Superintendent Addresses Commencement for Last Time
After a 39-year career as a teacher and administrator Huntington Superintendent John J. Finello is retiring this week. Last Friday night he addressed Huntington High School's commencement exercises for the last time.
A 1968 Huntington graduate, Mr. Finello told members the Class of 2011 that he never expected to be superintendent or a commencement speaker when he was sitting in the same auditorium as his own graduation ceremony 43 years ago.
"Your life journey is unpredictable and will provide challenges, rewards and joys as you travel the many bends in the road," Mr. Finello told the seniors. "If you master the art of listening to your mind and heart while trusting your instincts, you will greet the unexpected with wonder not fear. Look beyond the comfortable choices, be a little daring and trust in yourself."
Mr. Finello was introduced by a former Washington School student, Shayne Larkin, a leading member of the Class of 2011 who is headed to the University of Delaware.
"He was precisely the man you'd want to have governing a large body of small children," Ms. Larkin told the commencement crowd. Standing at the entrance of Washington each morning, he had a warm smile and a calm demeanor that could dissolve the anxiety of any seven, eight or nine year old. Mr. Finello spent little time in the shadows, as his soothing aura and assuredness eased chaos in the lunchroom and on the playground, and rallied youngsters at various functions."
Minutes before the commencement exercise began Ms. Larkin and Mr. Finello met in the high school library, chatted briefly and posed for a few photos. The teenager, a free-spirit if there ever was one, shared a few laughs with Huntington's school leader.
"In some ways the world you are going into, while far more prosperous is far more complex and complicated, than the one I faced in 1968," Mr. Finello told the Class of 2011. "You have proven through your many accomplishments that you have acquired the skills and knowledge to succeed. So engage your mind, your instincts and your heart in every decision you make. Engage your whole self and the journey will reveal itself with the passage of time. The lesson I learned when I chose to become a teacher was to love what you do, or don't do it. Don't make a choice because it pleases others or ranks high on someone else's scale of achievement or even because it seems to be simply the logical thing to do at that moment on your path. Make the choice because it engages all of you."
After three years at Washington School, Ms. Larkin went on to attend Huntington Intermediate School, J. Taylor Finley Middle School and Huntington High School, where she joined an elite circle of top students, but Mr. Finello kept popping into her life.
"Eventually I left Washington, but Mr. Finello remained a prominent administrative figure in my life," Ms. Larkin said. "As a member of the marching band, I've spotted Mr. Finello at each parade the Blue Devils have marched in, proudly watching and applauding with the same enthusiasm I fondly remember from my days at Washington."
Before he walked away from the microphone, Mr. Finello had some advice for the seniors on the eve of starting a new chapter in their lives, telling them to "remember that throughout this journey, the only limits that really matter are the ones you put on yourself. Know yourself, trust yourself, and don't blink. If you do these things, when you look back or maybe when you look down from this podium as I am right now, you will know that this journey has led to a rewarding and fulfilling life."