It was like any other school day. The bell rings, hallways fill, lockers slam, and a rush to first block. In class, you continue to hear the term “COVID-19,” which had been talked about all week around school.

You’re a senior and the only thing you have on your mind that day is tomorrow’s much-anticipated Senior Prom. Lunch comes, and it’s a rush to the last two blocks of the day. The excitement increases — nail biting at the senior dismissal bell.

At 2:44 p.m. that day you find out the prom has been postponed indefinitely. At 2:45 the bell rings, and you have been dismissed from school.

No horns honking or smiles on senior faces — simply shock, anger and sadness while leaving campus.

Little did we know that day, Mar. 12, 2020, was our last of senior year on Trinity’s campus. 

We seniors could not wait to spend our final weeks at Trinity. But without expecting it, an unimaginable reality came upon us. Our senior year on campus was cut short when the novel coronavirus came.

We are the Class of 2020 — known as a class with vision, but not one of us saw this coming. No prom. No senior field day. No last day. No graduation.  To many, we became known as the class who didn’t get to finish what they started.

These are crazy times we are living in. Never did any of us expect this outcome. In the 67-year history of this great school, my class became the first to lose the last two and a half months of the year, and all our senior festivities went virtual. We may become the first class to have a graduation in July.

All of this seems crushing and seems like the end of the world. And while this leaves us to process something unimaginable, something that perfect vision just couldn’t see, it reminds us that it’s okay for something to not go our way. It reminds us that life can be unfair — that there’s always bumps in the road.

And it’s okay to be hurt. But it’s not okay to let that define us. We are much more than misfortune.

The Class of 2020 will not be defined by face masks and quarantine.

We have remained strong and proud that the resilience in the Class of 2020 has never been greater. We have come together virtually to make our voices heard and send our thanks to the Trinity faculty and staff.

We have risen to the challenge and overcome it by appreciating what we have received these last four years — a memorable, rewarding and life-changing high school experience.

Through Zoom, Teams, and any other virtual call, we have talked to the ones we hold dear. We’ve had drive-through celebrations, birthdays, parades and yard signs — and have used the power of social media and technology to our advantage to make up for the banned in-person interactions.

While we are the class that got quarantined, we still have graduated and taken the time to reflect and appreciate all the hard work, bonds, failures and successes we have had these last four years.

We continued the Trinity mission of forming men of faith and men of character.

During this struggle, we must continue to rise. Rise above the adversity. Just simply rise.

We’re going to come back stronger.

The Class of 2020 should not be known as the class that had everything taken away. We should be known as the class that defeated all odds and rose above, the class with the vision to see how to rise.

We are Brothers for Life. And the Class of 2020 will never be forgotten.

Trinity Forever.

Gallery • 12 Photos

Jordan Goodwin '20