mouris. “It will impact the choices we make, the careers we pursue, and the relationships we form. It will shape the individuals we become and the legacies we leave behind. It will inspire us to approach challenges with grace, to uplift others, and to create positive change in the world.

 

Leaving Union Catholic for the last time today, let us express our deepest gratitude to the teachers who have nurtured our minds, the parents who have showered us with love, and the friends who have become our second family. Their unwavering support that has helped us reach this point. 

 

In the words of my favorite band, The Mountain Goats, “Some moments last forever, those that are colored with love. Love will lead you by the hand, into a sound and glorious land.” Let us be the bearers of love, illuminating the path ahead and creating a future filled with compassion, understanding, and endless love.

Thank you, and congratulations to the Class of 2023!’’ 

Here's a look at some of the members of the Class of 2023 who received special awards that were handed out during the ceremony:

 

The Spirit Award: Matthew Schutz
The Michael Marotti Award: George Miller
The Jane Albert Award: Kevin Caffrey
The School Consultative Board Award: Alexandra Bonn and Kaleigh Gunsiorowski 
The Principal’s Award: Casey Arias

 

 

Clarissa Afful

Oluwadamilola Agbetoyin

Ashley Almeida

Casey Arias

Kyle Babernitsh

Julianna Bara

Justin Bautista

Alana Beardsley

Andrew Benvenuto

Macy Billings

Tristan Binenstock 

Andrew Blandon

Magdalen Blicharz

Kurtis Blouin

Alexandra Bonn

Erin Bonner

Thomas Bonner

Gabriela Bosak

Molly Brennan

Courtney Brizard 

Reneka Brutus

Dante Burress

Jordan Bush

Aimee Cabatu-Panlilio 

Kevin Caffrey

Caudell Cajuste

Paige B Campbell

Jacqueline Carey

Nicole Carey

Juliana Carvalho 

Emily Carver

Olivia Cassidy

Adrian Chacon

Nicholas Chirichillo

Madeline Christopher

Ryan Cichocki 

Andrea Colón 

Gabriella Colon

Emma Crevani

Isabella Cruz

Erini Dagiantis

Bridget Davis

Samantha Deering

Seton Dill

Adrianna Dindayal

Erica Dines

Anna Diniz-Lonzetti

Grace Donnelly

Carolyn Dorant-Smith

Christina Doria

Samantha Dreher 

Aidan Dursee 

George Dursee

Job Emogene

Elias Engle

Caroline Evans

Victor Fajardo

Caitlin Farago

Mallory Fella

Mackenzie Flood

Michael Forte

Summer Foster-Bey

Erick Fraga

Nahuel Gallardo

Catherine Glick

Alexander Gonzalez

Gabrielle Green

Adam Gross

Kaleigh Gunsiorowski

Kameron Harris

Veronica Heredia

Michaela Hernandez

Kidere Herron

Aria Hicks

Kassi Horton

Adrian Hou

Rachel Hou

Jane Howlett

Emmitt Johnstone

James Jules

Nicholas Kelly 

Ethan Krall 

Liam Laskowski

Christine Le

Miranda Lemansky

Nicholas Leon

Felix Lettini, Jr.

Tian Liao

Sharon Machado Guzman

Maria Maddi

Michael Mahaffey 

Francesca Mandler

Victoria Mangini

Tyler Martin

Kiera Mason

Noelle Matyi

Javon McKay

Emerson McKindra

Kaitlyn McKnight

Kayla McKnight

George Miller

Abigayle Mitrow

Andrew Montanez

Beatriz Montero

Alexandra Moore

Gabriella Mouris

Charlotte Murphy

Serena Nguyen

Nicklaus Nuzzo  

Maameyaa Nyinah 

Lillian O'Connor

Chimeziri Okeoma

Amaia Onque-Shabazz

Michelle Ozimanic

Jayson Palmer

Caroline Parker

Zachary Patrone

Keida Pereyra 

Owen Pickel

Cristian Poythress

Ryan Pyo

Adela Rakoski

Aaryan Raval

Abinayan Ravichandran

Liam Reddish

Aidan Reidy

Alicia Rodriguez Battaglia

Grace Romanyshyn

Yadhira Rubio

Emma Ruela

Isabella Ruiz

Luis Ruiz

Xavier Santangelo

Marisa Sblendorio

Matthew Schutz

Meghan Sherer

Courtney Shyposh

Madison Smith

Deyalyn Sosa

Jessica Sot

Gabriela Sposato

Luke Talty

Anthony Tarczynski

Matthew Teevan

Ajanae Thompson

Emma Thompson

Christian Townsell

Shaan Trehan

Bryan Tucker

Victoria Urbaez

Angelica Valdez

Sofia Varino

Danielle Wester

Grace Williams

Raheem Williams

Tate Williams

Keyshawn Winchester

Leo Wisnefski

Caitlin Wong

Kevin Woods

Peter Ziegler