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A Season to Celebrate Graduates: Elizabeth and Morgan Boyd
Sometimes you love something so much — you don’t want to miss a minute of it.
For twins Elizabeth and Morgan Boyd, they loved everything about Kalamazoo Central, which resulted in perfect attendance records for their high school careers.
Elizabeth earned perfect attendance in eighth grade, and said that as she looked toward her high school years, she thought maybe that was an attainable goal for the next four years.
“It wasn’t just for myself,” she said. “I wanted to show up every day, but the teachers wanted that too. They want to see a student who is dedicated and wants to be in school. I thrive in the classroom. I love school a lot. I love the atmosphere of school. I love being at school every day.” OK, well maybe not every morning. She is human.
“There were days I didn’t want to get out of bed, but I knew I had to. And when I got to school, I was excited to be there.”
Morgan, on the other hand, said she didn’t realize she had perfect attendance until she was presented with the award.
“I was going to school, one, because I’m supposed to be here, and two, it was fun for me because I enjoy learning,” Morgan said. And they admit they were blessed with good genes — meaning they were rarely sick — and lots of support at home and at school.
“We grew up in a home with very hard-working parents who have always had the expectation that we go to school,” Elizabeth said. “And the teachers and the staff want you there and encourage you to be there,”
Morgan said. “They want you to succeed. They want you to build on your book knowledge and your world knowledge and your interactions with them. It’s great.” P
art of their enthusiasm for school also came from finding extracurriculars that they both enjoyed.
For Morgan, that meant being on the stage crew for musicals and school plays, one of the founding members of the disc golf team, and serving in National Honor Society and Model UN.
Elizabeth was in the marching band for four years and in the school orchestra. She also served on the Student Council.
In the fall, the twins face a new adventure: living apart. Morgan will be attending Western Michigan University where she plans to study aviation technical operations. Elizabeth is going to Calvin University, where she plans to study elementary education with a minor in ministry leadership focusing on family and children ministry.
It will be hard for the pair that shares a bedroom at home — but it will be good for them, they said.
“My best friend for eternity isn’t going to be with me,” Elizabeth said. “It’s going to be a challenge but we’ll get through it and work through it together.”