MAY 13, 2020

Dear Graduates,

Isn’t success beautiful? All of your hard work, time, effort and determination has paid off¬ — you’ve made it to this tremendous milestone. Your Graduation Day!

While coronavirus may have shut down your schools, it did not shut down your path to success.

You were well ahead of the curve and had carefully laid a solid foundation of learning over the last 12 years to get you to graduation. So, in these unprecedented times, we are forced to expand our cloud — we are forced to new limits and challenged to think in new ways to accomplish our goals.

However, I am confident that you are each ready to beat the odds and get where you want to go!

Don’t be limited by the obstacles of today posed by COVID-19, but rather reach for what’s to come in the days ahead. Look to that new career, that dream job, the adventure that awaits you.

As your Member of Parliament, it is a pleasure to offer greetings on behalf of the people of Labrador. We are all very proud of you.

We know a place can only grow and thrive with bright, courageous and well-educated people like you. In Labrador, we know you are well on the path to doing anything you want in life.

Make the decisions that are best for you. Whether you choose to pursue a trade or academics, business or the workforce, it’s your life, do not waste it. Do not bide your time in idle ways. Make the most of it all. For it is in times of resilience our strength is tested but, in your heart, you know home always close by.

Never forget the communities where you grew up. Be proud of who you are, where you come from. And, as you head into your exciting future, be proud—for you are the young men and women of Labrador and fly that flag proudly!

A special thank you to your teachers for unselfishly sharing their time, talent and knowledge. They went beyond the call, they set the bar high and demanded your very best so that you are now ready for life’s next chapter.

To your parents, guardians and grandparents: thank you for all the ways you’ve supported your children. Graduates, no one will ever sacrifice more for you than your parents and no one will ever love you more. As you leave, they will cry for days, but know they are so proud of what you’ve accomplished and the person you’ve become. They will long for those chats over the phone or an occasional text, so make sure to keep in touch. It means more than you know.

Your parents have done it all, they have given you space to work things out on your own and, in doing so, prepared you for the journey ahead.

So, off you go, graduates!

I wish you the tremendous success and happiness you so deserve.

While we may not have the power to inspire the entire world to strive for success, we do have the power to try to achieve it for ourselves.

#MaySuccessBeYours

Sincerely,

Yvonne Jones, MP
Labrador