{"id":439,"date":"2013-05-13T10:29:25","date_gmt":"2013-05-13T14:29:25","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/willistonblogs.com\/speeches\/?p=439"},"modified":"2013-05-14T11:24:41","modified_gmt":"2013-05-14T15:24:41","slug":"senior-dinner-speech-by-peter-gunn","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/willistonblogs.com\/speeches\/2013\/05\/13\/senior-dinner-speech-by-peter-gunn\/","title":{"rendered":"Senior Dinner Speech by Peter Gunn"},"content":{"rendered":"

Editor\u2019s note: These remarks were delivered at the Williston Northampton School\u2019s Senior Dinner on May 10, 2013, by history and global studies teacher Peter Gunn.<\/em><\/p>\n

I am grateful to be part of a community defined by the devotion of Robert Ward, the kindness of Dan and Jane Carpenter and by the goodness of the Class of 2013. While I never knew Bob Ward personally, his conviction that people can do good well compels me as much as Abraham Lincoln\u2019s faith in government by the people and Elizabeth Cady Stanton\u2019s belief that all women and men are created equal. We don\u2019t need to know someone to share their vision\u2014great ideas can bridge and bind generations.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

So, I believe we can feel Bob Ward\u2019s spirit in our community and it is reflected in our best days. Certainly, Carpy\u2019s warm \u201chello\u201d and genuine affection Williston carried that tradition forward. While you, the class of 2013, have done much good here and done it well\u2014there is more good to be done building bridges into the future.<\/p>\n

To understand what I mean and why I support Williston and my alma mater\u2014imagine who might not be with us but for the gift of financial aid. In truth it\u2019s a stark image because everyone in the room receives financial aid to attend Williston. That\u2019s right, even if your family pays the full amount, you still benefit from a 20 percent discount because of the generosity of others who came before you. Indeed, Williston Northampton thrives because of that kindness.<\/p>\n

Let me seize this as a teachable moment\u2014by making you feel good, then a little sad and ultimately, I hope, truly powerful. First, think of a classmate, a roommate, a teammate or a friend who has made your Williston experience better \u2013 thinking about your shared memories with that person feels good, right?<\/p>\n

Now the sad part\u2014imagine your Williston experience if that person had never been here\u2014she wasn\u2019t there in class to work on the history project, he didn\u2019t make the pass on the basketball court, you didn\u2019t share a laugh or a kiss or a smile or a hug\u2014thinking about your friend\u2019s absence is sad.<\/p>\n

Finally, the powerful part\u2014when you give to Williston, you thank those who made it possible for you to be here and in paying it forward\u2014you make it possible for someone to be here next year and five years from now and for decades into the future. You make it possible for someone else to feel the way you do tonight with all those wonderful memories. Your small act of generosity is powerful. You don\u2019t have to wait to be able to vote, to build a successful career or to become a Trustee to make a difference at Williston\u2014just in giving a little, you have the power to keep our community moving forward and to make someone\u2019s dreams come true.<\/p>\n

Reach for that power and, in the spirit of the Carpenters and Robert A. Ward, use it kindly to do good well.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Editor\u2019s note: These remarks were delivered at the Williston Northampton School\u2019s Senior Dinner on May 10, 2013, by history and global studies teacher Peter Gunn. I am grateful to be part of a community defined by the devotion of Robert Ward, the kindness of Dan and Jane Carpenter and by the goodness of the Class … Continue reading Senior Dinner Speech by Peter Gunn<\/span> →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_exactmetrics_skip_tracking":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_active":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_note":"","_exactmetrics_sitenote_category":0,"_s2mail":"yes","footnotes":""},"categories":[14],"tags":[156,48,37,157],"class_list":["post-439","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-faculty-speaker","tag-faculty-speaker-2","tag-peter-gunn","tag-senior-dinner","tag-ward-medal"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/willistonblogs.com\/speeches\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/439"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/willistonblogs.com\/speeches\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/willistonblogs.com\/speeches\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/willistonblogs.com\/speeches\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/willistonblogs.com\/speeches\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=439"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/willistonblogs.com\/speeches\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/439\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":446,"href":"https:\/\/willistonblogs.com\/speeches\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/439\/revisions\/446"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/willistonblogs.com\/speeches\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=439"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/willistonblogs.com\/speeches\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=439"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/willistonblogs.com\/speeches\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=439"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}