2020 Fighting Zebras meet maybe one last time

Not pandemic, nor quarantine nor rain will keep Lincoln High School's Class of 2020 from celebrating their senior year, as nearly 100 Fighting Zebras braved the elements Sunday to get one last group photo together. Lincoln High School parents arranged Sunday's informal photo day at the end of Aviation Boulevard so their seniors had a chance to see each other all together for possibly the last time this school year. To bring the industrial area to life, the broken and black asphalt of the road was decorated with chalk art reading "Congratulations Class of 2020, # SeniorStrong" by parents and community members. The photo was set to take place at 9 a.m. Sunday, and 10 minutes to go, it looked unlikely as the rain kept coming and going. Soon, however, a stream of blue and gold made its way down the rainwashed sidewalks and the court filled with smiling, hugging and joyful seniors and parents who had not seen one another as a class in two months. Social distancing did not seem like it was a concern for the seniors or their parents and no one wore masks either. "It just shows how much we are going to miss graduation and how much we are going to miss each other and how tight we are as a class," senior Ty Boatman said about how the photo day represents the Lincoln High School community. The majority of the seniors were excited to see all of their friends and classmates again. "I think it is cool because we get to see everyone we went to school with and we didn't get that chance or opportunity to get pictures with all of them," senior Jackson Sembley said. It was a bittersweet moment for some as many students will leave for college, the military or for other reasons during the summer. "It feels like the closest thing to a graduation that we are going to get because this is the only time we are ever going to be together like this," senior Baylee Jenkinds said. "So it is really bittersweet but it is better than nothing." For parents such as Lisa Hatten, whose son, Zachery Hatten, graduates this year, putting this together for their seniors is what Lincoln is all about. "I think regardless of rain or any type of weather that Mother Nature brings, we are a community and we have a strong sense of community," Hatten said. "It was so important because their graduation was canceled, it is virtual and we wanted a last hurrah that wasn't virtual." Hatten hopes that the photo day is a reminder to the seniors of what this community is capable of when they all come together. "I hope that they take away a sense of pride and know that once a Zebra, always a Zebra," Hatten said. "I don't want them to just remember the toilet paper and all of that fun stuff; I want them to remember these times together."