Senior girls attend 81th Annual Senior Tea
For 81 years, senior girls at Tippecanoe High School have gathered for the annual senior tea. This year’s tea was held May 22 at Tipp Center with Tipp City’s Carli Amlin as the featured speaker.
President Nici McClurg of the Community Minded Women (CMW) welcomed the senior girls and their guests. “CMW is a group of like-minded women whose goal is to give back to our community. We sponsor such events as the Senior Tea and Safety City, senior scholarships, as well as donating time and monetary donations to other local community-based public service groups and organizations. The Senior Tea was started by the Civics Women's Club in 1944. CMW agreed to take over the tea in the 1990s.”
Retiring LT Ball Intermediate School’s physical education teacher Jeanne Koch read Dr. Suess’ words of wisdom from the book “Oh, the Places You’ll Go!”.
Tippecanoe High School grad, Class of 1995, Carli Amlin was the guest speaker.
This is an excerpt from her “Keep Becoming” speech:
“I once sat exactly where you are now - full of excitement, questions, and dreams, silently wondering, 'Am I really ready for what comes next?’
Since then, I went off to college, and eventually found my way into real estate - where I've spent the past 26 years helping people through some of life's biggest transitions. Not just buying or selling homes, but navigating change, growth, and new beginnings.
I'm also a mom to two amazing Tipp grads - Gabe, who has since graduated from the University of Dayton, and Savy, who just finished her second year there.
But I'm more than a grad, a mom, or a business owner. I'm a friend. A volunteer. A community advocate. And like all of you, I'm still learning, still growing, still discovering who I'm becoming.
What I've learned is this: your identity isn't something you find - it's something you uncover over time. And your purpose doesn't always show up in one big moment. It shows up in how you live, how you love, and how you grow through what life brings.
You're standing at the very beginning of that journey.
And it's going to be extraordinary.
Anyone feeling a little pressure?
Everyone's asking:
‘Where are you going?’
‘What's your major?’
‘What do you want to be?’
Let me tell you a little secret - You don't need to know all the answers. You just need to know how to keep showing up.
When I graduated high school, I thought I'd get a degree in political science and head straight into politics. President Amlin - it had a nice ring to it.
Then my second year, I thought I'd be a teacher, so I changed majors. Then junior year, I studied abroad ... and changed majors again.
Eventually, I took everything I had already taken and found a way to craft it into two degrees - neither of which directly led to what I do now.
But here's what did lead me here: People. Purpose. Passion. And also every risk, redirection, and ‘I have no idea what I'm doing’ moment along the way.
So if you're unsure - good. That means you're paying attention. That means you're becoming.
I know you've heard this before - but that doesn't make it any less true - The world is going to try to tell you who you are.
It is going to say:
‘You need to look a certain way’
‘That success equals status’
‘That your worth is tied to achievement’
Don't buy it. You do you. You are already enough. You are already worthy. You don't have to earn that - you just have to remember it. And success? It's not a title. It's not a resume. Success is something you define for yourself- and you are absolutely allowed to change that definition as you grow.
Who you are at 18 won't be who you are at 28 - and that's a good thing. You're supposed to evolve. You're supposed to shift. You're supposed to change.
Here's something else I've learned:
You don't have to shrink to be liked. And you don't have to perform to be loved.
When I went to college, one of the things I loved most was that I finally got to choose my people. It wasn't based on who I lived near or who was on my team - I got to start fresh.
I met friends through classes, clubs, my sorority ... but just because we crossed paths didn't mean they had to be my people.
I learned to say yes to the ones who brought out the best in me, and no to the ones who didn't.
I started to notice who drained me, who added drama, who made things harder than they needed to be. And you know what? I got better at walking away from those who were unkind - or just plain exhausting.
And part of that growth? I also got more comfortable with the person I was becoming.
This next chapter you're walking into - you get to decide. You decide who you're with.
You decide where you spend your time. You decide what kind of energy you allow into your life. You won't get every decision right. But the best part? They'll be your decisions.
And each one will teach you something about who you are becoming.
Be the kind of friend who claps when someone else wins.
Because that kind of energy will carry you farther than ambition ever could.
So here's the truth I want to leave you with: You are stronger than you think.
You are more capable than you feel. And you are just beginning to become the person you were meant to be. There will be twists. There will be seasons of doubt. There will be doors that close - sometimes suddenly. Don't panic when things don't go as planned.
Trust that you’re being redirected to something even better.
And above all – Stay kind. Stay Curious. Stay grounded in who you are or who you are trying to be.
Proverbs 31:25 says, ‘She is clothed with strength and dignity, and she laughs without fear of the future.’
That’s a challenge. That’s an identity. So don't let fear write your story. Don't wait for permission. Don't shrink. Don't rush. Keep becoming - one step, one choice, one brave breath at a time.”