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for breaking news visit www.qns.com MAY 26, 2016 • buzz • The QUENS CourieR 79 Graduation: A bittersweet celebration Victoria’s Secrets The thrilled family after graduation Dynamic $1500 off Lumineers $500 off Invisalign DENTAL WORK CALL FOR FREE CONSULTATION THE INVISIBLE WAY TO SOME EXCLUSIONS APPLY STRAIGHTEN TEETH Third Generation Dentist 175-15 Jamaica avenue, Jamaica 718-297-4100 • 718-297-4106 Storms threatened, and weather reports were for rain and clouds but my grandson Sam’s graduation turned slowly but surely into a beautiful day on many levels and by day’s end the sun shone on us. Six feet tall (and with the physique of the rugby player he was), Sam, now 21, graduated from Tufts University with a degree from the Computer Science division of the School of Engineering, and was I proud! No geek is he or his friends, but they are brain geeks. It’s the season of graduations, and my grandchildren range from kindergarten graduation to Sam’s college graduation. Each one brings its special joy. There’s a majesty to college graduations and bittersweet moments, too. It’s so hard to say goodbye as new days dawn. My memories of my daughter Samantha’s graduation from Columbia University in 2001 are still fresh today.  The school has 30,000 students and about 5,000 faculty members. I remember distinctly the sight of hundreds of faculty marching down the center aisle in their colorful  satin and velvet robes. The dean of each school was carrying the department’s flag as the powerful processional music filled the mall where all the students were gathered for the university graduation. I felt like I was at a medieval festival. I looked forward to the Tufts graduation. In contrast, Sam’s school has 10,000 students and about 1,100 faculty who were dressed in their regal robes, and I learned that the color of the robe is based on the colors of the school where they got their degree. A powerful part of the university’s graduation ceremony was the presentation of honorary doctorate degrees to extraordinary people, leading with Queens-born Hank Azaria, best known for his brilliant work on “The Simpsons.” He delivered the commencement address to the 2,500 spellbound graduates. Using the dialects of his characters, Azaria, who had graduated in 1987 from Tufts after a break of two years, admitted he wasn’t a superb student. In fact, he told the audience as they laughed that the speech he was giving was the first writing assignment he had done on time! He did send home, through his humor, a powerful message: “Embrace the person you are and follow your instincts.” The thousands of graduates and guests gave him their thunderous applause! Another celebrity, my favorite from “Sesame Street,” Sonia Manzano, received an honorary Doctor of Fine Arts degree. She is an award-winning actress and writer who is best known for playing Maria on “Sesame Street” from 1971 to 2015 and has won a remarkable 15 Emmys for her writing of the groundbreaking TV series. She has also become a powerful role model, coming out of an impoverished Puerto Rican family and climbing to the greatest heights in the entertainment industry. I was also impressed with the honorary Doctor of Public Service degree given to Martin Granoff. In over 50 years, he built his wealth in the American textile industry and with his wife Perry endowed and changed the landscape of Tufts arts and cultural instructions. It began when his son, who graduated Tufts in 1991, told his dad that there was no Hillel Center on campus. So they created one! That began years of seeing a need and stepping in to make it happen. The couple’s generosity extended to their daughter’s school, Brown University. It was the recipient of the Perry and Martin Granoff Center for the Creative Arts. And Israel saw their generosity when they established a center for the development of genetic therapies for cancer patients there. Remarkable people making a difference across the globe! For me, the most powerful part of the 160th commencement at Tufts was my grandson Sam’s brilliant smile and warmth that lit up the world! As he leaves for Seattle, Washington, and begins his career at Microsoft, may he follow his dreams and may his life continue to be filled with love! Victoria SCHNEPS-YUNIS vschneps@gmail.com tweet me @vschneps With many oohs and ahs, my grandkids Jonah and Addy with their friend Asa loved and were entranced with every act at the intimate one-ring Big Apple Circus. They also coveted their cotton candy and popcorn treats almost as much as they loved the clowns, the dog acts, the jugglers and the leaping acrobats flying through the air. What fun to watch their thrilled faces! Sam and girlfriend Kiera, who also graduated Big Apple Circus Comes to Town Sam Broner at his School of Engineering graduation receiving his B.S. in Computer Science


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