Commencement Ceremony 2024
Commencement Speaker
CDS is pleased to announce Ron Wellman as this year's Commencement speaker. Mr. Wellman served as the Athletic Director at Wake Forest University for 27 years, presiding over a remarkable period in the university's sports history. Mr. Wellman played a significant role in shaping intercollegiate athletics on a regional and national level during his time at Wake Forest. Click here to learn more about Mr. Wellman.
Calvary Day School’s Valedictorian for the class of 2024 is Serena Lillie Wray. Lillie is the daughter of Dr. Walter Wray III and Mrs. Leigh Anne Robinson. Lillie has attended CDS for seven years. She will also be graduating with her Associate’s in Science from Guilford Technical Community College this summer.
During high school, Lillie founded the CDS Girls’ Service Club which connects girls to volunteer opportunities across Winston-Salem. She was also chosen for the Draelos Science Scholars Program where she worked on neuroscience research at Wake Forest School of Medicine. Lillie continues to work on neurobiology of Alcohol Use Disorder research as a lab intern in the Centanni Lab.
At CDS, Lillie was captain of the varsity cross country and varsity cheer teams as well as a member of the varsity track team. Lillie is president of Calvary’s Mu Alpha Theta Chapter, a member of the National Honor Society, the Science National Honor Society, the English National Honor Society, the Rho Kappa National Social Studies Honor Society, and the Spanish National Honor Society. Lillie is also an AP Scholar with distinction and served as a Calvary ambassador. For the class of 2023 graduation ceremony, she was a chief junior marshal.
Lillie attends Calvary Baptist Church, where she is involved in church nursery, and her life verse is John 1:16.
Lillie will be attending the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill this fall where she will study biology and spanish on the pre-medical track. She has also been selected for the UNC Accelerated Research Program.
Calvary Day School’s Salutatorian for the Class of 2024 is Hannah Laxton. Hannah is the daughter of Ron and Melissa Laxton. Hannah has attended CDS for thirteen years.
During high school, Hannah served on student council for all four years. Hannah was a part of the Varsity Softball team before surgery permanently prevented her from playing. She then started announcing for the Varsity Baseball team and was a manager. Not only did Hannah announce for baseball, but she also announced homecoming for the past two years and many senior nights for various sports.
Hannah is a member of the National Honor Society, the Science National Honor Society, the National English Honor Society, the Rho Kappa National Social Studies Honor Society, Mu Alpha Theta, and Sociedad Honoraria Hispánica. Hannah is an AP Scholar with Honor. She was the Chief Junior Marshall for the class of 2023 graduation ceremony.
Hannah’s life verse is Psalm 94:19.
In the fall, Hannah will attend Wake Forest University.
