News : 👨‍🎓 Graduating Class of 2020 👩‍🎓

Graduation was to have happened this weekend, for Vinton-Shellsburg, Vinton Today wanted to share the following which was submitted by area graduates.
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Below are the Graduating Members of Vinton-Shellsburg's Class of 2020:
Sierra Marie AcheyCaydyn Daniel Kennedy AdamsCynlea Sue Jane McKinleyNickole Meranda BascomLuke Anthony BeyerWeston Conrad BierschenkAmelia Faith BirkerLeah Marie BohnsackJeremiah Jayden BrownSpencer James CantrellAmanda Marie CardenasRickey Alan ChaseHaley Rebecca ClarkKarri Anna ClemenBradley Len CornellDallas Jordan CottrellAlexander Frederick Dawson-FinkCharles Danial DudleyTyler Dylan DunnAndrew Thomas ElwickCyrus Michael ElwickOlivia Kay ErhardtEmma Marie ErlandsonFranki Lea EvansSonnie Audrey EvansLance Robert GravesZandalee Hannah GravesMadalyn Pearl GraySam Nicholas GriffithPayton William HaefnerMorgan Leland HansenHunter Reece HazenNathan Lee HekelJoanna Louise HendricksonLauren Kay HendryxJesse Jayden HepkerDavia Mary Alice HergerAnthony Michael HiltonHayden William HunterCameron Lee HunzikerLouis Marvin Janecek IIIPaul David JohnsonBryce Phillip KaplanCameron Lee KarrVincent Azuriah KickelChristopher Robert-Allen KingCole Thomas KlinzingZachary Michael KramerLillie Raye LamontKellsie LeeAn LaneCaroline Elizabeth LangKailey Marie LazenbyTaylor-Rae Marie LintMarcus Alexander LipcamonChristian Patrick LovellKaitlin Jo MeyerJacob Paul MichelsonAlexis Kaylari MillerSamuel E MoenBlake Thomas MorarieKaylee Ann MorrisWesley James MottLaVenus Jay MullAlyssa Marie MurrayRaelyn Nicole MurrayKennedy Mae NeslerMadison Josie NovotnyKatelyn Rose O'BrienAlexis Kaye OsbornJordan Rae PatteeJace Robert RakeHayden Cale RastAlyssa Nicole ReynoldsTanner Richard RodmanThomas Joseph SassAutumn Leigh SauerRylee Lill ScheelGabriel Victor SchmidtClark Jacob SchochRyan Christian SchoettmerRaeleigh Jo SchulteBroc David ShawChristian David Silver-UsherJessica Dawn SlatonJonah Michael SmithKaylee Shayna SorumJace Michael StaabCatherine Maria SteeleTaryn Leslie SuttonChelsee Nicole TharpAmy Rose ThomasBrooke Leighann ThomsenHanna Ruth TimmermanLauren Marie UpmeyerBeauregard Clyde VintonJillian Pearl WhiteJose Wilson, JuniorBlake Michael WitzelCody Michael Young
And last, but not least, several Graduates from Vinton-Shellsburg and beyond Vinton's borders have shared a message below:
Haley ClarkParting Message: Our graduation won't be as we had expected it but it will be a story to tell our kids. Being apart of this class was something i was proud of and if we could have gotten a traditional farewell that would be ideal. Either way, we all did it and the future is going to take us to bigger and better things.
Karri Clemen
To my mom,Thank you for doing everything that you can for me. For making me continue school no matter how hard it got. For not letting me quit. For not letting me drop out. For having the endless patience that you've had for me, especially during my senior year. If it wasn't for the pushing I would have dropped out because it got so hard. Thank you for not letting me do that. For making me continue even though I wanted to give up. Thank you for not giving up on me. For endless advice. Thank you for everything that you do. You're the best. You'll always be the one that I look up to. You'll always be my mom and I'll always love you. Thank you for making me push through this when everything felt like it was falling apart. Thank you again for everything. I love you so much, mom.

To Mrs. Albritton,Thank you for having the one classroom that felt like home. For having an open mind with me and listening to whatever I had to say. For bringing me in to work on my quilt, even after the semester was over. You made my school days better. You made it easier and you always let me rest my mind so I could be better focused. Thank you for being the teacher that I could count on. Also, thank you for all the advice you gave me to be able to move forward, not just in sewing, but in life too. I'll continue to use the skills you taught me. Thank you for everything you did in just over a semester. It means a lot to me.
Franki EvansYour attitude determines your direction (unknown)

Hunter HazenMissing out on the end of our senior year really sucks, but it could always be worse, I could be a Cardinals fan.
Lauren HendryxParents: Glenn and Bobbie Hendryx
I spent the majority of my time in high school wishing I was anywhere but. I couldn't wait to move on to the next steps. I could've cared less for the experiences or 'good times.' All I could imagine was my life after. High School was just a mandatory stepping stone before life could begin. But it's a strange feeling, knowing that we walked out, not knowing it was our last time. While I'll never claim that these were the best four years of my life, I truthfully owe a lot to high school. It shaped me into the person that I am today and taught me more than I ever thought possible. It's strange to say goodbye when it doesn't feel like it ended. I don't know if it will ever feel like a proper parting, it might always feel like an unfinished chapter in our lives, but all we can do is move forward and find what we are meant to do, whatever that might be. Though we all may never see each other in the same room again, I hope that each of my classmates finds happiness and success wherever life takes them.

Hayden W. Hunter
For my Fellow Graduating Class of 2020,Senior Year is supposed to be the best year. Memories in the making with friends and teachers, unfortunately, we were robbed of it all due to COVID-19. There has been a lot of tears, fears and overall a lot of emotion. We never got to make memories or say our final goodbyes and well wishes. So to my fellow quarantined Class of 2020. This makes us the strongest class emotionally. I want to say the 4 years spent with you have been a blast. Good luck to each and every one of you. Always stay true to yourself, love and respect yourself. So with that being said, Senior year is for the tears, facing the fears, loudining the cheers. You find out how close you are to some, and how far away you are from others. You'll have your lasts and get ready for the firsts. Then look back on it and remember it forever.
Go out and do great things!

For all my Teachers, Thank you all for believing in me when I didn't believe in myself. Thank you for pushing me when I needed to be pushed, for being there whenever I needed you. Thank you for being a mentor and friend. You have all shown me how capable I am of achieving great things in life.
I will be forever grateful for having you all as great teachers. Without you, your teaching, your guidance, and advice, I wouldn't be the grateful young man that I am today. I will miss all of you very much, thank you all for being apart of the last 4 years of my life.
Zachary Kramer
I miss seeing friends, family and teachers. But none of you need to worry cause"Trust me, I got this"Congrats to the class of 2020 and I Hope everyone's future is great.

Caroline Lang

Parents: Eric and Lori Lang

Plans: Attend Iowa State University majoring in Ag and Biosystems Engineering

Quote: There is no better catalyst to success than curiosity - Michael Dell

Kennedy Mae Nesler Thanks for the memories!

Raelyn Murray
#2020seniorskipdaychamps
Parents: Stephanie Hahn & Roger Murray
" Mr. Kingsbury told the seniors that if we tried to do a senior skip day, it would ruin our chances of graduating on time. SENIOR SKIP DAY CHAMPS! "
Katelyn O'Brien
"Thank you to everyone that helped me get to where I am today

Hayden RastHayden plans to pursue a career in the automotive industry and is currently enrolled in Kirkwood Community College. A gifted hockey player, Hayden has played for teams coached by former NHL players and Olympians. As a power forward, Hayden was drafted by the Milwaukee Power, a NA3 junior hockey team, in April 2019. He subsequently signed a tender with the Milwaukee Power in March 2020 to play for the upcoming season, however, has chosen to focus on academics. Hayden has an older sister, Sierra, a graduate of Vinton-Shellsburg currently finishing her first year at the Northern Illinois University School of Law. Hayden's younger brother, Sawyer, is a freshman at Vinton-Shellsburg and shares his love for hockey. Hayden enjoys all outdoor activities, including camping, fishing, and canoeing. Hayden's other sports have included basketball and soccer, and he has a talent for making friends.
Comment from Hayden:I've grown up in Vinton, although my high school years were spent attending four schools around the Midwest. I'm grateful for the opportunities I've had to make new friends, experience different places, and learn from some great coaches. It's been good to reconnect with many of the people I knew through middle school and wish everyone much success after graduation.
Ranae Jo RethmanVinton Shellsburg Homeschool ProgramParents: Randy and Mary Rethman, Belle Plaine
Thank you to my parents, sister Rachelle, and friends and family who believed in me through all of this. To my angel Poppy, who is looking down on me, I did it with honors.
Live like there is no tomorrow, as we are proof, we can conquer our dreams and we will go far. We are Senior Strong!!
Autumn Sauer
Enjoy all of the time you have in high school. You never know what will happen that may cause your high school experience to be cut short. Embrace all of the good times and learn from the hard times. Most importantly remember high school is the starting point to the rest of your life. So use your time wisely but have fun!
Rylee ScheelMessage to my classmates: "Unfortunately, we may never get to see each other walk across the stage with our caps and gowns to receive our diplomas, at least not in person. We had our last day of school without even realizing at the time that we may never see everyone together again. However, while our last year together was cut short, I'm still very thankful for all of the fun times and happy memories made in the time that we had. I will miss you all, and I hope that, once this is all over, we can all get together again in person to celebrate our graduation and moving on to the next step in life." Broc David Shaw Message: To my fellow classmates, exercise your right to vote in November of 2020..... FOR TRUMP

Ryan Shoettmer
Parents are Kipp and Melinda Schoettmer. Plans on attending Hawkeye Comm College majoring in Civil and Construction Engineering Technology.
Christian Silver-Usher
To everyone out there, stay radical!
Kaylee Shayna Sorum

You're off to great places,
Today is your day!
Your mountain is waiting,
So.... get on your way!

By Dr. Seuss

Amy Thomas
Thank you to the teachers who have guided me through school and helped to prepare me for what the future may hold.
Hanna Ruth Timmerman
Parents - Kevin and Jamie Timmerman
Message - "This too shall pass" - Grammy
Lauren Upmeyer
A lot happened to the class of 2020 between the halls of Vinton Shellsburg, and we were hoping to finish off the year with special senior memories to cap off our high school experience. But we're all still going to shine in our own ways regardless, because that's who we are. Thank you guys.

Jillian White
This has been a very strange way to end my senior year but I understand why they are doing these things. I want to say thank you to all of my family, friends, and teachers that have been there to help me for all of these years. There are a lot of things that I wouldn't have been able to do if they weren't there. This has been an interesting time and way to end my highschool career but I wouldn't change it for anything. It is one for the history books and definitely a learning experience. I am grateful for all of the people that have been there for me this far and excited to see where I go in my next chapter at Mount Mercy University. I am going to major in secondary special education and play in the band.