Overcoming loss and high school

PERKINS TWP. — Dec. 9, 2023, changed Will Rosekelly forever. Maureen Rosekelly, Will's mother, was out of town. Will was with his friends shooting a music video. "Little did I know this night would change my life forever," Will recounted. When he came home, he found his father, Jeffery Rosekelly, on the floor after suffering a heart attack. After the discovery, he ran to the neighbor's house for help and to make all of the difficult phone calls notifying family of his father's passing. "All of this was way too much for a then-17-year-old," Maureen said. The mother-son duo reflected on their family's challenges on the road to Will earning his diploma at Perkins High School where he graduated as a part of the senior class on May 25. 'Faith, family and friends' Will and Jeffery would go on planned father-son vacations every summer along with Will's uncle, John, and his sons. Maureen said Will is glad to have made those memories. Father and son were very much alike. "He was quiet like me," Will said. "Overall we had a good relationship." Maureen added that, much like his father, Will has a good sense of humor and funny one-liners. He also got his creativity and love of music from Jeffery. Maureen said loss feels bigger during special times like graduation, but she and her son are grateful to have support from Perkins Schools and their family. "William was blessed to have a loving and supportive father for 17 years, and while that amount of time is way too short, we both know that his dad is so, so proud of him," Maureen said. "Jeff will be with William wherever he goes and whatever he does." Seven months later, the family was struck with another hardship when Maureen was diagnosed with stage 4 cancer. "This was another major hit to William," Maureen said. "He had just started to 'heal' from his dad and now was faced with his mother's life-threatening illness." After the diagnosis, Will had to take on more responsibilities at home as his mother began treatments for her pain. "William and I have always been close," Maureen said. "But there is no doubt that the loss of Jeff and my cancer recurrence has brought us even closer. He is my everything." Maureen said she and Will got by with a little help from friends. "Faith, family and friends have gotten William — us — this far and will continue to guide him — us — as we navigate the future," Maureen said. Milestones and videography Despite the odds stacked against him, Will crossed the field at Firelands Health Stadium where he received his diploma, handed to him by his mother, a teacher at Briar Middle School. "I am beyond proud of William's resilience that he has demonstrated throughout high school and most especially this last year and a half," Maureen said. Will plans to attend Cleveland State University and major in film so he can continue his passion in videography. Over the summer, he plans to travel to Los Angeles and San Diego for a month of networking and music videos. Eventually, he would like to run his own production company. "I feel like creating the videos has been an outlet for William," Maureen said. "He is able to creatively express himself and keep his mind busy, while creating some money as well." Will first got into videography in the summer of 2023. "I have always been interested in music and music videos for as long as I can remember," Will said. One day, while working at Kalahari, his friend, who was a rapper, mentioned he needed a music video. "For some reason, I told him that I could do it," Will said. "So I asked my dad if I could use his old DSLR camera, and he said 'yes' and taught me how to use it." Maureen said she is not always a fan of the lyrics in the music but the camera and editing work done by her son is impressive. In school, he put his passion into practice through the high school's academy experience, in which students are matched up with career professionals in an industry they are interested in. Through the academy, Will met Joey Cassel from New Departure Films, who has acted as a mentor to him for two years. Under Cassel's guidance, Will has had a chance to work with all aspects of production. Outside of the academy, Will put his skills to work through other school organizations. He was responsible for filming the football team during the state playoffs, the wrestling team, the basketball team, Sandusky's basketball team and Perkins Unified Sports events, which are similar to Special Olympics. He has also worked with Cleveland and Los Angeles-based rappers and filmed weddings. "There are not enough words to describe the sadness that I have for William that he has had to endure such hardships," Maureen said. "There are certainly not enough words to describe my immense pride that he continued to forge on successfully through high school and fully develop his passion for film."