On June 8, about 100 Bainbridge High School seniors, wearing their graduation robes, walked into St. Cecilia’s parish sanctuary for the Bainbridge Island/North Kitsap Interfaith Council-sponsored Baccalaureate.

The students were accompanied by Finn Armstrong on clarinet, Joseph Tappen on cello and Miles Wieland on piano.

For many years, the Interfaith Council has sponsored these annual faith-based Baccalaureate services, honoring seniors as they graduate from high school. This year’s program was created completely by a planning committee of seniors, with guidance from BHS teacher Cory Dunn, and John Hunt and Sue Anderson from the Interfaith Council. The theme this year was “Our stories, so far.”

The program began with senior Reed Grandt reading the Land Acknowledgement, followed by senior Piper Henderson welcoming everyone. A prayer from Father Mark opened the proceedings. Lene Sarre, an exchange student from Belgium, sang Leonard Cohen’s “Hallelujah” also accompanied by Armstrong, Tappen and Wieland.

“We’re proud of your accomplishments, but more importantly, we’re proud of the people you’ve become,” athletic coordinator Julie Hughes said. “You’ve cared for each other and you’re loyal to each other.”

Rabbi Dario Feiguin, from Congregation Kol Shalom, spoke of the value of storytelling. Ten seniors told their stories. The seniors had written short stories on 5×7 post-it notes before the event.

The keynote speaker was BHS teacher Katie Zonoff. “Closing the Door” was the title of her talk. “When you walked into the buildings at Bainbridge High School in September 2021 (with a mask on…) you were children. Today ready or not, you are leaving us as adults. That is an incredible transition,” she said.