San Juan islanders gathered in the late afternoon, Saturday, June 11 at the Friday Harbor High School for the class of 2022’s graduation. For a class that spent nearly three years in a pandemic, the 58 graduates of Friday Harbor High School appeared both resilient and optimistic, as illustrated by their motto, a quote from singer Dolly Parton, “The way I see it, if you want the rainbow, you gotta put up with the rain.”

Valedictorian Robin Taylor talked about how, during the COVID lockdown, when school was held remotely, the class of 2022 missed joking with one another, and missed their daily debates.

“When we returned to class together, some of the clouds lifted away,” Taylor said.

Saluditictorian Aaron Vliet talked about how easy it is to take things for granted, to “focus on the rain and forget about the rainbow.”

Through service clubs like the San Juan Lions Club, Kiwanis and Soroptimist International of Friday Harbor; non-profits like the San Juan Island Preservation Trust, Islands Artisans and the San Juan Island Community Foundation and businesses like Luxel, Valmart, Chrystal Seas Kayaking and San Juan Island Property Management, the community pulled together and provided these students with thousands of dollars worth of scholarships.

Sargent Eric Peter presented the scholarship for the San Juan Island Sheriff’s Guild and gave some advice for graduates as they step out into the world.

“Don’t be afraid of the space between dreams and reality,” he said. “If you can dream it, you can do it. If someone tells you it’s impossible, what they mean is it’s impossible for them. It isn’t impossible for you.”