Well, this is it. The past four years of high school have seemingly flew by, and here I write, a senior about to graduate. When I first came to Holyoke High in the fall of 2012, four years felt like a lifetime away. In retrospect, so much occurred, though it feels like no time has passed at all. I still remember (most) everything.

The Herald has perhaps played the largest part in my high school career. Every weekday for the past 3 years, I have looked forward to going to Courchesne’s class for Media. We’ve come a long way from my sophomore year, as we’ve moved from a print format to a primarily online presence. We’ve moved from a class of less than 15 to a full-blown staff of nearly 30, with people wanting to join The Herald left and right, from a class people didn’t even know existed to a class everybody wants to be a part of. I will (try to) never forget the times I’ve spent there in Room 110, from that first day advisory-esque icebreaker of Where the Wind Blows, to playing Sporcle, Papa’s Pancakeria, and Sugar, Sugar during down time, to running the bake sales at the musicals, to organizing the annual Melva Awards, and all the other myriad of memories that pop into my head and make me smile, happy and proud to be lucky enough to experience it all.

These moments would not exist without the newspaper and its people. I thank each and every one of my staffers for this special school year, and well as my classmates from years past. I’d thank you all here individually, but I would prefer my sappy, sentimental lovefest to not be public domain.

It has truly been an honor to be editor-in-chief of this newspaper. Of all the life decisions I’ve made, some good and some bad, joining The Herald was by far the best decision I have ever made in my time at Holyoke High.

That’s all for now,

Melanie