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Viking Association
Mission Statement:
To create, promote, and sustain a "Viking-connected" community of alumni and friends, this Association will foster a lasting and mutually beneficial relationship among alumni, friends, North Salem High School (NSHS), its students and staff, and the community to support the mission, goals, and traditions of NSHS.
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Greetings!
Featured in this issue:
- Graduation 2016
- Viking Association Scholarships
- Vikings in History
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Graduation 2016
  
A welcome to our new Viking Alumni Association members as they graduated from North High on June 10! The Commencement ceremonies were held on the North High football field for the third year as 388 Vikings received their diplomas. Olga Melendez Valdez, soon to be a Willamette Bearcat, sang "Climb Every Mountain" and Senior Class Speakers Marisol Sagrero and Janene Le reminisced about the seniors' four years as Vikings and encouraged the graduates in their future endeavors. Special presentations were made to Valedictorians Jocelyn Garcia Garcia,
Kate Hultberg, Melissa Mitchell, Jeffrey Ottenad, Estefania Ramos Torres, and Jimmy Van, as well as Salutatorian Francely Cuevas.
To the new Viking Association members, congratulations and best
wishes as you move into the next phase of your lives. Please let us know if you have changes of address or emails so we can keep in touch with you.
  
Alumni Association Scholarships
Once again the North Salem Viking Alumni and Friends Association presented scholarships to graduating seniors. The Edith Green Scholarship is named for a 1927 graduate who became a teacher, a broadcaster, an educational leader, and finally a Representative in Congress. She was the main sponsor of Title IX, granting equality in education to women. This year's winner of the $1000 award is
Daisy Sierra. Daisy had a 3.51 GPA, was a 4-year cross country and track athlete, attaining all-league honors in cross country and being elected a team captain. She has been a leader in Future business Leaders of America and JROTC. She will continue her business studies at the University of Oregon.
The Mark O. Hatfield Scholarship is named for the 1941 graduate who served as a Willamette U. law professor, a State Representative, Oregon's Secretary of State and Governor, before being elected to the U. S. Senate. Usually a $2000 award, this year there was a tie among the selection committee, leading to awarding $1000 each to two candidates:
Brenda Plata sported a 3.6 GPA and hopes to become a bilingual teacher. She was involved with MaPs Credit Union, school leadership, AVID, the teacher cadet program, yearbook, and Mecha. She will pursue her educational dream at Western Oregon University.
Uriel Mejia Raja, our second recipient, had a 3.91 GPA and has  been active in marching band color guard, chamber orchestra, varsity tennis, the Teen Advisory Board for My Future My Choice, theater, Winter Guard, and the Chamber of Commerce Leadership Program. He will be attending Willamette University next fall.
Congratulations to these remarkable Vikings!
State Champion Musicians
Last month's newsletter omitted one outstanding performance by a musical group. The saxophone quartet of Roberto Ramirez, Nathan Compton, Erik Gonzalez, and Jose Palafox won the State Championship for band ensembles, performing "Turbo Scramjet" for Saxophone Quartet, composed by William Pitts. They are fantastic representatives of North High!
Vikings in History - Carrie Halsell (Ward), Class of 1921 Given the time gap since her graduation almost a century ago, we don't have much information about this brave lady from a brave family. She was the first African-American to graduate from Salem High School and the first African-American to graduate from Oregon Agricultural College, now Oregon State University.
At Salem High she was involved in a number of activities including Girls' Club, Glee Club, Girls' Reserve, and Commercial Club, and she was on the Honor Roll for 4 years.
That she was able to do well in high school and college during a time when the Ku Klux Klan was active in the Willamette Valley is a testament to her and her family's fortitude and courage.
Her older brother preceded her at Salem High, but did not graduate from the school. Her mother was an accompanist for school musicals. We know very little about her time at OAC, but recently her memory was honored by the naming of a new dormitory on the Oregon State University campus.
After marriage, she moved to the East Coast and pursued a storied academic career as a professor of education after attaining an advanced degree.
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If you have not already done so, please send to Steve Chambers your full contact information (name, maiden name where applicable, street address, phone number, and graduating class or if your are a friend) as this will help us keep in contact should your e-mail address change.
Please forward this newsletter to other Vikings so they can also stay in touch with the school.
steverc@comcast.net |
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