By Doug Petrowski

Under cloudy skies,  Mountlake Terrace High School handed out 281 diplomas to the graduates of the Class of 2012 Thursday evening at Edmonds Stadium. The diplomas were presented by Edmonds School District Superintendent Dr. Nick Brossoit, Assistant Superintendent Dr. Ken Limon, School Board Member Ann McMurray and MTHS Principal Greg Schwab.

Commencement featured speeches from three of the graduates, a message from Principal Schwab and music from student instrumental musicians and combined choirs.

The student speakers shared stories of inspiration, reports of achievement, words of challenge and moments of irreverence and humor.

Honor Society-selected speaker Bushra Raza spoke of the support she received from family and friends. “We all have people who have inspired us,” she said. “I would not be here without the support of a few close individuals.”

Raza also spoke glowingly of her parents, calling them “the most supportive people I know.”

Miranda Trout, selected to speak by MTHS staff, began her time at the podium with a rowdy rendition of a couple lines from Alice Cooper’s “School’s Out,” complete with rock guitar accompaniment. Trout even coaxed Schwab to sing a line from the song.

Trout went on the challenge her fellow graduates to pursue their creative side. “I believe strongly in the power of magic and dreams,” she said. “Be creative. Be yourself and enjoy it.”

Trout, a standout in the school’s drama and music departments, spoke of the importance of the arts departments at MTHS. “For many students, involvement in the arts has been what helps them face each day,” she said.

Schwab concluded the speeches with an eye toward the future for the Class of 2012. “Tonight’s graduation ceremonies mark the ending of a chapter in your lives, and the beginning of another,” he said.

Schwab also shared the sense of caution he feels regarding his address to graduating students. “From mid-April each year I begin to fret about what to say to the graduates,” he said. “I’ve learned not to give too much advice. Socrates was a wise philosopher who gave advice to others. They poisoned him.”

Before the commencement ceremony, Schwab reminisced about watching students move through their high school education, telling MLTnews, “It’s great to see them grow and change, to mature, then to go out and make a mark in the world.”

The presentation of the diplomas to the graduates was interrupted for a few minutes as an Airlift Northwest medical transport helicopter used a field adjacent to the stadium for a landing and take-off. Snohomish County Fire District 1 reported that a patient was being transferred from nearby Swedish/Edmonds Hospital to Seattle Children’s Hospital in Seattle.

Following the ceremony, a reception was held for graduates and their families and friends in the courtyard of the adjacent Edmonds-Woodway High School. Then graduates boarded buses that took them to an all-night party at a secret location.