Whatever path you choose, you will always be our little girl.

The little girl that climbed her baby gate at 15 months in North Carolina. The young girl whose nose exploded in Colorado. The girl who climbed the top of St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome. The girl who corrected AIT Soldiers (“WHERE’S YOUR BATTLE BUDDY!”) in South Carolina. The teenager who competed in her first marksmanship competition in Texas. The young woman now graduating high school in Germany.

We are proud of your accomplishments and are blessed to call you our daughter. As you make your way into the world, know that we will always be there for you. We are excited to see the amazing young woman you have become and what you will accomplish.

We know that military life has asked a lot of you. We know there have been many goodbyes in your life. The strength and resilience we have seen in you as we moved around the world has shown us that you can conquer the world if you want to. Even in the midst of moves and separations, you have always found a way to shine and make each place your own.

Even when life gets hard (and it always will) remember what a formidable woman you have become. You have survived cross-country and global moves, made new friends in new schools, and had to find your tribe again and again. Remember to give yourself the same grace you have always given others. You have always found your own way and now you are in charge of your own destiny. Seize it. Live loudly. Love completely.

As this chapter closes and the next opens, words can’t express our feelings. Pride, sadness, love, terror, and a bunch more as we watch you walk across that stage. No one knows the future, but we know that you will succeed at whatever you choose to be. Whatever that may be, you will always and forever be our beloved daughter. 

Congratulations, sweetheart.

DoDEA

Kaiserslautern Military Community (KMC)