A parade of seniors in their late sixties walked across the stage in blue caps and gowns in the city of Moore in Oklahoma on Saturday (June 9). They were the Class of 1974 formally receiving their high school diplomas 50 years after their graduation ceremony was abruptly cut short by a tornado warning.
On May 23, 1974, 500 Moore High School seniors had just taken their seats in a football stadium under darkening skies when a school administrator came to the microphone and urged them to seek shelter.
Rain drenched the students as they hid under bleachers or drove away to safety.
A school trip was planned for the next day, so the ceremony couldn’t be held then, nor was it held later. Instead, the students were told to collect their diplomas from the school before the end of the year.
Their belated graduation ceremony was finally held on Saturday, June 9, after Mike Wilson, a Moore High School sports announcer and a 1974 graduate, discussed the idea with school and district officials recently.
Moore High School principal Rachel Stark, a 1988 graduate, told The Oklahoman that she was glad to have helped organize the event.
“It’s very unique,” she said. “I’ve never heard of it before. They’re still a part of our community… so we’re gonna do it for them.”
About 200 graduates formally received their diplomas on June 9. The weather was sunny and warm.
Poignant occasion
Family members of graduates who had died were encouraged to walk across the stage on behalf of their loved ones.
The event followed a belated ceremony for another group of students whose commencement events were delayed — those who graduated at the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Sterling Crim, a Class of 1974 graduate, said: “We always knew our dream was to have a graduation.”
It was an especially poignant occasion for Crim.
His girlfriend, LeAnn Boyd, with whom he took shelter during the tornado warning, later became his wife.
They moved to San Antonio, Texas, for college. They settled there and were married for 47 years.
Eight years ago, his wife learnt she had colorectal cancer. Three years ago, she died.
“She always wanted to see a graduation,” said Crim.
Sources: BBC, The Oklahoman, The New York Times
Photo: Freepik