Siblings Kelsea Lord and Cody Cuares take part Thursday in the Mid-Maine Regional Adult Community Education graduation ceremony outside Waterville Senior High School. Amy Calder/Morning Sentinel

WATERVILLE — Kelsea Lord bounced around from high school to high school when she was a teenager, finally quitting in her sophomore year.

“My life was a struggle and it kept me from staying in school,” she said.

Lord enrolled in Mid-Maine Regional Adult Community Education in 2017 but didn’t stay, continuing to make up reasons for why she couldn’t complete her studies, such as she didn’t have time.

“One day, I realized they were just excuses,” she said.

Lord, 26, of Oakland, told her story Thursday night just moments before she was scheduled to march to the stage and graduate from the adult education program after successfully completing her high school equivalency test, also known as HiSET, which is like a GED. It was a special day, not only for Lord but also for her brother, Cody Cuares.

Cuares, 20, of Albion, also was to receive his HiSET. He wasn’t going to march in the ceremony Thursday but his sister convinced him to do it with her. Cuares also had quit high school, recalling that he had a choice at the time between attending school or paying bills.

“Unfortunately, bills had to come first,” he said. “I did try to do school and work and it wasn’t going well.”

The siblings marched Thursday in single file out of the adult education department at Waterville Senior High School with 13 others who were to receive diplomas or HiSETs. They were greeted outside by a crowd of family, friends, staff and educators, and they then stepped up onto the outdoor stage and sat in rows across from speakers. Eight students graduating chose not to march in the ceremony, according to Hannah Bard, director of Mid-Maine Regional Adult Community Education, which serves students from Belgrade, China, Oakland, Rome, Sidney, Vassalboro, Waterville and Winslow.

Pamela Perkins, who also graduated Thursday, welcomed speakers and guests. Her classmates Richard Rankins III and Amy Boyce thanked their teachers and staff for supporting them, with Rankins noting that he will go on to attend Central Maine Community College to study to become an automotive technician. Boyce said she will attend Kennebec Valley Community College and join the nursing assistant program.

Megan Dichter, director of Maine State Adult Education, told the students she was proud to be able to talk about adult education, and they should be proud to be adult education graduates.

“Most importantly, you already have a success card in your belt, because you’re here tonight, so congratulations,” Dichter said.

Bard likened the students’ journey to that of Dorothy in the “The Wizard of Oz.” Like Dorothy, they embarked on a journey seeking knowledge, finding themselves in unfamiliar territory and facing challenges, yet persevering.

Lord, who has a 3-year-old son, said she would recommend adult education to people who may be reluctant to take the plunge. The educators and staff developed a program for her that suited her schedule and were supportive and communicative, she said.

Cuares, her brother, said he sought jobs from employers who wouldn’t hire him until he finished school. He hopes to land a job that is computer-related, such as in online marketing.

Besides Cuares, Lord, Boyce, Perkins and Rankins, those receiving either HiSETs or high school diplomas were Travis Boyce, Cohen Damren, Jacob Hall, Nathanial Haven, Heather Moore, Harley Morton, Kolbie Soltow, Joshua Bonsant, Zachary Hartin, Caden Hopkins, Sarianna Houghton, Kaison Knippling, Justin Littlefield, Ryan Pare, William Peres, Luke Quimby and Nikolas Rossy.