Brookfield High School Valedictorian Dustin Moffett presented the following address at May 26, 2019, commencement:

“Good Afternoon, families, friends, teachers, coaches, administrators, and the sole purpose for our gathering, the Class of 2019. Before I get too far into my speech, I would like to take a moment to personally thank all of my teachers from kindergarten to now, as well as my family for encouraging and supporting me the past 12 years. If it wasn’t for them, I wouldn’t be standing in front of you all today. I followed in my Grandpa Moffett’s footsteps as he graduated salutatorian of his class.
“I give the credit for my academics to mainly my mom and my brother. Sorry dad. My mom made me call her after school each day. Every time, she would ask me the same two questions and a statement and it went as follows: “Hi buddy, how was your day?” My response was typically “Good.” The very next question was “Do you have any homework?” I almost always had math homework so normally the answer was “yes.” Her next statement was “Get it done! It better be done when I get home, and if it’s not, you’ll be in trouble.” She always threatened to ground me if I didn’t do it, so of course, I always did it. In my elementary days, she would have taken my Nintendo DS, which I thoroughly enjoyed playing Mario Kart on. In my middle school days, she would have taken my iPod, which I played Hill Climb on. In my high school days, it was my phone and keys, but by then I knew it had to be done so she never had to push me. She was the one that ensured I did my homework and received good grades in hopes that I would one day obtain scholarships. Her big thing was “why pay for something when it can be free?” The second person I give credit to is Mitch. He’s a very competitive individual, but what brother isn’t? He was the older brother that would always compare our report cards when they came in the mail. He’d have a 97 in geometry and I’d have a 99 in pre-algebra. I would laugh because I beat him. He’d get frustrated and say “Yeah, but you’re in seventh grade math, not 10th grade math, and 10th grade math is a lot harder. Plus my math is with Mr. Klein who is the more difficult teacher.” So when I got to 10th grade with Mr. Klein, I made sure that I got better than a 97 because I had to show my brother I was better. Between Mitch and my mom, my homework was completed every night and I had higher A’s than my brother.
“I do want to give some credit to my dad. He has given me his love for golf. As a kid, he would cut off golf clubs because, believe it or not, I was small at one time. The three guys in the house would play a game in the back yard, who could get closer to the bucket. They’d give me three shots since I was the smallest and the worst player. My brother would get two shots since he was older. My dad, being the best, would only need one. After receiving a few lessons and being a part of our successful golf team, I am now the one receiving one shot. Mr brother still gets two but now my dad is the one that gets three.
“Our class song, “Hall of Fame,” by The Script, shares a direct correlation to my goals for all of you. “You can be the greatest/ You can be the best/ and you can beat the world,” but life is only what you make it to be. It will be great, if you make it great. It can be terrible, if you make it terrible. Live it up, but always remember that there will be people watching, whether you want them to or not. Make smart decisions. Today’s choice affects tomorrow’s result. The next song lyric is so important to me. “You can talk to God/ Go banging on his door.” I can tell you as a believer that God is willing to listen. Many stressful nights, I have talked to Him in lengthy prayers. Living my life so far, I know I am able to depend on Him and count on Him being there when I need Him most. So far, there have been two major events that have taken place that have tested my faith. The first was when my father lost his job at Delphi. He tells me that he enjoyed working there and made a very good salary. When the company moved their jobs to Mexico, he was out of work. I did not know where our next paycheck was coming from. I did not know how we would meet our financial needs. This is when I would talk to God. He knew everything. I prayed my dad would be happy and find a very good job. I prayed He would supply us with our needs. I am proud to say that my dad now has a steady job and seems to be happy where he’s at. God always made sure we had money. The next experience was six years ago, my mom was diagnosed with breast cancer. The day I found out, I was so upset. I was mad at God on why he would let this happen. Then He showed me that since I enjoyed taking care of my mom and watching her journey, He wanted me to be a doctor. After many daily prayers, God did listen. My mom is now a cancer survivor and helps others dealing with similar uphill battles in life. My hope for all of you is to one day stand in your own hall of fame. Setting goals are important when striving for success. Set goals, both small and large. But the most important part of a goal is time. Set a time frame to achieve that goal. The harder you work towards something, the greater the reward is when you get there. Make your name well known to the world, but in a positive way. Make a legacy and ask yourself, “How do I want others to remember me?” Mr. Wright told the marching band one time that we are like farmers. We plant seeds into other people’s lives, leaving our legacy behind. The next sentence he said changed my life forever. He said, “Sometimes a little rain in our lives are helping us grow roots in the ground, helping us have a stronger foundation.” We have bad days and rain in our lives, but we must remember to persevere through these struggles because it is helping us become stronger individuals. Love everyone for their differences because our differences are the key that make humanity great. Our different personalities and ways we perceive situations makes us stronger. We are able to do more together than one person is able to accomplish by themself. Stay humble, stay positive, and be kind. Kindness is lacking in our violent world and we need people to not only remain optimistic and hopeful, but to treat one another with respect. May all your dreams come true and may each and every one of you be successful, healthy, and prosperous! Thank you for listening to my story today. May God bless all of you and the Class of 2019!”