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SEA ISLE CITY – According to Mayor Leonard Desiderio, Sea Isle City’s graduates deserved better than to have their special day fall into the category of yet another cancellation of a milestone moment because of COVID precautions, so he and city administration organized what turned out to be an event to remember by Sea Isle City’s students, parents, and residents.
With sirens blaring, the municipality’s fire engines, ambulance, and police vehicles led the way throughout the municipality June 17 to the homes of graduates from all manner of educational institutions. A banner decorated the fire engine, congratulating graduates.
Schools represented included Ocean City High School, Bishop McHugh, middle schools from the area, as well as Pennsylvania, where a Sea Isle City property owner has a primary residence, several universities, including Stockton, James Madison, and St. Joseph’s, and a few kindergarten graduates, whose academic rite-of-passage ceremonies were also canceled.
For Easter, Sea Isle City mobilized a visit from the Easter bunny, who perched on the top of a fire engine that formed part of a parade that wended its way through the streets. Following on that success, the graduation parade stopped at each home that had pre-registered, numbering nearly 40 homes, where the mayor, following COVID precaution principles, quickly handed each student a souvenir bag of Sea Isle City memorabilia, a coupon for a “Save the Turtles” t-shirt from the Environmental Commission, and a commemorative certificate signed by Desiderio.
Among the first to be congratulated by the convoy, led by Desiderio in a police patrol vehicle, was Aidan Levin, who lives on Landis Avenue, and recently graduated from Shawnee High School, in Burlington County. Levin’s family bought their Sea Isle City home recently, so the parade was an added highlight of having a home at the shore. “I’m going to Syracuse University in early August,” said Levin, “to study sports management. I’m really excited because we’ll still be living on campus and having actual classes held physically. This parade makes my high school graduation complete and I’m really happy the town organized it.”
According to Katherine Custer, director of community services for Sea Isle City, “We have received nothing but great feedback about this initiative. Parents, relatives, friends of the grads, and the students, themselves are really appreciative that we were able to put together something like this memorable parade to make their special day truly one never to be forgotten.”
To contact Camille Sailer, email csailer@cmcherald.com.
