Fun in the Valley
Class of 2025 Graduation
On May 22nd, the Maple Valley Class of 2025 celebrated their graduation in a ceremony filled with music, heartfelt speeches, and well-deserved recognition.
The band set the tone with stirring performances of Pomp and Circumstance, I'm Still Standing arranged by Matt Conaway & Jack Holt, and Ceremony at Margate. The senior choir members followed with a beautiful rendition of Billy Joel’s Vienna, showcasing their talent one final time.
Julia Mater, the Class of 2025 Salutatorian, opened the evening with a warm welcome speech. Later, Valedictorian Isabel Emerick closed the ceremony with a memorable and heartfelt farewell address. The keynote speaker, Ms. Duska Brumm, inspired the graduates with her speech entitled The Full Circle of Service, encouraging students to lead with purpose and give back to their communities.
A special congratulations goes out to the recipients of the Maple Valley Memorial Scholarship Foundation scholarships:
Makenna Barnum-Suttles, Taylor Casey, Arial Coleman, Skyler Cook, Isaac Crane, Emily Eisner, Isabel Emerick, Evan Fisher, Corbin Gardner, Brianna Gurd, Alyssa Harrington, Nathan Kestner, Onika Knauss, Aubrie Leo, Hannah Luukkonen, Dakota Martin, Julia Mater, Jakeb McDonald, Alliyah McGovern, Noah Musser, Jeremiah Nay, Jeremiah Penny, Emily Reitz, Austin Romero, Sophia Rose, Isaiah Ross, Robert Schilz, Riley Skinner, Grace Widenhoefer, Jim Wiggs, and Hudson Winslow.
Congratulations to the entire Class of 2025! We wish you all the best in your future endeavors!
Sports
For sports schedules please visit the Athletics Website: Upcoming Sporting Events
At the MHSAA Middle School Zone 5 Regional on May 19th, several Lions delivered strong performances:
Josh Miller took 2nd in both the 55m Hurdles (8.74) and 400m (56.97 PR), and placed 9th in the 100m (12.68).
Melanie Jones placed 7th in the 200m (28.55) and 4th in the 400m (1:04.43).
Adelita Tobias finished 6th in the 800m (2:44.71) and 8th in Pole Vault (7-00.00).
Porter Bryson ran to a 7th place finish in the 1600m (5:22.92 PR) and 3rd in the 3200m (11:32.36 PR).
Raegan Jones secured 10th in the 3200m (13:38.31 PR).
Klaire Keiffer was 2nd in both High Jump (4-08.00) and Pole Vault (7-06.00).
Kale Keiffer placed 10th in Shot Put with a throw of 34-08.75.
The Girls 4x400m Relay team of Zoey Burman, Adelita Tobias, Raegan Jones, and Melanie Jones earned 6th place with 4:43.55.
On May 23rd, the varsity softball team hosted Springport in a tough doubleheader. The Lions fell in Game 1 with a 0-23 loss and dropped Game 2 by a score of 1-21.
On May 19th, the Girls Soccer team traveled to Pennfield, where they fell with a final score of 1–7.
In the MHSAA District 58 First Round on May 21st, the Girls Soccer team traveled to Bath, where they concluded their season with a 0–7 loss.
On May 19th, the JV Baseball team played a doubleheader at Springport. They dropped both games, falling 1–16 in Game 1 and 9–20 in Game 2.
On May 23rd, the varsity baseball team hosted Springport in a competitive doubleheader. The Lions dropped Game 1 with a 3-7 loss and came up just short in Game 2, falling 4-5.
At the Big 8 Conference Meet on May 21st in Quincy, several Varsity Track & Field athletes delivered strong performances.
Kelvin Davis led the team with a 3rd-place finish in the 110m hurdles (16.45) and 4th in the 300m hurdles (43.59). He also secured 4th in the high jump at 5' 8".
The 4x100 relay team of Tyrese Robinson-El, Andrew Phenix, Doug Smalley, and Skyler Cook placed 8th with 57.24.
The 4x800 team of Ben Mater, Iziah Hall, Doug Smalley, and Quincy Page also finished 8th (10:48.59).
Tyrese Robinson-El earned 9th in shot put (34' 3") and 10th in discus with a PR of 107' 6".
Gavin Swift placed 10th in the long jump (16' 11.5").
Athena Morehouse led with a 2nd-place finish in the 400m (1:05.33).
Audrey Burpee placed 4th in the 300m hurdles (57.50) and 8th in high jump (4' 4").
The 4x200 team (Clinkscales, Taylor, Burpee, Morehouse) finished 5th (2:05.55).
The 4x800 squad (Kenyon, Johnson, Kenzie Soper, Izabelle Soper) took 5th (12:52.73).
The 4x100 relay (Diaz, Taylor, Campbell, Clinkscales) placed 6th (1:02.51).
Clinkscales took 6th in long jump with a PR of 13' 10", followed by Soper in 10th (12' 1.5").
Izabelle Soper also claimed 7th in the 3200m (15:09.56) with a PR.
Ariel Kenyon placed 10th in the 800m (3:24.68).
Activites/Clubs
Band Concert
On Sunday, May 18th, the junior high, jazz, and senior high bands, along with winter color guard, performed their spring concert. Selections included songs from Moana and Wicked, and also an upbeat jazz tune called Sideways. The music was great, and the crowd enjoyed cupcakes afterwards.
NHS Inductions
On May 18th, the National Honor Society welcomed 9 new members to the chapter during their Inductions Ceremony in the library. The students lit the candles representing the four pillars of the NHS: leadership, character, service, and scholarship. Then the newest members took the pledge and received their certificates. Barry County Judge Michael Shipper was the keynote speaker, and the four seniors received their stoles to wear at graduation.
This year, the students completed a number of service projects, including adopting 4 families for Christmas, holding a Red Cross Blood Drive, and visiting with elderly folks at a Charlotte nursing home for Valentine's. The Outstanding Service Award was given to Jolina Steury for going above and beyond in her acts of service this year. President Emily Reitz and Vice-President/Secretary Alliyah McGovern received pins to wear at graduation as well.
A charity auction held in May at FoxView brought in over $1,500, giving the NHS chapter $750 to begin next year with their projects, while the rest went to the French students who are planning their trip to France and Spain for spring break 2026.
