ENID, OK - I asked the BuzzHeads on Facebook a few years back what bit of advice they would give the EHS senior class if they were giving the commencement address. Here are some very insightful snippets of information for seniors getting ready to go out and conquer the world.
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As silly as some of these comments might seem they are based on people's years of living and experience. Don't discount any of the advice below. If you are a high school senior read these carefully and soak them all in.
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As a 1981 graduate of EHS I say go out and conquer the world! Enid has graduated many very successful musicians, artists, business owners, entrepreneurs, actors, astronauts, and other. Stay in touch with Enid through Enid Buzz.
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My advice to this years seniors is to, "Discover your talent, turn it into a passion, use it to create a business and never work a day in your life!"
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Advice For The Graduates
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Carole Quigley-Driver - Don't grow up ...... it's a trap.!!! (smile emoticon)
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Rick Hassler - Practice personal responsibility...also... Things will change, deal with it.
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Chris Keener - One of two things: 1: Leave Enid and never return. Or 2: Stay in Enid, build it up to what you wanted it to be like while you were growing up. Cause there is a lot of people who want the same but never say or do anything about it that lives there. Make it the best place to live, to raise a family, to work and not be living off state assistance, to enjoy and be able to do things there without having to go to the big cities, but at the same time keep that small town feel.
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Brent Kroeker - Congratulations, not that you asked, You have met the states minimum standard for a high school diploma in the 48th rated education state in the union.
Nobody owes you anything. Figure that out for yourself quickly. Life isn't fair. Don't waste any time expecting it to be it complaining about it. Suck it up, put your head down, and get to work. There's no education degree that will out earn a person who will intersect hard work, good decisions, calculated risk, and a little luck. There is no guarantee that you will feel fulfilled or enjoy your work. That's why we call it work. Find someone who will trade his money for your time and get after it. Save your money. Pay with cash. Forgo immediate gratification for long term financial health. And above all, so help me God, marry a spouse of solid character who will partner with you the rest of your life. Most miserable old people didn't get this one right.
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Becky Wilson - The world is a tough place. Life may not turn out as you want it to. Nothing is given to you for free, you have to work for it and then you may not get it. Deal with it.
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Jack Ramey - Embrace change live a life of service.
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Austin Lee Miles - Always remember that everyone experiences life differently and will therefore have different interests, tastes, and opinions than you. This does not make one person (or viewpoint) any more valuable than another; rather, it should teach us love and acceptance.
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Mike Gillaspy - Join air force. Retire in 20 years.
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Tracey Polson - Just be kind.
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Kelly Sisk Tompkins - Wear sunscreen.
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Mike Klemme - Never eat seafood more than 100 miles from the ocean.
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Isaac WhiteRanger Perez - Join the army the USA is gonna need ya.
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Vicki Leslie Stuever - The best is yet to come! Work hard, and you will be richly rewarded. Never, never, never give up.
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Beverly Jones - Stand tall.
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Larry Horany - No one, on their death bed, ever said, "I wish I'd spent more time at the office." Enjoy, it goes by too fast.
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Lynn Spickelmier - To put away their phones.
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Mary Unruh Nelson - Whatever you choose to do in life, do it to the best of your ability!
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Jocelyn Miller - Put your cellular device down.
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Brenda Holland - Work to not get rich, but to retire comfortably. Enjoy each day.
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Herbie Champlin - Be skeptical and set goals if you want to be successful.
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Mark Blain - Wear sunscreen.
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Bruce Nichols - Try to bring this country back to the values it was founded with, and remember all men are created equal - always have a goal to strive for.
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Murray Elder - Yolo (You Only Live Once)
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Jerry Niles - Treat others as you would to be treated. Be honest in your dealing, follow your dreams, never stop learning, take time to smell the roses and share with others. Recognize that a higher power exist always striving to hit the mark.
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Melissa Bonniksen - Minimum wage is not enough to pay rent!
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Becky R Pemberton - Keep your head up ....keep your mind focus on the right path ...don't let anyone influence you to do something you don't want too.
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Angela Posey Andrews - Don't expect anything to be given to you,you have to work for it.
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Eric Emerson - Use a professional quality email address. Not johndoebangs69@yahoo.com. this came across my desk on an application. Something with just your name or initials. I recommend an email address you use only for employment. This keeps spam from making it hard to see email from business recruiters.
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Candace Solorio Hazlett - When going to college make it count!! Have fun but study hard. Find something you will enjoy career wise but make sure it is in demand in the area you want to live in. Otherwise you will have a lifetime of student loan debt and no job that allows you to use those skills.
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Carol Sue Mcneese - Have your priorities in the right order along with your focus on God being #1, and everything else goes into place.
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Aaron Schroeder - Don't talk about it, be about it. Go out and earn it. Don't believe anything you read on facebook, especially if it's "news". There are 3 sides to every story. It doesn't matter where you are or what you are doing with your life, be the best at it for as long as you are there. If you take a job at McDonald's to work through college, strive for upper management. If they tell you it takes 5 years working at McDonald's to become manager, and you graduate in 4...you should still work like you plan on being the manager. Who knows, you could be the exception and make manager in 3 1/2. Don't quit McDonald's no matter how much you hate it, until you have a start date for the new job. Always put in your two weeks notice...you never know when you need a job, any job. Your new employer will understand and they wouldn't want an employee who is willing to jump ship and leave them short handed either. It's ok to have fun while you are young, but a criminal record will follow you. Never settle for anything. Quit making excuses for everything and just go!
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Roberta Denton - Forgive everyone everything. Enid is a great place to live, but do try to experience other people and places. The best way to have anything is to take care of what you have. You don't need everything you want. Get out of your comfort zone. Treat everyone with kindness and respect. In the winter, park the nose of you auto facing south. The number one way to stay healthy is .. wash your hands.
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Teresa Floyd Felber - Find happiness within yourself.
Set your standards high and don't settle.
Take off your rose colored glasses.
Life is not fair, get used to it.
Hold your memories close.
Make new friends, but keep the old.
Call your mother (she worries)
Always remember, no matter your problem, someone in this world is far worse off than you.
Grab a straw, suck it up and move on.
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Edmund Schrag - Illegitimiis non carborundum.
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Rosie Pecha - Stay sober and stand by your neighbor.
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Leslie McCool - Always be grateful. No matter how bad you think you have it someone has it worse.....that's a promise. Life is short. Live it. Carpe diem. And love like there is NO tomorrow.
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Jill Patterson Phillips - Cell phone down, head up and be present. Don't just look at life through a handful of glass.
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Debbie Blanchett Lack - Make your life count, make a difference. Keep God first, work hard but take time for family and fun!
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Patje Lentz - Two simple rules: Be kind. Work hard.
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Christina Hicks Sly - Make wise choices financial choices. Credit scores are super important.
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Lore Reagh - Don't look for a path in life to find or find you. Blaze your own trail and make it your own.
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Sophia Wood - Know God! Get to work!
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Matthew McNew - Stop doing what the internet does. Put down the phone, tablet, controller and enjoy those around you and spend time outside.
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Jeremy Logsdon - Stay away from student loans you can pay for school by working a part time job and going to a school that u can afford.
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Tamara McGee - Be the best you and just go for it!
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Sherry Lane - Work hard; you never get anywhere by half-stepping. Treat others the way you wish to be treated. Celebrate life by setting goals and priorities and strive to achieve them. Little things do count; enjoy the riches of day-to-day life. Family and friends are precious - make sure to let them know you love them!! Follow your heart in all you do, be it love, work, religion, etc. If your heart is happy, you will be too!!
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Lezlie Gilbert - Don't rush growing old. Enjoy life. Work hard, don't use credit cards. Be able to pay for what you want when you buy it or wait until you can.
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April Gabriel - Unplug and live life.
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DeeDee Arnold Nolan - "Trust, but verify" -Ronald Reagen
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Kristin Phillips Koehn - Stay true to yourself and let God be your pilot.
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Audrey Crum - Get involved in school activities, groups, and organizations. There are no losers or uncool clubs, so join what interests you. The rest will come with time.
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Eddie Mack - Your education is only half over!!?? First go home and chill for a day. Write down what u want. Avoid calls for one day. Serious thinking of your next ten years. Write many things down and then narrow it down to less than 6 or so??? Next day visit with close relatives or friends and say a prayer and u will find your job for a few years or many. Each year u will look back on what u learned at each job. For your education is only half over.
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Ruth McManemin Ryden - Other people don't have to be wrong for you to be right.
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Cat Hunt - Leave Enid. It's a big wide world, there is so much out there to experience! Come home at the end of the trip but explore beyond your comfort zone. Also, the only reason you should ever look into you're neighbors bowl, is to see if they have enough not if you have as much as them.
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Ruth McManemin Ryden - Make decisions based on what you know will happen, not what you wish will happen.
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Charles Pat Martin - When it comes to business trust nobody. It's always about the bottom line, money rules the world.
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Eli Berry - There's always a reason to work hard. There's always a reason to love everybody.
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Cindy Seiger - Take pride in all you do.
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Jeffrey Mullin - Move out of Enid as fast as you can.
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Katherine Ramey - To make something of yourself and to leave for something better.
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Elaine Ramey - Listen more than you talk, give more than you take, work at least as hard as you play.
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Sally Mummel - Have a relationship with the Lord.
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Willa Lane - Be yourself and use your head to make decisions.
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Chris Arnold - Be the best you can be at what ever your doing. Treat people the way you want to be treated.
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Becky Perring Arens - The road goes on forever...the party never ends. Spread your wings and fly!
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April Wallace - Get to know your parents - you'll never know when they will be gone for good. Be nice to your siblings- they're the best link to your past and the people that are most likely to stick with you in the future.
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Andrea Mcgee Crabb - Don't sweat the small stuff. Internal peace the best gift you can give yourself.
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Cheri Cox - Always be humble, kind, honest, forgiving. Look out for the good of others, respect and value them. Think out of the box. Read read read. Readers are smarter than many college graduates.....be informed and vote your conscience in every election.
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Shawn Bishop - Develop a long-lasting relationship with a bank. They can help you along in life with changes that can come your way. Such as buying a car, your first home and other unplanned things that can come up in life. Credit cards are not the answer to your financial needs. Run as far as you can from Enid. Best decision I ever made on graduation day.
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Jeff Adams - Make lots of money so you can take care of your parents.
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Daniel Bowser - Move.
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Chris Brintnall - Don't go to college until you know what you want to be/do and know that college is required to achieve it. Also, don't believe the lie that you HAVE to take out student loans. Colleges aren't going anywhere and nothing says you have to do it in 5 years.
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Barbara J. Moore - Never give up! Love many, trust a few, but learn to paddle your own canoe.
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Stan Ralstin - There are only two ways to obtain wealth. Have your money work for you to make money or have people work for you to make money.
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Lauryn Eileen - Always wear sunscreen, you are not as ugly as you think, NEVER be afraid to be yourself, live with compassion and integrity and travel, there's a HUGE world out there so explore , see how the rest of the world lives, absorb like a sponge, be happy be hopeful and love god above all else.
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Jennifer Goddard - Beauty fades but an education will last a lifetime. Nothing in life is free... someone paid for it. Your elders do not give you advice to steer you in the wrong direction, they have been where you are now and already learned from the mistakes your wanting to make.
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Fred Fowler - Let go of what you cannot control... But,.. Be able to discern the difference.
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Larry Horany - To quote a teacher friend of mine, "Brains, not breasts, young lady!"
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Joshua Imoe - Work hard. Millions on welfare will now be depending on you too.
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Debra Jarrett - Develop a great work ethic no matter what career you decide to follow.
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Robyn Guest - Life is not always going to be fair. In this country you have the right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness, but happiness is not a right or a promise. You are responsible for your own happiness. Find something you enjoy and find a way to earn money doing it, work to live don't live to work. Pay attention to the little joys in life because in the end the little things are what you remember.
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Louis Christian - Become a DOCTOR, NURSE, LAWYER, or ACCOUNTANT PERIOD!
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Shiela Humble - Do in life what makes you happy because you will be doing it for a long time.
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Ella Brown-Ridgway - If you want people to trust you! Always be honest!
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Micki Christmas Soper - Find a career that you enjoy. Be happy and thankful for everything you have.
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Ivan Azcue - Don't get married or have kids UNTIL you've done something for yourself. .... spread your wings first.... most get married and never even grew up.
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Stephanie Kuepfer - The best laid plans sometimes get derailed, have a backup plan just in case. Neither a borrower nor a lender be.... can't remember what Shakespeare play that was from. LOL!
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Karen Washburn - Follow the star that you have made, just be yourself and you can accomplish anything!
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Donna Mansker - You have SO much more to learn; be receptive to learning it. Do not feel entitled -- you aren't!
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Sunny Morris - Remember in life that it is important to have Ethics both personally and professionally. Respect others and live so that you can also respect yourself. Whether you are continuing your Education or jumping straight into The Work Force, work hard, believe in yourself and do the very best at whatever job you have chosen. When ask to take on a new task, do not say I don't' know how, learn to say, I've never done it before but I'll be happy to give it my best efforts and I'll learn how to do it! Believe in yourself and rely on Ethics, Honesty and Reliability to show people Who YOU ARE. It's what you give and what you expect in return.
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Liz Showalter - Keep your hands, feet and other objects to yourself. lol.
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A lot of great remarks listed above! Wish I’d heard (or listened to) more of them myself!