On the kind of day everybody could have used a cold drink, hunger was instead the theme as the class of 2012 said goodbye to Framingham State University yesterday.
Commencement speaker Catherine D’Amato, president and CEO of the Greater Boston Food Bank, told the 702 undergraduates shielded from the sun beneath a tent set up on the Framingham Town Green their experience at the school has afforded them “an incredible opportunity” to make a difference in the fight against hunger. Honorary degree recipient Carolyn Mugar, executive director of Farm Aid, said they “have the skills to bring about a change that could transform out food system.”
This year’s graduation was the first one at Framingham State to have an overall theme. Students said the focus on food and nutrition, and especially the emphasis on giving back to the community, was an appropriate send-off for a class that leaves a legacy of volunteering its time.
“I was really happy we did something that recognized that,” said Kerrin Duffy, whose post-graduation plans include doing volunteer work with the service organization City Year Boston. “That’s been a theme for us.”
From stocking shelves at local food pantries to working with orphans in India, the class of 2012 has had “a relentless passion for serving our community,” Senior Class President Sarah Howe said. “Our graduating class has gone above and beyond to extend a helping hand.”
This year’s graduates have experienced ups and downs along the way; they came together this past year especially after the death of sophomore Ashley Donahue, who was killed in a car accident last December, Howe said.
“(It) strengthened our community, as we celebrated her life and mourned,” she said.
University President Timothy Flanagan told students to take pride in what they accomplished over the past four years, noting the 2012 class’s 34 summa cum laude, 64 magna cum laude, and 155 cum laude graduates. D’Amato urged them not to let those abilities go to waste with so many in need in the world.
“Give your time, give your money, give your talent,” she said. “No gift is too small.”
Coming from a family of Italian immigrants, D’Amato said her parents “valued human dignity,” often inviting beggars outside their restaurant in for a bowl of soup and slice of pie.
“It solidified my belief that everyone has a role in ending hunger in the community,” she said.
Today, D’Amato is in charge of an organization that feeds hundreds of thousands of New Englanders every year.
Mugar, who has led the musician-founded Farm Aid since 1985, said yesterday’s graduates also have a role to play in shaping the system of food production by helping to preserve family farms.
“Food is too important to be left to a few corporate giants,” she said. “We all have a role to play in the food movement. As (Farm Aid co-founder) Willie (Nelson) says, ‘We all eat.’”
As the new graduates poured out onto the town green at the ceremony’s conclusion, several said they were ready to move on.
“It’s exciting,” said Gonzalo Corts, who plans to pursue a career as a dietician. “But kind of scary, too.”
“It’s overwhelming and exciting at the same time,” said Allison Whittaker, who added her immediate plans are to “relax a little.”
“This year has been so crazy.”
(Scott O’Connell can be reached at 508-626-4449 or soconnell@wickedlocal.com.)