Classmate’s speech captures spirit of CHS Class of 19

Graduates toss their caps in celebration at the 2019 CHS commencement ceremony. (Mike Barucci photo)

See this week’s Citizen for complete CHS graduation coverage, including then and now photos, scholarship winners, future plans and much more.

The weather was picture-perfect and the speeches hit all the right notes as the 229-member CHS Class of 2019 — a group that achieved greatness by working hard and “honoring the process” — marked the end of their high school journeys in a memorable Friday evening commencement on the CHS turf field.

For Principal Derek Folan, theirs was a class that was “absolutely defined” by students who honored the process and refused to take shortcuts on the path to success.

“You committed to the process,” he said, “and achieved such personal triumph, team success, beautiful performances, and academic excellence.”

While noting there was much more he could say on this theme, Folan chose instead to cede his turn on the podium to one of the graduates, Xavier Machuga — a young man who Folan said “embodied the spirit” of the Class of 2019 and who, in the words of Machuga himself, is a living, breathing and walking miracle.

Once a rising talent on the CHS basketball team, Machuga suffered a brain aneurysm in the spring of his sophomore year that required immediate surgery and left him comatose for a period of several weeks. He would later spend two and a half months in a rehabilitation hospital and has continued to make strides in an outpatient setting with a combination of physical, occupational and speech therapy.

Standing before his classmates on the stage at graduation, Machuga acknowledged that he was “not the same X” that he was prior to the brain injury. Rather, he’s a stronger, hungrier, and wiser version of himself as a result of what he’s had to endure.

“Logically, May 5, the day I had a life-threatening brain aneurysm, was supposed to be my death date,” he said. “However, that day is now one of my birth dates. My spirit was reborn and my injury has resulted in me growing exponentially as a person.”

While he physically awoke from his coma two years ago, Machuga said his mindset, approach, and perception of his injury have been his “real awakenings,” and he stressed to his classmates the importance of a positive outlook when facing any kind of adversity.

“Take it from, who practices what he preaches,” he said. “The mind is far more powerful than the body, and with the right mindset no obstacle is insurmountable.”

And this kind of positive thinking was evident throughout the Class of 2019, according to Class President Haley Donovan, who praised her fellow graduates as a class of “innovators, dreamers and believers.”

“Together,” she said, “we became state champions; Hockomock League champions; players of the year; active citizens — completing well over 20,000 hours of community service throughout the last four years; foundation builders — completely revolutionizing Canton drama and music into award-winning departments; tradition starters — initiating annual food and clothing drives at CHS that are bound to last; and gap closers — introducing both best buddies and unified sports.”

But it wasn’t the accomplishments themselves that will make this class memorable, said Donovan. “Instead we will be forever remembered by how we journeyed to those accomplishments and turned those ideas into innovations, [and by] our willingness and determination to do so together.”

CHS Class of 2019 graduate Xavier Machuga addresses his classmates. (Mike Barucci photo)

Just as Machuga and Donovan before him, class salutatorian Michael Mazzola also emphasized the importance of process in his remarks to the graduates. Recalling a word of advice he had received from strength and conditioning coach Adam Hughes during warmups at soccer practice, Mazzola said he has learned firsthand to be precise in everything that he does — whether it’s a simple stretch or a physically demanding mountain climb.

“Precision translates to success,” Mazzola relayed. “Not just on the small scale of doing stretches during a practice, but also in your future hopes and aspirations. Stopping short is giving up … In many situations, we all have a responsibility to ourselves and others to put in full effort. Whatever you do in life, take it seriously and give it your all. That way, there are no regrets or the dreaded ‘what could have beens.’”

Even when the journey gets tough, Mazzola urged his classmates to stay the course. “Have faith that you will find the strength to persevere,” he said. “Don’t stop short of your goals and you will reap the rewards at the end. Hard work is what got us all here today, and it’s this hard work and solid effort that is paramount for all of the amazing endeavors you’ll embark upon in the future.”

Valedictorian Brandon Pho also offered words of advice and encouragement to the graduates, reminding them that their actions have an “untold effect on others” and that, just like in algebra, they can “decide what value [their] name holds to others.”

Noting that he has a tendency to try to explain everything in his life in mathematical terms, Pho said he has come to realize that numbers, while certainly useful, are limited in what they can describe and “definitely do not tell the whole story.”

Pho, for instance, calculated that his classmates had collectively experienced more than a million hours of high school over the past four years. But that number itself, he said, “really doesn’t say anything about the actions taken to accomplish it.”

“That one million is composed of so many different things: studying for a test, practicing to win the playoff game, rehearsing a role in the next drama production,” he said. “Sure, the time taken to do these things is measurable, but the true value of our accomplishments is immeasurable.”

Pho’s speech also included a nod to the late Martin Badoian, the legendary CHS math teacher and math team coach who impacted thousands of lives over his 60-plus-year career in education. While not mentioning him by name, Pho reminisced about the “cranky old man” and brilliant math teacher in room 248 who was “dedicated without compare to his work” and who “brought out the best in the people around him.”

“Do you know the name of the person I’m talking about?” Pho said. “Let me ask the more important question: Does it matter what his name was? An x-factor can easily be a y-factor or a z-factor, but it doesn’t change their impact. I know what his name is, but he was much more than what his name alone could describe, an immeasurable existence, unable to be defined by just one value.”

In addition to the student speeches, Friday’s commencement featured remarks by Superintendent Dr. Jennifer-Fischer-Mueller, School Committee Chairman Kristin Mirliani, and Board of Selectmen Chairman Chris Connolly, whose daughter, Maggie, was among the class of graduates. The ceremony also featured performances by the CHS chorus and symphony orchestra, and the presentation of the 2019 Paul Matthews Award, which went to Machuga and Donovan in recognition of their excellence in the areas of scholarship, sports and service.

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