MONTEREY — Spread your wings. That was the first line in Jacob Moreland’s valedictorian address during Monterey High School’s Class of 2018 graduation ceremony Saturday at the school gymnasium.

That first line, with the addition of the class motto, “It does not do to dwell on dreams and to forget to live” accurately painted the theme of this year’s graduation.

“This is the moment when you will soar,” Moreland said. “This is not the moment when you will concede. You have more strength than you know. This is where, if you will, if you believe, you’ll show others how far you will go.”

On Saturday, Monterey honored 29 students — including one early graduate, Aislyn Dryg.

Not only did Monterey send off the Class of 2018, but also said farewell to the group who earned the highest total amount of scholarships in school history — earning well more than $300,000 in scholarships.

“You all have my heart,” said principal Dena Hale. “You all have my prayers in the next step in your life.”

While the ceremony involved a lot of goodbyes, it also let graduates reflect on their time at Monterey High School.

In class salutatorian Noah Young’s speech, he explained that graduates do not have to take pages and pages of notes in a certain class or pretend like they know what they are doing in another subject.

Despite saying goodbye to one another and recalling memories, spreading one’s wings and not giving up on your dream the overriding theme of the ceremony.

Young then shared a quote he had read recently, “Go confidently in the direction of your dreams. Live the life you imagine and if anyone tells you that you can’t live the life you imagined, you don’t have to prove them wrong. Just keep working your hardest and knowing that you can achieve it.”