Thanks to the generous support of members of the Abington Supervisors and Administrators Association (ASAA), students of Abington Senior High School’s Class of 2020 received a special surprise on Tuesday, May 12 at noon, when a congratulatory banner flew over the Abington Senior High School campus and each of the District’s seven elementary schools to lift the spirits of the graduating Ghosts. Typically around this time of year, the graduating class is gearing up for the annual Grad Walk tradition, a rite of passage in which the seniors parade through the halls of their old elementary schools for one last journey as Abington School District students. There, donned in their caps and gowns, they are cheered on by old teachers and familiar faces, as well as the adoring looks of younger students who idolize the “big kids.” Since the Grad Walk could not take place this year due to the extended school closure as a result of the Coronavirus pandemic, a banner plane flew well-wishes for graduates over all of Abington School District’s campuses (roughly 10+ minutes each) to symbolize the solidarity of our school community and the journey all of the students took to get to where they are today. This flight path also allowed students and community members all across the District to catch a glimpse of the surprise.
Community members on the ground who saw the plane were encouraged to snap a photo and share their well-wishes for the Abington Senior High School Class of 2020 using the hashtags #ASHS2020 and #ASDTogether. In addition, at noon, and/or when they saw the plane, they were told to cheer, make some noise and/or bang pots and pans to celebrate our seniors, just as they would be celebrated during the Grad Walk.
The plane read: “Congrats Abington Class of 2020! #ASHS2020”
Since the afternoon of Friday, May 8, students had received bread-crumbed hints of the surprise, with details fully being revealed to the Class of 2020 via email the day prior to the flyover.