Common Sense Volume 20 Issue 6 May 22, 2020

To The Class Of 2020

Jim Sutfin

Schools Superintendant

Congratulations seniors!

Recently you have been in the middle of an experience that can change your life forever. In the last several months we have asked you to move giant obstacles out of your way so you could earn your credits and finish your high school education. You did it and now it is time to celebrate!

This recent experience can become a springboard to greater things. Because you persevered, you have experienced the fundamental basis of hope. Part of Hope is the ability to move obstacles out of your way so that you can still reach your dreams and goals. It is knowing that regardless of your life circumstance in the end you will prevail. People with hope dig in and get the job done. They don’t relinquish their goals. Circumstance might make you take a different path or road, but in the end the goal is reached - mission accomplished. I am so proud of you and am absolutely positive that you will do amazing things with this precious gift of life you have been given.

As a graduate of Millard South you have been invited into a new family - a family of alumni that spans many generations. We are everywhere in our world doing good things. Be proud of what you have accomplished over the last 13 years and be ready to take your talent to the next level.

Well done Patriots! Go be awesome!

Sincerely,

Dr. Sutfin Millard South Class of ‘85

Andrew Pinkall

12th Grade

Administrator

Millard South Class of 2020! You are, without a doubt, my favorite of the 11 graduating classes I have seen during my time as an Assistant Principal at Millard South. That may be, in part, because not only am I the 12th grade administrator, but I am also the parent of one of your classmates. Then again, it may also be because you are, collectively, the best group of students, athletes, musicians, actors, artists and overall people we have had walking the halls of Millard South during my time here. You are an amazing group of individuals who have collectively embodied the Patriot Way of which we ask students to aspire. You walked into our school as freshmen and established yourselves as leaders, and the culture of our building followed. I will miss interacting with countless many of you in the halls and at school activities next year. Congratulations to each of you!

Sincerely yours as both fan and friend,

Mr. Pinkall

Michaela Wragge

11th Grade Administrator

Seniors,

Principal Heidi Weaver

I am so proud of every single one of you. All of you have worked so hard to get to graduation and you deserve the very best. Maybe things are a bit different this year, but nobody can take away all of the hard work you’ve put into your school career thus far. Now go on and do awesome things! I will always remember the Class of 2020!

Mrs. Weaver

Steve Throne

Activities Director

Matt Geerts

Class of 2020, you’ve made it and in the process, experienced one of the most difficult situations we’ve faced in a long time. I am so proud of how you’ve handled every curve ball thrown at you this year. All of you have truly risen to the challenge and set an incredible example for those behind you. Your leadership through this crisis is what has kept so much of the positivity and hope going.

Now you are moving on to your next challenge. Although your time at MSHS is coming to an end, this was merely the first stop on the longer journey. I hope you take with you what you’ve learned, what you’ve experienced, and what you’ve done as you head off to new challenges. There are still going to be bumps in the road, but have confidence in the fact that you have all the tools you need to overcome those obstacles.

Class of 2020,

I wanted to thank you for being leaders not only in our building but in our community. You have had a tremendous impact on Millard South during your four years. We know the last semester of your HS career did not go how any of us had planned but you have handled it like CHAMPIONS! Go out and conqueror the world! We know you will be successful in life. Please keep us updated on your life and success in the future. #PatriotsForever

Mr. Throne

Class of 2020, we look forward to seeing all of the wonderful things you do in the coming years and are excited to share in the next great set of accomplishments. Please continue to set the example as you have this year. Please continue to live each day by The Patriot Way. Please continue to rise to meet each challenge you face. You have, and WILL ALWAYS have, a whole group cheering you on from Millard South! Once a Patriot.....always a Patriot!

Mr. Geerts

Class of 2020-

You have a special place in my heart...I was fortunate to be your teacher in a Business class and then was able to work with you as an administrator too! You are a talented group for sure! Your hard work and determination through tough times will take you far in life! Keep your eyes on your prize and reaching for the stars! You are a Patriot forever and don’t forget to come back and visit! I wish you nothing but the best! Congratulations Class of 2020! You make me proud!

Mrs. Wragge

Millard Public

Art by Sean Burton

9th Grade Administrator

I wanted to thank you for being leaders not only in our building but in our community.

– Steve Throne ”

“

Common Staffers Sense

every time I see them. I can talk with them about anything, and I would do almost everything for them. It works the other way around, too. We’ve gone through so much together in our three years as a squad, and I know that we will continue our friendship long into the future.

I’ve been planning my senior column in my head for about a year now. It sounds crazy, I know. But it’s given me a lot of time to figure out exactly what I want to say in my final article for my beloved newspaper: a good high school experience depends on your friends.

Now I’m not saying friends are the only factor in having happy memories at Millard South. But in my four years here, I’ve had a steady workload academically, and for the most part, I’ve participated in the same activities since I joined them. I’ve consistently taken the same types of classes so much so that this whole year, I knew who all of my teachers would be except for two. These experiences have been fun, but my favorite memories come from the time I’ve spent with the friends I’ve made.

I am lucky enough to have found my core group of friends early in high school. The first time all six of us were together was on our last day of freshman year, and we’ve only grown closer since then. I am so incredibly grateful for my squad. They lift my mood

I’m not just bragging about how great my friends have been. Before the six of us came together, I had some rough friendships. I know how hard it can be to worry about whether your friends are really your friends. Some of the people I hung around in elementary school ditched me as soon as they realized I wasn’t going to be in the “popular” group. My middle school friends were all great at the time, but when high school came around, there were generally three paths: those I cut off because I realized they held me back, those I gradually lost touch with, and those who became closer friends than before. I kept ties with people I realized would make me feel good about myself and severed ties with people who didn’t do that. It is a lesson that everyone should learn: It’s okay to let go of someone if their friendship doesn’t make you a better person.

I learned that the best friends you can have are the ones that will support you. Those friends that you go to when you’re on the verge of tears that manage to always lift you back up are worth keeping around. They should make you think--about relevant issues, about how to do calculus properly, and everything in between. You may have

the same opinions or interests, and you might not. That’s okay. You should laugh when you’re around them because of the dumb things they do and the crazy things that happen. And above all, your friends should make you feel good. Nobody that makes you feel worse about your insecurities or choices is worth keeping around for too long.

And what about when you all go off to college? You may be separated by many miles or just a couple of steps. Friendship is tested when you don’t see each other every single day or talk to each other constantly. But I believe, and I sincerely hope, that strong friendships will be able to withhold the distance. When you see each other again, it should seem like no time has passed at all.

This is a long way of saying that great friends can make you happy. As I said, I have the best group of friends that I’ve ever had, and the time I’ve spent with them truly made my years at Millard South good. If I didn’t have them, I don’t think I would’ve had as much fun here as I did. I believe that everyone is in your life for a reason, and I am grateful for the people who have shown me such love within these walls. I love each and every single one of my friends--from my core group to the people I’ve simply come to know through lots of classes together. Thank you to everybody who has made these last four years the most incredible yet. It couldn’t have been possible without you.

A senior in high school should have attended three schools to get there: an elementary school, a middle school, and their high school. This doesn’t always happen but it is the normal path. For me, this did not happen. I have gone to twelve different schools in four different school districts. Every time I tell people how many schools I have gone to I am asked the question: “Are you a military child?” And I am not. I am a child of many parent divorces.

The last school that I will have attended before leaving for college will be Millard South High School. I never expected to be at this school, but at the beginning of my junior year, I walked into the hallways and was told that I would have to stay there until I graduated. Two years.

– Attending Iowa State University as an undecided student

I have never gone to a school for more than two years, but knowing that I was for sure going to be at South for two years excited me but also scared me. I was coming in during junior year when everyone already had their friendships and weren’t looking for new friends. It was hard,

but I pushed to find people that I could be friends with. Some of the friendships I have made have changed my life and I am so glad that they did. Because of this reason, Millard South is going to be the hardest school for me to say goodbye to.

I honestly did not want to attend Millard South, but because my family moved, it was my only choice. For me, it is crazy to know that the school I didn’t want to go to is the school that I don’t want to leave. And because of everything with COVID-19, I was forced to leave before I should have had to go.

Throughout my time at South, I went through crazy medical problems, like randomly fainting in the hallways and class, and I went through classes that took me out of my comfort zone, like Advanced Journalism and Spanish. No matter what difficulties I had, either inside the class or outside the class, everybody in Millard South helped me get through everything.

Millard South will forever have a place in my heart and I will forever remember how much the friends I made, the teachers I had, and the entire school that changed my life for the better.

Goodbye Millard South High School.

Be prepared for life, it’s difficult.

-Cameron Merritt

– Taking a gap year

– Attending UNL to study Interior Design

Isabel Robb

– Attending Goshen College to study Social Work

Lindzey James

My best memory of Millard South is going to my first Millard South football game!

-Sydney Roberts ”

Seniors

Music has been an integral part of my high school experience. My favorite songs have accompanied me during homework grinding sessions, late-night drives with friends, and, especially recently, to help me feel less isolated and alone.

I think that everyone has heard their parents muse about songs that take them back in time, remind them of a feeling or a particular year in their life. I have always been interested in what songs I would look back on as having been formative in my high school years; what songs would help me to remember these times. For my senior column, I have decided to compile a list of the sounds that defined my high school years and why.

Freshman year was pretty rough at times for me, as I’m sure it is for almost everyone. I didn’t really know who I was yet. I didn’t have many close friends at Millard South, having come from Russell Middle School, and getting acclimated to the high school experience was stressful and hectic. It was my year of musical discovery.

An album that had more hype around it than any other from this period was Frank Ocean’s Blonde. The enigmatic and borderline reclusive singer hadn’t released a project since his critically acclaimed Channel Orange in 2012. I was unfamiliar with Frank Ocean at this point, and when I heard the album’s single Nikes, I was puzzled. It sounded nothing like anything I’d ever heard before, with its minimalist production and moody lyrics. Even after I had heard the whole album, it took a while to grow on me.

The production on the album is at once boldly original and comforting, and it serves as a perfect backdrop for Ocean’s strange yet relatable lyrics. The songs Nights, Pink + White, and Solo are all great examples that showcase his singing talent and clever, emotion-packed songwriting. They helped me through the feelings of loneliness and confusion that crept up on me at times during my freshman year.

Sophomore year, I was much more comfortable at Millard South and had established groups of close friends with whom to bump music. The Migos releases of Culture and Culture II were pretty ubiquitous hits of that time. It’s impossible to forget Lil Uzi hopping onto Bad and Boujee to punctuate a perfect trap anthem. Migos had the formula down for feel-good party songs with mainstream appeal.

In April of 2017, Kendrick Lamar released his much-anticipated album Damn. It was not the best album he had ever released, but

I loved it regardless. Kendrick Lamar is my favorite artist of all time, and in my opinion, the best lyricist of all time. With Damn., Lamar was able to make a more pop-oriented album without sacrificing his artistic integrity.

It was an amazing feeling to see my favorite artist at a live concert in Lincoln while he was touring for this album. His performance was relatively straightforward; he rapped a good portion of his entire discography with all the technical prowess that you would expect from him. It was just amazing to celebrate him with an arena packed full of fans. At the end of the concert, he let the crowd belt out the lyrics to his Damn. single, Humble, a cappella style, and my friends and I excitedly joined in. It was an experience I’ll never forget.

It would be remiss of me to not mention Billie Eilish in a recap of influential music of the last four years. Her breakout album was released near the end of my junior year, and it dominated the airwaves all of that summer and into the next year. She went on to essentially sweep every major category of the 2020 Grammys.

Eilish is a very polarizing artist. Her standout single Bad Guy elicits love and hate in equal measures. That song got more radio play than any other song in recent memory and was unavoidable even in the era of streaming.

I, for one, think that Eilish is extremely talented and that her original style was a refreshing change of pace for pop music. The lyrics of her album’s deeper cuts touched on anxiety and rejection in a way that defines our generation. Bad Guy showcased her poking fun at people trying to be cool while making herself appear really cool. The music video is a masterpiece. I am a Billie Eilish stan and I’m not afraid to admit it!

That leaves only senior year left to recap. I don’t know about you, but music has been my lifeline during these strange, quarantined times, and I know there are a couple of albums that will always take me back to this historic era. The Slow Rush, Tame Im-

pala’s 2020 release, is one that will stick with me. Its lyrical content dealing primarily with the passage of time is very fitting for the quarantine, where hours can sometimes stretch out forever but weeks can seem to fly by without notice. Tame Impala is headed by musical genius Kevin Parker. His first few releases were modern revitalizations of Beatles-era psychedelic rock, but his more recent releases are less guitar-driven and more uniquely twentyfirst century.

Tame Impala albums have progressed from Indie favorites to Coachella headlining material, and Kevin Parker now has a tremendously deep catalog of music. The Slow Rush showed that he wasn’t done pushing boundaries. But the album that I have listened to far and away more than anything else this year is Mac Miller’s posthumous album entitled Circles. It was as deeply personal as any release Miller had ever had, and its emotional impact was obviously heightened by the context of the release. Mac Miller is one of the most personally relatable artists that I listen to, and his passing hit my friends and me very hard.

It is made all the more sad by how far his talent had progressed over the years, and the boundless potential he had as an artist. Circles was Miller’s foray into an alternative genre that combined his hip-hop roots with rock and R&B. You can hear the pain and suffering that lead to his overdose in his lyrics, but also the hope that he could make a change for the better. It’s beautiful and heartbreaking.

That wraps up my list of the most impactful music of my high school career. If you were to interview all the seniors on the music that defined their last four years, you would likely get hundreds of different answers. The prevalence of streaming has meant that there is an unending supply of different kinds of songs right at our fingertips, so everyone can develop their own unique taste. I think that is a good thing. No longer will everyone only remember the same radio-dominating songs from each era, which makes the bonds we form over music that we love even more special.

Carson O’Connor

-Attending Arizona State University to study Journalism

– Attending undecided to study Animation

Art by Sean Burton

Sean Burton

– Attending UNL to study Sports Broadcasting and Journalism

Millard South will always be a part of who I am, a part of who I have become. I am very thankful for the opportunities that have been presented to me these last four years. A lot has changed in my four years at Millard South, none of which I would take back. I’ve built great friendships, met mentors, role models, and outstanding teachers that have helped carve the way for my next journey in life.

I learned a lot in high school. You have to make the most of every opportunity. Excuses are weak. We all make them, but the people who choose not to make them are the ones that become successful in the long haul. Ever since the COVID-19 pandemic blinded me and my fellow classmates of 2020, I’ve learned not to take anything for granted. Don’t stress on the meaningless stuff. It doesn’t matter.

I could choose to be sad, depressed, and confused about how

this could happen my senior year, how this is how this chapter of my life is going to end. None of it makes sense. Nobody saw this coming. But rather than be down on what could have been, I realize this is only part of the journey. This is only part of the journey to fulfilling my dream of becoming a professional sports commentator. I wouldn’t have this positive outlook on such a dire situation without Millard South. The opportunities and positions I was put into in order to succeed have been truly remarkable.

My senior year was one I will never forget. I felt valued, appreciated, and was recognized for doing something great for this school. It was a privilege to kick start my future in broadcasting by joining Millard South Media, which truly provided some of my most cherishable moments throughout my entire journey through high school. I am thankful to be included in the Early College program, which is another huge achieve -

fall as I enter the next journey on my path towards the promised land. A lot of students don’t really know what they want to major in right away. A lot of times people change their minds even after they go off to college. For me, however, I have known for quite a long time what I am meant to do for a living. The opportunities Millard South presented me my senior year, and the abundance of compliments I got throughout the process has provided me with even more confidence than I already had. Calling a buzzer-beater during March Madness, being listened to worldwide on Super Bowl Sunday, and being locked in as the voice of a pivotal game seven are all moments I have imagined for quite some time now. From here on out it is all up to me, though. My future will be determined on how much work I want to put in, how much I am willing to sacrifice. And the truth is, I am all here for it because I want to be great, I want to be remembered, and I want to make a name for myself.

Again, I could be down, I could continue to be angry and confused, however, I want to dictate the terms of my future, and I won’t let anything get in the way. The end of my high school journey is a tough pill to swallow, but it is what it is. The future is bright for me. The future is what should matter, not for just me but for everyone, because we can all do great things in this world. This unprecedented end for the Class of 2020 will only make us stronger as a whole, I truly believe that.

ment that will prove tremendously beneficial for me in the not so distant future. I couldn’t have done any of this without MSHS.

I will be attending The University of Nebraska-Lincoln this upcoming

I want to say Thank You to all the teachers, coaches, administrators, counselors, cafeteria workers, janitors, security guards, and of course, classmates I met during my four years here. I will never forget the impact you all have made on my life. Peace out Millard South. Until we meet again...

Sincerely, Dillon Pelster

–

After spending my first three years at South not going to football games or dances, sitting in study hall doing homework instead of developing headaches at pep rallies, and frankly, just avoiding school spirit, I was excited for a more “traditional” senior year. I had a lovely time going to my first homecoming, cheering on South in the bleachers at a couple of football games, and screaming the senior chant at pep rallies.

The “traditional” senior experience was supposed to culminate second semester with spring sports, prom, commencement, graduation parties, and so many other tiny sentimental conclusionary moments. Moments that were supposed to, according to the popular cultural conception of high school, define our high school experience.

But none of that happened and here we are. Instead of memories of overspending on food on prom night at some pseudo-fancy restaurant, we have highly-established Animal Crossing islands and previously inconceivable internet addictions to define our final semester of free secondary education. We had no idea back in March that

we were talking to some of the classmates we’ve known for years for potentially the last time.

Looking back on senior year, we might not have had some of these traditional experiences, but I know it’ll certainly always be memorable. Good memories or bad memories, what’s most important is that we derive value from them. After losing one of my closest friends unexpectedly, and then society completely de-railing due to this coronavirus pandemic, I came to realize that life’s pro

gression isn’t always going to let you stop and smell the flowers. You’re never guaranteed the things you assume are guaranteed. You have to choose your opportunities wisely because they’re constantly fleeting.

If this year might’ve continued as planned, I probably would’ve just settled and stayed in my comfort zone going into college. I’d been offered an amazing opportunity but initially, I brushed it off. The idea of going far away for college is certainly alluring, but actually being faced with the decision is anxiety-inducing. UNL is less than an hour away, and even though I had grown up with a personal disdain for the Huskers (no offense), I was perfectly fine with throwing away an offer from one of my dream schools to essentially keep being comfortable.

On May 1, I made a fairly reckless decision. I never got the chance to even visit Syracuse, nor have I ever been close to the state of New York, but nevertheless, I sent in my acceptance form. And though I’m still crushed that we’re leaving Millard South this way, I’m excited to be uncomfortable and to see where my risk takes me.

My best memory of Millard South was winning my first gold medal at state journalism.

”

8

Attending Syracuse University to study Political Science and Environment, Sustainability, & Policy

Football games, homecoming, pep rallies, prom. These things are all typical high school experiences, activities, and rites of passage that no one blinks at because of how ordinary and routine they are. For me, these are things that I am unable to take for granted.

Because of a unique homeschool opportunity I once had, my freshman and sophomore years were spent with only about 15 other students and four teachers total. Our school building was a cramped, rented space situated above a temp agency and looking out onto a busy Dodge street intersection. We had no sports teams, no bands or orchestra, and no AP classes.

After sophomore year, these things, previously unknown to me, became my new ordinary- as I was to be admitted into Millard South.

Suddenly, my previous graduating class of three grew into one of over 600. Suddenly, I needed six minutes to have any chance of making it from one class to

the next. Suddenly, I was overwhelmed by a place most every other student finds routine and oftentimes boring. .

I don’t think those feelings lasted more than a week, though. For me, there had never been so much to do at a school, so many clubs and activities and classes to know about. Soon, the first pep rally of the school year came and I, sitting in the cramped band section, officially became a part of the Patriots.

Before I knew it, the bustling Main Street hallway became more of an everyday nuisance than a fearful stampede, my pride time and others of my class stopped being strangers, and I learned how to navigate through the challenges of AP courses.

Despite my particular circumstances, these feelings aren’t unique to me. Every senior was once a wide-eyed freshman, new to the fast-paced environment of high school. Although the novelty of school has certainly worn off by now, it’s worth remembering back to a time in which Millard South was full of never-ending potential- back to when there were endless clubs and classes to join and explore, back to when the halls were too wide to fully explore.

Edith Hickman

– Attending UNO to study Music, with concentration in music studies for keyboard

I remember when everybody used to say, “Oh my god I can’t wait to leave this school,” but all I’ve heard in the past few weeks is people wishing for the things we used to have. In spite of all the bitterness of recent events, I think this was a test and a reminder that we should always try to find a silver lining. After all, so much has happened in these past four years; from Freshman Day to senior year, we’ve been living in a movie. We’ve gotten to see scandals, fights, and breakups in 3-D! We’ve been doing it all together, experiencing it with one another in the walls of Millard South.

What’s important to take out of this is that this won’t be the end of our lives. It is only a chapter of it, and you have to decide how you want to end it. Take each day at a time and focus on the goal of the day.

Mrs. McCaskill, a sociology and AP Human Geography teacher at Millard South, has given me advice I’ll never forget. She said, “Ask yourself every night if you did the best you could do that day. And if you haven’t, what can you still do today or tomorrow to fix it.” You can call me Maddie Krull now because yesterday I learned how to dribble. Today I’ll try to learn something new on my skateboard, and tomorrow I might just learn how to invest in stocks. Probably not, but that’s okay because these are the events we can still control.

As Senior Class President, my advice to the senior class is to take this time and learn something you’ve never known how to do and to write about it or take pictures and videos because we are the class that will be in the history books.

Enjoy the moments no matter how small or how big. Going into high school, everyone told me that it would go by really fast. At the time when I was living through it, that didn’t seem to be true. But now, thinking back, it seems like it was just yesterday I was being dropped off for the first day of freshman year. It is beyond crazy how it has already been four years and it’s all over.

I hope that the future you desire is the reward for your hard efforts in life.

-Santiago Lara

– Attending UNL to study Entomology

Chelsea Molina

– Attending UNO to study Journalism

– Attending UNO to study Graphic Design

From the first round of State Volleyball vs. Pius X. For this photo, Hynes earned a Superior rating for sports photography in the Winter Nebraska Journalism Education Association Contest. Hynes called several home volleyball games as a member of Millard South Media. Photo by Joscelyn Hynes

Joscelyn Hynes

Most Athletic

Most Patriot Pride

Class Mom

Class Dad

Best Hair

Best Dressed

Emily Laird

Drew Wessel

Jahlina Barrett

Hunter Gatewood

Karlie Sunderman

Matthew Broyles

Blake Smith

Maclaine Daugherty

Jayme Horan

Kohl Herbolsheimer

Maddie Krull Isaac Trumble

Ginni Lynam

Josh Borunda

SENIOR SUPERLATIVES

Cutest Couple

Worst case of Senioritis

Most likely to brighten someone’s day

Most Artistic

Best Eyes

Most likely to be late to virtual graduation

Best Laugh

Most Respected

Drew Wessel

Carley Decker

Alexa Edmundson

Jeremiah Grove

Megan Rose

James Baltes

Marissa Martinez Tristen Glynn

Abby Rojas Sam Becker

Kenzie Beeson

Trevor Albert Kali Herbolsheimer

George Abalekpor

Alyssa Patten

Justin Jeanette

Where X goes Y goes

These awards were announced by Senior Class Board via the Class of 2020 Google Classroom

Most likely to find a cure for COVID-19

Most likely to be famous

Most likely to be President

Photos courtesy of Carol Mertl

Lily Nguyen

Jeremiah Grove

Hannah Pokharel

George Abalekpor

Sophia Napoli & Lily Pinkall Kohl Herbolsheimer & Noah Unzicker

Rachel Thomson Garrett Carbullido-Negley