The side entrance to the Old Rochester Regional High School was lively on the Wednesday night dedicated to the Class of 2017’s superlative awards night.
Parents and students from all grades were present and socializing before the event began, but the seniors were in the spotlight from the moment they arrived.
Several students even came directly from the locker rooms; practice came first, but they weren’t planning on missing the fun.
Dressed in semi-formal attire, the 12th graders all made sure to take multiple pictures on their red carpet of the night in order to capture the moment forever. In addition to fundraising for their end-of-year events, this was a time for the class to put their school stress aside and begin to reflect on their previous years in this final semester.
Once everyone was seated in the school auditorium, English teachers and senior class advisors Michael Beson and Megan Hall began the ceremony by introducing senior Jon Kvilhaug as the night’s emcee.
“This is one of our few opportunities we have to assemble and recognize … each other,” Kvilhaug said. His words set the tone for the event. No one was upset over losing; instead, it was time to celebrate what their classmates thought of them. Just being nominated was an accomplishment.
The first three awards won were for ‘best hair,’ going to Diana LaRock and Sam Henrie, ‘best smile’ was for Matt Dube and Madison Cristaldi, and ‘best laugh’ went to Beckett Kiernan and Ariane Dias.
Kiernan laughed twice at the urging and applause of his classmates, while Dias arrived late and accepted her award after intermission, saying to their amusement, “My laugh isn’t funny. It really isn’t. So … ha.”
Next was ‘best dressed,’ going to Noah Strawn and Emily Hiller. When Kvilhaug asked Hiller when she began dressing herself, she quipped, “Like two weeks ago.”
‘Best personality’ went to Tim Dix and Julia Barrett after a slip-up on announcing their names. Dix jokingly referred to the upcoming Super Bowl and said, “Go Falcons!” Barrett supported the audience’s sentiments and replied, “No, just no.”
‘Most athletic’ went to Landon Goguen and Olivia Labbe, which was followed by ‘most musical’ and its winners, Camryn Kidney and Maxx Wolski.
“I’d like to give a shout out to all my fans out there,” Kidney thanked the audience.
After ‘most artistic’ went to Aubrie Isabelle and Noah Tavares, Kvilhaug excused himself from the podium.
“The academy thought it would be inappropriate to introduce myself for the four nominations I received,” he laughed. Kvilhaug went on to win ‘teacher’s pet’ along with Hannah Lafreniere.
‘Most dramatic’ went to Sara Achorn and Tim Schroeder, who thanked “the Academy and his parents,” while ‘most likely to succeed’ went to Jacob Spevack and Hannah Guard, and ‘best eyes’ went to Madie Barber and Charlie Tirrell.
“I think he meant to say Liam Hemsworth, but whatever,” Tirrell joked about the celebrity’s eyes.
Then came intermission, where a bake sale to support the senior class ran. Class advisors Beson and Hall spoke about their students during this time as well.
“They’re great,” said Hall. “Honestly, it’s been such a great class to work with, it’s been really easy. Most of the things they come up with on their own … I just advise.”
“It’s a good class,” said Beson with a laugh. “It’s a good night. It’s a chance to see their actual personalities come out.”
The award presentation started up after the break, leading off with the ‘biggest appetite,’ which went to Will Hopkins and Charlotte Rathborne.
“I would like to thank Case Cancun, Five Guys, Red Robin, the school lunch, and everyone who doesn’t eat their school lunch,” Hopkins said.
‘Most changed’ went to Kurt Thompson and Emma Cadieux, while ‘least changed’ was given to Collin O’Malley and Erin Costa.
‘Cutest couple’ was voted Jacob Davis and Hannah Ribeiro, while ‘cutest best friends’ Jon Harris and Jacob Spevack drew an enthusiastic response from their classmates.
‘Celebrity look alike’ was one of the most widely debated awards over the voting period, but ultimately went to Danny Renwick (for Will Poulter) and Nicole Aguiar (for Corbin Bleu).
‘Highway menace’ went to Nick Galavotti and Riley Shaughnessy, and ‘most accident prone’ was given to Dylan McCoog and Emma Collins.
“I’d like to thank my ankles for this award,” joked Collins.
The last five awards nicely wrapped up the night.
‘Most likely to take over the world’ was handed over to James Goulart and Camryn Kidney, and ‘most school spirit’ went to Matt Dube and Brooke Santos.
Andrew Bicshel and Ariane Dias won ‘class clown,’ while ‘unsung class hero’ went to Beckett Kiernan and Aubrie Isabelle.
Finally, ‘best all around’ was awarded to Jacob Cafarella and Julia Barrett.
By Jo Caynon