Editorial: Hats off to the Class of 2021 after a turbulent year

To the Class of 2021:

Perhaps you have noticed that the Daily Herald has been running graduation photos, both online and in print, from ceremonies across the suburbs. Some shots reveal row after row of gown-clad graduates; others capture more intimate moments.

The photos are a tradition for the newspaper, one that goes back many years. It's our way of acknowledging this important rite of passage and paying tribute to our high school seniors.

We notice some similarities in these beautiful photos from year to year: the shiny new gowns in vibrant school colors, the matching mortar boards with swinging tassels, the inevitable cap toss on the lawn and the bittersweet group photos among friends moving on to new chapters.

But we know, of course, that your graduation was different because of the pandemic - and not just in the way your seats were spaced or how masks partially hid your smiles.

COVID-19 cast a dark shadow over your junior and senior years, one none of you are likely to forget.

Remote learning kept you out of your classrooms. Restrictions made it difficult to be with your friends. College visits were muted. High school sports, theater productions, school dances and other activities were altered or canceled.

You will no doubt remember the disappointment at what you missed, as well as the challenges of learning from home and the stress of planning your future in scary and uncertain times.

But we also hope you remember those who helped make this dark time easier.

When you look back on your final year in high school, think of the teachers and school administrators who did their best with virtual classrooms. Think of your parents who juggled the demands of home and work while helping to keep you on track. Think of the hospital workers who may have cared for your loved ones.

Think of the researchers whose vaccines helped make your in-person graduation possible.

Think of the volunteers - many of you among them - who shopped for the most vulnerable in the early days of the pandemic or scoured the web to help grandparents secure initially impossible-to-get vaccination appointments.

Think of the lives you may have saved.

We hope you - and your families - weathered the pandemic in good health. We hope that you continue to do so.

And whether you're going off to college, starting a job or taking another path, we hope COVID-19 doesn't rob you of the joys of whatever comes next.

Best of luck to you, Class of 2021, on graduation day and beyond.