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3 teens who deserve our praise

Please allow me to tell you the story of three remarkable teens, who not only caught my eye but the eye of many here in the region this last week.

These young adults made it abundantly clear through their actions that they deserved to be recognized. Consider this my tribute to then.

On Thursday, I attended the Marion High School graduation and heard a story about a senior who went above and beyond the call of duty to earn his diploma.

Having dropped out of school for a few months to work a full-time job at Continental Tire in Mount Vernon, Jerrod Stroud was at one of life's crossroads.

Should he go back to school and graduate with his class, or let it slide and maybe later earn a GED?

Thankfully, he chose the former.

But in order to do so, he had to either quit his job or try to manage both. He chose to manage both.

Stroud, with much encouragement from his family and school staff, earned that diploma through sheer hard work and determination.

How many teens would have the drive to work a full midnight shift, drive from Mount Vernon to Marion High School, and then spend an entire school day before crashing for a few hours to start the process all over again?

Let me tell you. Not very many.

It's a tribute to him that he managed both and fared rather well in the classroom, to boot. Kudos to all who encouraged this young man along the way.

On Friday, I learned about another young man from Marion - a senior track athlete named Stuart Adkinson.

It was announced that Adkinson had accepted an offer to compete in track and field at Indiana Tech next school year. That's the same college, where one of his good friends and former teammate, Aaron Porter, competed in track before cut down tragically late last year in a car accident.

Adkinson had some obstacles to overcome before this track scholarship was possible. Last fall during football season, he tore the ACL joint in his knee and missed virtually all of the season. He has since recovered and qualified for the state meet (a second time) this weekend in both the 110 high hurdles and 300-meter intermediate hurdles - two rather demanding events for an athlete battling back from a knee injury.

A young man with that kind of grit and tenacity is bound for greatness.

Finally, on Saturday, I learned of this young woman - another senior - from Du Quoin, who gave up her chance to win an individual event at the state track meet to instead help her team win a relay event.

The strategy worked as Madison Davis ran the lead leg of the 4x400 relay, helping the Indians place first in the event and thus captured the team title at the state meet. It was the first state championship in girls athletics at DHS.

And not only did Madison surrender her shot at winning a medal in an individual event, but was the only senior to miss her high school graduation that evening.

While it would have been nice if the commencement exercise could have been delayed until later in the evening, Davis had no regrets about her decision.

She said anyone can walk through a service and pick up a diploma. Not anyone can say they were part of a state champion. She believes she made the right choice.

I do, too.

As a side note, Davis was presented with her diploma while at the track meet in Charleston. Won't she have some wonderful stories to tell her children and grandchildren someday.