What an Exciting Week!

For us at the CV Weekly, our “week” actually begins on Thursday, the day the paper comes out. From Thursday until Wednesday, our writers and photographers work tirelessly, gathering information about our community that will be of interest to our readers.

Last Thursday was a big day for us.

We had graduations all throughout the valley, from our elementary schools to our senior high schools. I was at Glendale Community College along with Mary O’Keefe, Leonard Coutin, Charly Shelton, Jeff Keefe and Danny Goldsworthy taking photos, documenting the graduation of Crescenta Valley High School’s Class of 2012. Over at Clark Magnet High School, Misty Duplessis was doing the same thing, taking notes and pictures of the seniors as they ended their school career at Clark.

It was a day of emotion to be sure.

My youngest, Daniel, graduated last year from CV, the last of our four sons and I remember the pride both Steve and I felt at seeing him walk across the stage to accept his diploma and congratulations from school board representatives.

On Thursday, for the first time, the CVHS graduating class commencement ceremony was held at the college rather than at traditional Stengel Field. The change of venue was just another challenge this class has had to overcome.

The CV Class of 2012 had many hurdles to surmount.

However, whether due to its dedication to self, family or community, this class overcame these challenges, surpassing expectations.

For example, this class had one of the highest API scores ever.

As far as volunteerism, this class excelled. Students would commonly be found at various civic events, whether along the Montrose Christmas Parade route, movie night next to Andersen’s Pet Store last August or cleaning up at Arbor Day.

They leave a legacy of high expectations for their underclassman who now advance. I hope that these younger students are up to the challenge and look forward to their efforts.

Take a minute and enjoy the photos of our graduates beginning on page 10. And to see more, go online to www.cvweekly.com and click on Photo Gallery. Who knows? You may recognize a face or two.

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Speaking of exciting times, we’re having some excitement here at the CV Weekly. Ballots for our inaugural CV Weekly Finest 2012 are coming in fast and furious. Over the last three weeks, our office manager Lisa Mitchell is studiously recording the votes for everything from finest  pharmacist to finest cupcakes. We couldn’t be happier with the response from our readers and are eager to report the results.

We know that you’ve taken time in deciding who and what to endorse as the ‘finest’ and we are privileged to present your opinion to the community.

But time is flying by – make sure and take a couple of minutes to submit your choices for the finest. Your opinion matters.