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RESERVE – People love to celebrate. Especially here in the South, we learn early on that every milestone is a good reason to gather, share our excitement with friends and family, feel pride in our accomplishments and enjoy the connection of community. Amidst the current pandemic, people all around the world are struggling with this question, “How do you celebrate while still maintaining the necessary precautions required to keep safe?”

As a family owned and operated local company, DSC recognized many of its own team members experiencing this same struggle with children and grandchildren missing out on many of the long-awaited senior year traditions such as prom, grad night and of course graduation.

“Our staff is family,” shared Vice President and Chief Administrative Officer, Christina Bolling, “so with a little creativity and collaboration, we came up with some fun non-traditional ways to celebrate these remarkable young adults while still maintaining all necessary safety precautions such as face masks, gloves and six-foot spatial distancing. It was also important to us that we partner with, and support, local and small businesses as much as possible.”

DSC’s Class of 2020 Senior Celebration kicked off with a two-week social media campaign where each of the eight students, and their graduating schools, were highlighted, sharing accomplishments, favorite teacher moments and their plans for the future. On May 14, DSC held a drawing on their Facebook page and announced that Erin Garvey, daughter of Paul Garvey, and Hancock High School graduate, the winner of a special $1,000 scholarship.

“This really is incredible,” commented Paul Garvey, member of DSC’s Poplarville, MS facility, “There are no other companies in our area doing anything like this to celebrate these seniors. It really is a shame how much these kids are missing out from their senior year. My wife Lisa and I are so proud of Erin.”

The commencement finale took place Friday morning, May 15, 2020, at DSC’s Corporate Office located in Reserve with a drive-thru celebration. The seniors, along with their family members, received carefully cultivated gift bags full of items to help start this new season of life. A further surprise was added by owners Bob and Bill Wetta where all other graduates were given an unexpected $250 scholarship check. “Although individuals are unable to celebrate in traditional ways, there are still opportunities to share special moments with loved ones while staying safe. Each and every graduate worked hard, and they deserve to be celebrated,” said Bob Wetta, President and CEO of DSC Dredge.

DSC extends a special thanks to the local and small business owners who contributed to the success of this celebration including Tri Parish Trophies, The Southern Soapery and Handmade & Handpicked Boutique.

We want to congratulate the Class of 2020 and wish all graduates the very best. A special congratulations to our eight high school seniors: Erin Garvy (Hancock High School), Santino Gonzales (Dutchtown High School), Ejan Gray (East St. John High School), Ryan Handy (Holy Cross High School), Ashton Keeton (St. Amant High School), Shaun Pascual Jr. (Riverside Academy), Camri Ragas (Belle Chasse High School) and Cedric Ragas (Belle Chasse High School).

DSC is a global leader in the dredge manufacturing industry that designs and manufactures high quality, durable cutter suction and underwater pump mining dredges. DSC Dredge operates from three manufacturing facilities located in Reserve, Poplarville, MS, and Greenbush, MI. For more information about the company and its products, services and customized solutions, please visit www.dscdredge.com and follow the company on social media.