Millbrook Celebrates 95th Commencement

On Sunday, Millbrook School held its 95^th Commencement Exercises, bidding a fond farewell to the Class of 2026. Cold and rainy weather moved class pictures indoors but couldn’t curtail the sense of excitement on campus as VIth formers celebrated their transition from students to alumni. As Head of School Jonathan Downs ’98 reminded everyone, “When it rains, we shine!”

And shine we did. Graduates gathered in the Class of 2018 meeting room bright and early to pick up their flowers, ties, and pendants. Many turned to their faculty mentors one last time for help pinning corsages and tying ties before grabbing umbrellas and walking two-by-two to the Mills Athletic Center for pictures. Meanwhile, family and friends began filing into the tent set up on Flagler Quad, serenaded by a string quartet as they waited for the ceremony to begin.

COMMENCEMENT PHOTO GALLERY

Led by bagpiper William G. Moriarty, the Class of 2026 processed from the Flagler Memorial Chapel to their seats under the tent, and the 95^th Commencement Exercises began. Millbrook welcomed back Reverend Cameron Hardy to offer the invocation, and Steven Romick P’26 delivered the welcome from the board of trustees. He thanked the faculty for dedicating their lives to the students who choose to call Millbrook home during the school year and offered guidance to the Class of 2026. “Give more than you take, and you will find that you will receive more than you give,” he said. “Maintain respect and affection for each other and the common cause. I have every faith that you will carry forth the values and curiosity instilled here at Millbrook.”

This year’s commencement speaker was renowned psychiatrist Dr. Samantha Boardman P’24, ’26. She admonished the graduates to ignore the misleading messages that fill their social media feeds and instead focus on the good that is in the world. “I guarantee that what will make you happiest is not the greatness that you have achieved, but the goodness you've put into the world,” she said. “I have watched this class from the sidelines for four years. And what I can tell you as a psychiatrist, as a mom, and as someone who's been paying attention is that you are a good group of people. Genuinely good. And the world needs what you have to offer. Not just your talent or your ambition, your goodness. It needs that most of all. So, this is it. No more story time with Mr. Downs. It's time to write your own stories. May there be goodness on every page.”

Following Dr. Boardman’s address, Alex Siano ’26 stepped up to the podium. Elected by the VIth formers to speak on their behalf, he spoke passionately about how Millbrook has prepared him and his classmates for the adversity they’ll face in their college and professional lives. “This is a place where failure hurts but doesn't destroy us,” he said. “Millbrook gives us a place to fall, struggle, and learn while still knowing we have the chance to get back up. … We are prepared for the next chapter of our lives. We leave here not just with diplomas, but with the understanding that life will always bring things we can't control. So, smile and nod. Smile and nod at the good and the bad. Smile and nod at those you leave behind here, because our time has come to an end and we are ready for what comes next.”

With the speeches complete, Mr. Downs returned to present the following awards:

 

 

Finally, each member of the Class of 2026 walked across stage to receive their diploma from Mr. Downs while their family and friends applauded. As tradition dictates, the Millbrook Singers performed Rufus Wainwright ’91’s “Millbrook,” before Mr. Downs offered parting words of wisdom. Reverend Hardy closed the ceremony with a benediction, and the graduates followed the bagpipes out of the tent and onto the bricks to exchange handshakes and hugs with the faculty who lovingly and expertly guided them through their time at Millbrook.

The incredible Class of 2026 is stepping confidently into the future, fully prepared to lead in uncertain times. They left Millbrook better than they found it, and they’re sure to do the same wherever their journeys take them from here.

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