There’s the girl whose “butt crack” stuck out in grade school and everyone made fun of her. Today she’s a state champion runner.

There’s the boy who moved a lot when he was young and had no desire to learn, but when he got to Columbia Falls things changed. He enlisted in the Army while still in high school, and graduation is the first step in his career.

Those were just some of the stories Columbia Falls seniors told anonymously last week during a Graduation Matters Speak Out event at the high school.

The Graduation Matters program aims at encouraging more students to stay in school and graduate. Currently, about 15 percent of students at Columbia Falls don’t graduate.

Students read more than 17 essays at the event on why graduation mattered to them and why their peers should stay in school and get their high school diplomas.

One girl overcame a childhood of violence. School was her solace from parents who beat each other and her.

“I made my first call to police at seven years old,” she said.

She said she’d hide her cuts and bruises and try to act normal at school.

“I went to school like nothing was wrong,” she said.

Her biological father took her back, but she witnessed her stepfather hold a gun to her father’s head as he took her away. The girl ended up under the care of Montana Child Protective Services.

“School was my way to feel normal, like an actual human being,” she said.

Darn right she’s going to graduate.

“I’m stubborn enough to prove people wrong,” she said.

For another student, high school has been difficult for him but worth it.

“The last four years of my life have been a pedal to the metal grind,” he said. “But things are finally paying off. (Graduation) won’t be a piece of paper and a golf cap.”

One girl overcame a father who was a drug addict. At 15, she was getting drunk and high with him when they lived in another city. When her father tried to kill her and her family, she called the police and hasn’t seen him since.

“School gives me a fighting chance,” she said.

One girl spoke of the struggles of working with the other boys in shop in class. They didn’t always treat her well, but she became a certified welder nonetheless.

The stories went on and on — always a struggle, but also a determination to succeed. For some students, graduating will be more than a diploma, it will be a miracle. But to a person, the students are all looking forward to graduation in a few short weeks.

Senior Kaitlyn Presnell, who has a child, organized the event. She spoke of her son Bridger.

“Bridger has changed my life,” she said. “Life isn’t over. It’s just beginning. Watch me. I intend to graduate.”