Sometimes we don’t realize how much value a place holds until it isn’t there anymore.

Sharon High School’s Class of 2025, graduating this spring, is the last class to have ever learned in the old, now-demolished school building. The Class of 2025’s freshman year was also special because they were adjusting to the differences between middle school and high school. Members of the class reflected on their favorite memories and events from the establishment’s final year. Many students were eager to reminisce on the year and recall their favorite moments.

Senior class president Rohith Raghavan reflected on the old building’s legacy: “I think it’s close to 70 years of SHS classes that experienced, learned, grew, and made friends in that high school. That’s 70 years of growth in building the culture and community that we know at SHS.”

The class president further observed that the graduation of the senior class will mark the end of an era that began in the old building. However, he believes that the senior class has brought the school’s culture to the current building. “We’re the ones that played the role in bridging not just the history of Sharon High,” he said, “but also the future.” 

For Soham Kulkarni, another Sharon High School senior, the old school’s culture means something very different. “The chaos is very nostalgic to me,” Kulkarni said. “When I think of my high school experience, I will always remember the crowded, narrow hallways.”

Senior Maxwell Sheng explained that his nostalgia centers on a Covid-19 relic: “I loved the mask breaks that we took during French class freshman year. It was so nice to spend time in the courtyard talking with my friends and playing Frisbee. I miss the fresh air and time outside during class to socialize and enjoy the weather.” (Mask breaks were sections of class time that were set aside for students to take off their masks outside.)

For many seniors, the old building’s architecture played an integral role in their memories of the school. For example, senior Ruchira Boddula described the “very memorable” moment when students had to leave early because one of the bathroom’s pipes broke. That day, she got to visit all her graduating friends on the field hockey team during dismissal.

Similarly, senior Sammy O’Reilly reminisced about walking through the hallways during mask breaks and seeing Among Us characters graffitied on the walls. “Because we were freshmen, we found it hilarious,” O’Reilly said. “This happened right near the end of the year, just weeks before the school was going to be knocked down, so it was kind of like a farewell to the old building.”

For senior Rachel Zaretsky, the school’s library played a special part in her freshman experience: “It was its own secluded space. I had my journalism class up there, and that felt very professional.” Zaretsky added that the library provided a “very social and fun” atmosphere since classes with absent teachers would learn in there, so she would see “a ton of [her] friends.”

The old building and its memories have meant a lot to the class of 2025. However, for the current seniors, who have brought the culture with them to the new building, the memories will stick with them long after graduation.