Broad Run HS Senior Tells Class of 2020: 'Pursue Your Dreams'
ASHBURN, VA — U.S. Sen. Tim Kaine is posting the best speeches submitted by high school students across Virginia on his Facebook page and website in response to his "Everybody's the Graduation Speaker" video contest. On Monday, the Virginia senator posted a speech by a Shreyaa Venkat, a graduating senior at Broad Run High School in Ashburn.
Kaine will be posting one high school senior's speech each day through the end of June.
With many in-person high school graduations postponed or canceled due to the coronavirus, Kaine encouraged Virginia's graduating high school seniors to submit a video of an original speech they would like to give at graduation. Kaine said he felt a sense of loss for the graduates and wanted to give all high school seniors in Virginia the chance to be a graduation speaker.
"One of the many groups of Virginians I've been thinking about during this challenging time is the graduates of the class of 2020, many of whom won't have the graduation experience they've been planning for a long time," Kaine said in a statement.
In her speech, Shreyaa encouraged her classmates to "pursue your dreams" and find something they truly love doing and do it to the best of their ability. "You have one life," she said. "Make the most of every opportunity that comes your way."
Shreyaa, who will be attending Georgetown University in the fall, said there will be many people who will tell her classmates that they can't achieve their goals. "Ignore them. Don't let others define you," she said in her speech.
She called on the Class of 2020 not to be defined as the class that missed out on prom and graduation. "Let's show the world that we're adaptable, creative, resilient and innovative," she said. "We have been tested as much as any young person can be tested and have shown the world that there's nothing we can't get through."
Shreyaa also emphasized that graduating seniors need to show empathy for how each member of the class is handling the coronavirus crisis. "It is especially during these times that we need to support each other," she said. "This is our time to come together and rise to our highest potential."
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This article originally appeared on the Ashburn Patch
