On May 27th, Mayfield students will officially be on summer vacation.

Instead of working deskside, many students will be resting poolside. Once the middle of August hits, students will return to either the hallowed halls of Mayfield High School or will begin the first day of the rest of their life.

There are many members of the Class of 2016 that I will miss. However, none of them had more of an influence on me than future member of the United States Navy, Joe DeNardo.

During the time I’ve come to get closer to him,  I’ve come to see truly how remarkable Joe is (the word remarkable does not even compare to describe the kind of person friend he is to all).

When I would see Joe everyday, I would be greeted with a charismatic, “Hey guy,” and a wide smile. His enthusiasm and bashfulness always rubbed off on others.

Come January, when Joe starts basic training, many will see his personality as a benefit, much like it was at 6116 Wilson Mills Road.

In addition to his character, Joe expressed excellent leadership skills in running this newspaper.

On his biography page, Joe wrote that his primary goal is “to do his best job to bring Mayfield’s most genuine source of journalism and analysis for all of the things relevant and worth recognizing in and around the Mayfield community,”. With the quality of writing that he helped to generate this past year, we’ve done just that.

With myself taking over The Paw Print next fall, I know that Joe’s legacy will live on. Due to his influence on myself and the other writers, I know that we will be able to continue being looked at as a beneficial representation of Mayfield High School.

Joe, I’m proud of how far you’ve come and I can’t wait to see where you go. I know that you will go off and do great things.

-Jared Serre, Class of 2018