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The members of Demopolis High School’s Class of 2019 will officially end their high school careers as they receive diplomas during a graduation ceremony Friday night at Tiger Stadium.

Leading this year’s class is Elly Brown as valedictorian and Parker Hallmark is salutatorian.

Brown is the daughter of Gary and Marty Brown. She plans to attend Auburn University where she will pursue a degree in chemical engineering.

“Although I’m not exactly sure what I want my future to consist of, I aspire to make a difference wherever I am, whatever I’m doing. Whether that difference be little or small, I simply hope that I can help make a community or environment better,” Brown said.

Her message to future high school students is to remain confident in spite of ever-present changes.

“My advice to future graduates of DHS is to be confident. This time in our life is marked by change, and change can be intimidating. Don’t let the transition scare you. Instead, make the most of the changes by learning and growing to become a better person,” she said.

Salutatorian Parker Hallmark is the son of Luke and Sarah Chandler Hallmark. He will attend Vanderbilt University and pursue a pre-med degree.

“I hope to attend medical school and ultimately become an orthopedic surgeon,” Hallmark said.

He said hard work is the key to success.

“Always work hard. As Kevin Durant said, ‘Hard work beats talent when talent doesn’t work hard.’ Value each day you have because it really does fly right by your eyes,” he said.

This year’s Demopolis High School graduating class consists of 167 members. Commencement  begins at 6 p.m.

(This article originally appeared in the Wednesday, May 22 issue of the Demopolis Times.)