Salutatorian, Annie Hughes Delivers Remarks to the Class of 2025

June 27, 2025

Annie Hughes is the Class of 2025 Salutatorian. In the fall of 2025, Annie will attend the University of Virginia. Annie's. inspiring remarks to the Class of 2025 follow below. 

Good afternoon Mr. Sfreddo,  Mr. Baber, Mrs. McMahon, Mrs. Saperstein, faculty, family, friends, and most importantly, the Class of 2025,

I am honored to be able to stand in front of all you today, a day that our grade has worked so tirelessly to get to. A couple weeks ago, on an early Monday morning, my classmates and I sat down in the Core Center for our final Senior Seminar Forum, a time where we gather as a whole grade to discuss the theological, ethical, and philosophical themes of our Seminar class. During this forum, we had the privilege of speaking with former Sacred Heart Greenwich Head of School, Sister Joan Magnetti. Among her light hearted humor and thoughtful advice, Sister Magnetti shared a quote with us that, to me, encapsulates what it means to be a member of the Class of 2025. Saint Madeleine Sophie Barat once said, “At the end of your life the final exam on your death bed, is ‘How much did you love.’” Truly, the Class of 2025 is defined by love. Our love for our teachers. Our love for this beautiful campus. Our love for tradition. And most importantly, our love for each other. 

As I grew older, going from Lower School to Middle School and then Middle School to Upper School, I began to realize the love of my classmates was not simply defined by words, but rather defined by action. The 2025 love is our entire grade requesting to sing a song for the senior class at Ring Day. The 2025 love is performing a 15 minute Hamilton performance for the entire Upper School on Halloween. The 2025 love is Ella Callagy performing the harmonica in the Core Center to lift everyone’s spirits during a long fall of school work and college applications. I guess you could say we’re a pretty musical class! 

Sacred Heart’s ability to foster community has created such a special environment where girls have the courage and confidence to act with passion, fearlessness, poise, and, of course, love. The structure and foundation that Sacred Heart has laid for us has shaped our values, deepened our relationships, and instilled in us a lasting sense of purpose. Through our time here we’ve learned what it means to lead with both integrity and compassion. And this was not a solitary journey. Our teachers have consistently encouraged us to speak up because what we have to say is valuable, lift each other up because you cannot go far alone, and embrace challenges because you cannot fail unless you give up. Our faculty have led by example with courage and prepared us for the next chapter of our lives when we leave the safety of 1177 King Street. We leave here not just with a little more Calculus or World History knowledge under our belts but with a strong sense of who we are and the confidence to share that with the world. 

Our grade has often been called a “special” class. Whether that was a compliment or not, I’m not so sure! But I believe that our uniqueness is what makes us so powerful. Whether we were all dressing up in costume for Spirit Week or running to the corner of the gym during Kairos after Miss Pan told us to go to bed to spend more time with each other, no one could stop us. These seemingly insignificant moments are what define our grade and brought us together. We always cheered so loud for each other because our victories felt shared and our love was genuine. Although we are often categorized by one grade, each one of us is unique. We have artists, athletes, actors, writers, leaders, singers, dancers, among so much more, and I truly believe we have the tools to shape the future in such meaningful ways. 

Seniors, you are all so special, so go out into the world and show everyone just that. Show them your ability to make people laugh, your empathetic nature, your kind and effective leadership, your tendency to act with love. In the face of challenge and hardship, your love and compassion will carry you so far, so never forget what our relationships here have taught us: the support of our peers and mentors is what matters. Support others and allow yourself to be supported. Meaningful relationships foster growth and give us the courage to become the best versions of ourselves. Without the love of our grade we would never have made it this far. 

Just like I began this speech, I would like to leave you with another quote. Winnie the Pooh once said, “How lucky am I to have something that makes saying goodbye so hard.” The type of love I have learned from the Class of 2025 is something that I am deeply grateful for and will cherish forever. I came to Sacred Heart in fourth grade with one sister and I couldn’t be more grateful to be leaving with 76. While we are all going our separate ways next year, our hearts will be forever connected and I’m confident when I say this isn't a “goodbye” but rather a “see you later.” Thank you so much and congratulations Class of 2025!!