I am Robin Sawyer and I’m a Nighthawk. (If that sounds familiar, then you’ve probably been to a Carolina game and seen a promotional video featuring some of UNC’s most famous alums or coaches who one by one say, “My name is … and I’m a Tar Heel.”)

After spending the first 13 years of my career at Manteo High, I was one of the original 86 faculty and staff members to join Principal Allison Sholar in opening this “new school on the beach” in 2004. Looking back at how things have changed in the decade since everything here was new and shiny, it’s easy to see the physical signs of aging that come with the matriculation of several hundred students each year. Cracks in floors, broken chairs in classrooms, faded paint on the walls. These are the telltale signs of a building well used.

What’s not so obvious are the memories of the students who have passed through these halls and of the people who have taught them over the years.

As the yearbook and newspaper adviser, I’ve helped record the history of the school while making memories with these staffs. I’ll never forget the first Nighthawk News deadline. With sophomore Amy Bryson at the helm, seniors Michael Burgess and Alexa Bennett worked until the wee hours one Saturday morning, trying to create a “perfect” first issue. I also remember the difficulty of producing the front page of the newspaper to memorialize Beth Kraft, our first drama teacher, when she died unexpectedly later that year.

Events such as the PTSO March Madness fundraisers, the Motz Wonderful Variety Show and the Empty Bowls dinners are forever etched in my memory because of the generous donations by our community to each of these great causes.

And let’s not forget the athletic achievements that have put our school on the map. From individual state titles in track and wrestling to women’s soccer bringing home a team title in 2008, our school has gone from an unknown entity to a perennial favorite in some 2A sports. (We’ll just pretend the controversial White Tees were never a part of that history, even though some of our alums remember them fondly.)

On June 3, 2005, Justin Allen, who attended Manteo his first three years of high school, received the first diploma from this school. On June 13, I’ll be among the 36 original faculty and staff members who will be watching when Nick Xiques receives the final diploma handed out to the class of 2014.

Ten years. Ten thousand memories. One common denominator.

We are Nighthawks.

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