School and community officials honor Glen Cove High School Class of 2020 through car parade

The Glen Cove High School Class of 2020 was celebrated by City of Glen Cove leaders, Glen Cove City School District faculty and staff as well as onlookers at a car parade on June 18.

Students gathered in their cars at noon at the Eugene J. Gribbin Elementary School, with the procession starting 30 minutes later, upon the arrival of vehicles from the Glen Cove Police Department, Glen Cove Volunteer Fire Department and EMS.

Along the parade route, which led to the high school, people gathered to watch the graduates go by as they waved and cheered. And once the graduates arrived at Glen Cove High School, the GCVFD Ladder Trucks offered a grand welcoming, displaying the American Flag.

There was no shortage of onlookers to cheer and congratulate the graduates as they made their way through the high school campus.

The students would eventually arrive at the “pit-stop” where Glen Cove City School District Superintendent Dr. Maria Rianna; Glen Cove High School Principal Antonio Santana; Allen Hudson III and Katie Prudente, assistant principals; City of Glen Cove Mayor Tim Tenke and other school and city officials were stationed.

“I was honored to be a part of the Glen Cove High School parade,” Tenke said. “It was very special to see all of the graduating seniors coming up individually to take their pictures and I wish them the best of luck with their future endeavors. It was a very nice way to recognize their accomplishments for senior year.”

Each student was able to sign a banner that will be displayed at the high school for years to come, take a photo with city and school officials and receive their yearbooks.

“We will always have that banner as a legacy to our school district,” Rianna said. “[The Class of 2020] is resilient. They are strong, they are smart and they have such generous hearts. They’ve been a wonderful class.”

“I’ve seen them have to adjust to a very different world in a very short period of time and I’m so proud of how they’ve made that adjustment and so many of them have really given time to the community to support younger children or the Glen Cove High School Pantry or just putting efforts into the community making masks,” Rianna added. “If the future is in their hands, I’m looking forward to it.”

The graduating class will get their “Pomp and Circumstance” on June 26, where there will be five separate graduation ceremonies in compliance with Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s guidelines on restricted attendance at in-person graduation ceremonies.

Tentatively, senior prom is scheduled for July 30.

“I think the Class of 2020 is resilient,” Santana said. “I think they’re strong. They give me hope for the future.”