The Prospector Senior Edition 2021

The Prospector 2021 Senior Edition

MSHS Journalism photo file

The resilience of the Class of 2021

by The Prospector Staff

The class of 2021 has shown their resilience during these difficult times. As the normalities of everyday life have been taken away from them, along with a traditional senior year, these students have shown how strong they are. This stength is perhaps best embodied by the members of the MSHS Student Council (STUCO). They have continued to be Mustangs and set an example for all. STUCO worked tirelessly to maintain as many senior traditions as possible this year. They met with district and school adminstration throughout the year to give student body feedback, pushed for change, and added opportunities for seniors and the entire student body. These student leaders where often met with resistance, but they never gave up. STUCO, the students of MSHS thank you for your leadership and your dedication to student voice. We see you. We wish you the best as you move on to change the world.

Includes:

• Senior profiles...page 2 • Teacher advice...page 2 • Miss Wendy’s “Jokes for the Journey”...page 7 • senior art Showcase... page 9 • college signings...page 10 • A letter from the president...page 12

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Finn Evans: Manitou’s parkour king

Teacher Advice For the class of 2021

by Flor breuer

Senior Finn Evans has participated in the sport parkour since a young age. He was always climbing, jumping, and getting hurt. “I got into parkour in elementary school, through YouTube videos and things like that,” Evans said. From there he started learning on his own. “In 2016, I started training consistently; and I started taking classes at Flipshack where I am currently employed.”

But, parkour hasn’t always been fun. Evans suffered a serious injury a couple years ago. “I broke one ankle; and after 13 days of being able to be active with parkour again, I broke the other ankle.” Evans made a documentary about this experience. His injuries have been, according to him, “mainly due to dumb stuff.

I broke my wrist but that’s from a mat falling, and then I’ve had some shoulder issues from falling and not being in the right mindset to train.” Thankfully, nothing has been life threatening.

Photo courtesy of Finn Evans

“Life goes by pretty fast and if you don’t stop to look around once in a while, you might miss it!”

Ferris Bueller

Evans doesn’t just do parkour for fun. In 2017, he started competing. “I started doing Jump Fest, which is a parkour camp,” Evans said. At the end of the week there was a competition. “I thought it was really cool, cause you can do speed, skill, and style.” He has done it all; however, his favorite is speed, as he’s too tall for the other categories.

-Mr. Bonner

Following through with the flow and keeping pace is also a specialty of his. One of his main influencers is Jesse La Flair, who’s a stunt man in California on a team called Tempest. “He has his own shoe, and he’s always on Instagram doing these crazy 360 videos and that’s really inspiring. There’s this guy named Jason Paul. He’s a German freerunner and is sponsored by Redbull, he has his own clothing company. He makes these crazy videos, so he’s somebody I look up to as well.” Finn Evans hopes to reach the same level of fame and success.

Don’t fear failure. It is totally OK, normal, healthy, and expected to experience failure. Don’t dwell there; embrace it as a reality to grow from, not something to fear and avoid at all costs.

In 2019, Evans competed in the Rocky Mountain Parkour Championship for the youth division in speed. He planned to compete in the Adult Division this year, but due to Coronavirus, he was unable to compete. He has hopes to go farther even though he is at professional level. Evans coaches as well as takes classes on his own. “I want to try and get more into the stunt side of parkour and action modeling,” Evans said. His plan is to take a gap year next year and train vigorously in hopes to get even better than he already is. “I want to get better at double flips and double twists. That’s something that has been really difficult for me because of my length and my dimensions, you know. A lot of jumps and basic A-B stuff is my specialty.”

-Mr. Gillard

Photo Courtesy of Finn Evans

Emmett Wolfe Takes sixth at State Wrestling Tournament

By Colt henricks

Wolfe made his team, his coach, his family and his classmates proud as he placed sixth as a pound wrestler at State this school year.

Photo Courtesy of Paul Bonner

Sports have been unpredictable this school year, and this has caused anxiety and disappointment for many student athletes; but for Emmett Wolfe, a senior here at Manitou Springs High School,

wrestling has been a successful piece of his senior year. There was never a doubt in Wolfe’s mind that wrestling would become an issue this year.

This demonstrates the positive mindset that he has towards wrestling.

Emmett Wolfe has been wrestling for eight years now and has loved every moment of it. The path towards reaching State was quite different with Covid this year, but this simply did not stop Wolfe from achieving great things on the mat. “Every morning I made sure to go on runs and go to the gym to stay in shape during Covid,” Wolfe said. Going into the season he was ready to go; and especially as a senior, he was incredibly dedicated towards making it to State.

This year, qualifying for State was far more challenging as only the top two wrestlers at each weight class from each region made it to

State. This meant that Wolfe was one of eight wrestlers in his weight class. Wolfe placed sixth place. “I knew I could have placed better losing two close matches, but I was happy to have gotten where I got.”

During the course of Wolfe’s wrestling career at Manitou, he formed a great relationship with head coach, Mr. Bonner.

Mr. Bonner, who has been the wrestling coach since Wolfe was in middle school, is incredibly proud of him.

“I am honored to have been his coach, and I will miss his leadership and dedication”, Bonner said. He will also miss having Wolfe as a team captain. “Emmett makes everyone around him better and is a great voice to the rest of the guys,” Mr. Bonner said. The relationship goes two ways. “Mr. Bonner has

been what made wrestling so great for me. He is the main reason I love wrestling so much and helped me get to where I am today,” Wolfe said.

Next year, Wolfe plans on pursuing a college wrestling career. Wrestling has been such a successful part of his life that hopefully, he will be able to maintain his level of success in the future. Even with a shortened season caused by Covid, Emmett Wolfe’s dedication and continuous hard work for the past eight years paid off. Hopefully, that will lead to many doors opening up for him in the future. So many people around Emmett Wolfe are so incredibly proud of what he has been able to accomplish not only as a wrestler but as a kindhearted person in the world.

Do things that you enjoy and surround yourselves with others who make you happy and appreciate you!

-Ms. Mack

If there’s something you’ve always wanted to try or something you’ve wanted to learn, don’t hesitate to go out and do it or learn it.

My favorite life moments (the good and the bad), and some of the best people I’ve ever met have all come from pushing myself to move beyond my comfort levels.

-Mrs. Litzelman

Koda Oxford’s Finest Hour

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by Jalen Lindh

Ask for help! When you don’t understand an assignment, ask a professor.

When you’re struggling academically, get tutoring.

When you’re having a hard time adjusting to your new job, ask your supervisor for recommendations. When you don’t feel safe, seek out a trusted friend or family member. You can still call home and ask for help, even when you’re living on your own.

-Mrs. McCracken

Oh, seniors, please know that you are stronger, smarter, and more capable than you know. Please never stop being curious about the world; never stop questioning; never stop learning. There is magic all around us--Dr. Moen

“Theater’s been my life for a really long time; and I’m glad that before I leave, I get to be a big part of it one more time,” said senior Koda Oxford when asked how it felt to be cast as the main role in White Weevil, a play being put on with Theater Buffet.

Due to Covid taking everything by storm and in a way ruining many opportunities for other schools, and students, many seniors haven’t been able to have an enjoyable last year. For Koda Oxford, he was worried he might not get one last chance to be in a theater production with his classmates in this final year. But with hard work and determination, the wonderful Wendy Harms, a teacher at Manitou Springs High School, was able to bring together a project for all those who seek to do something in theater.

The project is known as Theater Buffet. Theater Buffet is a multi-event that has multiple aspects of the performing arts. It’ll have four play productions, Ghosted, directed by Henry White (11), And Tomorrow, directed by

Anton Akse (11), The Hags of the Apocalypse eat Salad at Their General Meeting, directed by Morrigan Williams (12), and The Astonishing Adventures of the White Weevil, directed by Wendy Harms. There will also be a film called Dogged, directed by Finian Duford.

Dance incorporated in it as well.

Koda Oxford snagged the leading role in The Astonishing Adventures of the White Weevil. He plays the character known as Charles: a sexist, selfish, narrcistic man who plays the role of The White Weevil on the Radio.

His character flirts with other girls at his job, even though he’s married. But to make sure that their radio show doesn’t get cut from going on air, his producer hires a female lead to work alongside Charles. Only problem is that Charles doesn’t think that a woman can do the job as good as him. And to make matters even worse, the female lead is his own wife. “After all these years of theater, this’ll actually be my second time being the lead role, which isn’t a bad thing, just sort of surprising that my last year, I get to be the main thing of this thing.”

Photo by Jalen Lindh

Oxford has been in many theater productions throughout being in school. In total, Oxford has participated in eight play productions. He’s been in plays that are decently well known like, Zorro, and other plays that many might not have heard of, such as Badger.

Oxford’s theater skills don’t just stop at play productions though. He has also partaken in a student film called Dear Universe, which also got to be shown on the big screen at The Kimball Theater. “It was one of the coolest things ever to see.

I mean, sure it was a

another rinky dink student film, but it’s not like you get to see yourself on a movie theater screen everyday. It was so cool.”

After Oxford graduates from high school, he plans on exploring and pursuing an acting career. He hopes to be a well known actor, that children can look up to and want to be like him one day. “It’s just such an awesome thought to think that maybe one day, someone will look up to someone like me. The idea of being someone’s role model is just so pleasing in general, but multiple people seeing me as a role

model would be amazing.”

Oxford doesn’t plan on putting stage or film productions above one He hopes just to take whatever he gets and ride the wave with it. He plans to put his maximum effort into whatever theater project that he will be working on in the near future. When Oxford was asked how he felt about graduating, he said,“Y’know, it saddens me that I’m going to graduate and might not see some of my friends again, but I think I’m ready. I’m ready to take a leap of faith. and make a name for myself out in the real world. I am ready.”

A Different path to success

By Eliana Dutil

I think you’ve learned a lot about the importance to living in the moment and appreciating the small things this year. You have taken some hardship and made the best of it. You are leaving high school with a lot more wisdom than previous classes because so much was taken from you. So, my advice to you: Don’t forget all that you have learned. Live your life mindfully. Enjoy the small things. Do what you love.

-Mrs. Kerrigan

You are not going to feel 100% on most days of your life. Make no excuses, instead make it happen!

-Mr. Vecchio

While many seniors at MSHS were frantically finishing college applications and essays for Colorado Free Application Day last September, Laine Givens was taking a deep breath. At 18, Laine, a Manitou Springs senior, enlisted in the Marines and after graduating will leave to start her new life training at Boot Camp. Currently, Givins is enrolled in a delayed entry program.

This program serves to prepare her mentally and physically for the changes she will experience when she ships out next August.

In order for Givins to reach her full potential in training, she is put through many fitness tests to measure her growth. “We do lots of workouts which will be similar to what we do in Boot Camp like IST, PTF, or CTF ( initial strength test, physical fitness test, combat fitness test),” Givins said.

She has found passion through her training and is extremely excited to ship out. Graduating high school for every student brings one of the first major decisions someone makes in adult life. With the help of her

supportive parents and teachers and her brother, Givins is anxious to start the next chapter. Her brother has been a huge inspiration to her. Cade Givens (Class of 2018), joined the Marines in 2018 and graduated Boot Camp in the fall of 2019.

He has rapidly moved up in the Marines thanks to his hard work and is now a lance corporal.

“He teaches me new things about the Marine Corps every day and is an amazing mentor and brother to me,” Givins said about her brother’s example for her. Givins and her brother enlisted in separate programs but still will work for the same branch. She explains it as her brother remained in Colorado and she will be going into active duty.

“I will be gone, and not at home. I will be sent to my duty station, and that could be anywhere that there is a Marine Corps base,” Givins explained.

She is thankful that her parents fully parents support her decision and are happy about it.

“They can’t wait to see me accomplish many things in the future in the Marine Corps,” she said. Givins has been surrounded by support and even her teachers have been

Photo courtesy of Laine Givins

invested in her decision.

“I am incredibly proud of Laine for following her heart and her passions.

I believe that her solid plan for getting a college education while she is a marine will add the depth she personally needs to her experience. Laine is incredibly intelligent, open minded, and strong.

We need Marines just like her,” said her AP English teacher, Amanda Kerrigan. Givins decision

does not mean that she will not further her education following high school. She is planning on taking college classes while she is active duty, so she can eventually earn her bachelor’s degree.

She hopes to do paralegal work in the Marine Corps, and eventually go to law school to become a lawyer like her father. Givins is very driven and dedicated to her future. She has always wanted to help and empower people. She decided to do

this through the Marine Corps because she wants to push herself to new limits in stressful situations.

Givins has already been tested. Seeing that men and women often have the same physical requirements in the Marines, she has already found herself being pushed past limits she once had for herself.

Laine Givins is building a future for herself so that her dreams of helping to inspire others can take off.

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Always Been a Mustang

by Colt Henricks and The Prospector Staff

Building relationships with peers, especially in school, can be quite challenging. When students face the challenge of moving from a different school and integrating into a tight-knit community, breaking into already formed friend groups is difficult. Staying in the same school district your whole life is incredibly challenging as well. In a small community, like Manitou Springs, Colorado, students are known well by their peers and teachers. According to senior Sofija Cirko, “everyone knows everyone and if you make a mistake everyone learns about which can negatively hurt you.” It can also be challenging to navigate significant life changes, when others feel like they “know” the student. However, being a part of the Mustang “Herd” has more upsides than challenges. No one knows this better than the 31 seniors who have spent their entire school career in MSSD14.

Senior Sofija Cirko has felt the joys and challenges of being a student in Manitou since Kindergarten. Cirko started her education at Ute Pass Elementary School. Cirko recalled a story about her and Sophie McKeown (12) from those days. In Kindergarten, the two girls would meet up and spend hours at the local library talking to each other in different languages. At the time, Cirko wasn’t fluent in English as she had recently moved to Green Mountain Falls from Croatia. “Our moms would look at each other like they know what they’re talking about?” said Cirko. Though Cirko was born in Chicago she moved to Croatia when she was 2. She would return back to the States when she was six. Cirko eventually learned English at Ute Pass Elementary School, where she would also form some lifelong friendships.

Kianu Luna, another senior here at Manitou Springs High School has also been here since the beginning. Luna built up great relationships with a group of friends starting at Manitou Springs Elementary. To this day, he is surprised most at Thor Flett’s transformation. At MSES, Luna recalls that he and Finn Evans were great friends and were in the planning stages of creating a future business that revolved around Marvel. They both especially enjoyed Ironman where the two of them would build things using Legos.

“Finn used to be really into origami and he made Ironman costumes and characters, Luna said. Luna also remembers receiving an iPad where additionally they would start filming. To this day, he gives credit to Evans for continuing to use iMovie with his parkour and acknowledged his edits on Instagram.

When Cirko and Luna reached middle school at MSMS, both recalled memories of playing football on the upper activity field together with Wally Hoehne, Caden Harris, Caden Salladay, Dana Gutierrez, and Lars Marquardt. When they all reached their freshman year at MSHS, they would continue to play games outside on the track. These freshmen would go on to make their mark on Manitou Springs High School, all as athletes; and Harris, Gutierrez, and Salladay as leaders in STUCO. Now, as their high school careers end and their college careers start, Luna along with most of his friend group plan on attending college at Colorado State University in Fort Collins where their goal is to move into a house and split the money to save on expensive dorms. The friendships formed as they grew up in the shadow of Pikes Peak will continue to grow.

Seniors who attended MSSD14 schools since Preschool or Kindergarten Dylan Archibald Caelan Aurand Devon Beckum Sofija Cirko Sierra Dooley Rylan Dowling Lilly Dyer* Alexander Felix Giovanni Felix Porter Fredickson* Mahlia Glass

Quinn Hagan Lexi Harper* Caden Harris Wally Hoehne Jesse Jorstad Julius Kovats Bella Kuzbek Connor Larsen Kianu Luna Lars Marquardt

Tori McCarley Sophie McKeown Sydney Nutche Davis Ortonward Devin Rocha Caden Salladay Avrie Tomsik* Mike Vanderwerff Jacob White Ellie Wickes *not pictured

Manitou Seniors finally don their togas

Page 5

by The Prospector Staff On Thursday, April 15th, seniors finally got the chance to partake in the Manitou tradition of wearing togas to school for Homecoming.

Homecoming was postponed in the fall after fall season sports were postponed due to COVID-19.

The infamous college toga parties that are portrayed in movies of the 1980s often come to mind when most people think about togas today; but togas began in Ancient Rome.

According to English teacher Dr. Moen, “The history resides in the status of the garment.

Only elite citizens were allowed to wear them in Roman culture, so seniors are the elite citizens of our halls.”

According to Angela Gieck, graduate of MSHS and PHC Student Liason, the senior tradition of wearing a toga goes back to at least the 1980s. Traditionally, “the Thursday of Homecoming Week, only seniors would wear togas. Typically, groups of seniors would all go to an early morning breakfast before school that day as well,” Gieck said. This Manitou tradition is still strong today.

For seniors at MSHS, wearing the toga is an honor. According to Senior Class Vice President Caden Harris,

“Wearing the toga is tradition. It’s fun and a great experience reserved for seniors but it also represents the honor and responsibility we have all accepted through high school.” Wearing the toga is also a symbol of the unity for the senior class.

“Wearing a toga means you get to be the seniors that you always looked up to. You get to fulfill that one part of being a senior, as a reward for all you’ve gone through. You trust in the sheet that is wrapped around you, and when you see your friends in them, it’s so much easier to not feel ridiculous because you all went through it all together; it’s a celebration of being united in the success of the last year,” said Student Body Vice President Dana Gutierrez.

The wearing of the toga brings the senior class together, but it also has a more personal meaning for some seniors.

“Wearing the senior toga represents all the growth I’ve gone through for me,” said Senior Class Secretary Grace Trahey.

“I remember being a freshman and looking at the senior class as they wore their togas to school during spirit week, and thinking ‘that’s gonna be me one day’ but never really expecting that day to come and suddenly there it was.

It felt sort of surreal.”

Senior Class President Sophie McKeown feels that “wearing the toga

for Homecoming week represented our class’s dedication and love for our last year at MSHS. It was the first sign of things going back to normal and served as our light at the end of the tunnel.”

While the history of when and why the senior toga tradition began in Manitou remains a mystery, one thing is certain. Seniors look forward to the day when they don their togas as a class.

Although MSHS did not have a traditional fall Homecoming this year, they made the best of Homecoming in April. Many doned their togas, went to breakfast with friends, and came to school. With one month left of school and Senioritis setting in the togas took on a new menaing. This year, According to English teacher Mr. Gillard, “They’re an absolute physical manifestation of Senioritis.”

MSHS Journalism photo file

Senior STUCO Goddesses. Sophie McKeown, Grace Trahey, Chloe Donegan, Dana Gutierrez, and Mahlia Glass model their togas on the Thursday before Homecoming. These ladies worked hard this year to keep the student body engaged.

MSHS Journalism photo file

Strutting Seniors. Senior boys Mike Vanderwerff, Caden Harris, Nathan Hass, Wally Hoehne, Geroge Cerneck, Thor Flett, Brian Blake, Jesse Jorstad, Joah Armour, Lars Marquardt, and Isaiah Thomas enjoyed dressing up in their bedsheets for Spirit Week. The days was full of muscle baring and toga adjustments.

Bella Kuzbek Swims to a State Title

by Ayla Flett

The senior swimmer Bella Kuzbek achieved something that has never happened at Manitou Springs High School. Kuzbek won the Class 3A championship in the 100-yard breaststroke on March 16th, 2021 with a time of 1:07:36.

Kuzbek was just four years old when she started to swim. Her first official swim team was with the local Valley Swim Club when she was eight. When she began middle school, Kuzbek joined an allyear competitive swim team called the Colorado Torpedoes (CT) to stay in shape over the winter months. During her high school years she decided to stop swimming with Valley Swim Club and only swam with the CT and the high school swim program. In March of 2020, Kuzbek decided to join an even more competitive swim team with Pikes Peak Athletics. With all of this background in swimming, Kuzbek has gained lots of talent and skill that helped her win the Class 3A Championship.

year due to COVID regulations, but Kuzbek and her team didn’t let that get in the way of having an incredible season. “Throughout the season everyone had amazing energy and continued to work their hardest, despite COVID,” says Kuzbek, “All the girls are so close so it just felt like one big family, everyone was so supportive and kind”.

When she joined the high school swim team for the first time, Kuzbek described it as exciting because she had only swam with club teams and never experienced this type of environment before. Each year she would improve and grow alongside her teammates.

let the nerves get to her.

After the race, when she came to the realization of At the state competition, her win she explained the Kuzbek reflected on her feeling of being extremely past four years in high proud knowing that school, as well her lifetime every year, every team, of swim competitions. every practice, and every Kuzbek realized how far competition paid off. With she has come and how all of this said, she was she can go even further. extremely proud of herself Knowing all the hard for the dedication she has work she has put into had for this sport over the swimming over the past years. Kuzbek was able ten years, she believed to achieve this title with Like many other activities, that she could win. Before her family, coaches, and the 2020/2021 swim season the competition, Kuzbek closest friends all there to looked a lot different this stayed focused but didn’t celebrate her incredible

Photo Courtesy of Bella Kuzbek

accomplishment.

Ever since 6th grade Kuzbek started to take the sport seriously and during her junior year she decided she wanted to continue swimming after high school. Kuzbek realized how much this sport meant to her and she wasn’t ready to give it up just yet. At the beginning of the second semester of her senior year, Kuzbek committed to swim with Roger Williams University in Rhode Island to swim

for their team. This is a huge step for her swimming career and an incredible opportunity to improve her skills.

Throughout high school and previous experience, Kuzbek has gained so much knowledge about swimming and being on a team. Although Kuzbek won a state title in an individual race, she could have never done so without the wonderful people that have supported her all her

life. Kuzbek has brought a new sense of pride and celebration to a year marked by change and disruption, and her legacy will remain in MSHS. “Don’t compare yourself to the swimmers who’ve been swimming for years, just focus on you and what you need to work on, and try to enjoy the team atmosphere!” says Kuzbek, giving advice for future swimmers to come.

Page 6

Reflection: on the road to the final 4

By Gideon Aigner

I remember day one of practice. I walk into the gym, sit down and take a look around. Most faces are familiar, some are not. And that’s perfectly fine. As I marvel at the machine that keeps track of time and score, fellow manager Paige Laurie (12) sits down next to me. We bump elbows and talk.

It’s early in preseason.

There is plenty of time to get acclimated. And I did with Paige’s help.

Paige is just about the best conversation I’ve had in a very long time, and her humour was able to brighten a few very difficult days.

The day before the first game, I’m extremely nervous. It’s just against Rye, but that “just” is very deceiving. I try my best to get the guys psyched up. I want to help them start the season right, so I say to Lars Marquardt (12), “I triple-dog-dare you to dunk in a game this season.” He did not end up dunking in a game, but he improved his game every day during practice and worked hard to be the best that he could be. I am so proud of the progress he made and the man he was every day to motivate his teammates.

We’re in Salida. Both the C team and JV team had just lost to the Spartans, and with that drive, I’d prefer to go home happy.

Both our Varsity team and theirs are undefeated, but only one will remain so. As the game goes on, it gets closer and closer, until Salida is up by 1, with roughly 3 seconds remaining. Salida fouls Isaiah Thomas (I call him T) during an inbound

pass. T goes to the line, and sinks the first.

Internally, I am going crazy, but I have to keep my composure. At the very least, we are going to overtime. He dribbles, lines up the second shot from the charity stripe, and hits it. From my perspective, it’s effortless.

Salida doesn’t get the ball inbounds in time, and we win. T and I start talking in the locker room, and Joah knocks a bottle out of my hand while doing a “Shammy crossover”; and I say to T, “I love that you’re clutch. Just make it so that we never have to see it again.” As part of the organization, I hate close games.

It’s practice in between Banning-Lewis and La Junta. We remain undefeated at 7-0, and have hopes of keeping the streak going. The Tigers are not good, but any team can win on any night. The guys are in a shooting drill, and afterwards, Coach Vecc is not happy. He calls them together, and he says, “I only see one guy positively motivating this team right now, and that’s Nate!” Nate Haas, or as I like to call him, “Big Haas”, is a constant pillar of leadership. He keeps the young guys humble, but is always a loud voice, keeping everyone on track for our ultimate goal of making it farther than any team in 30 years.

We’re 9-0, and we are gonna face Ellicott in a couple days. Vecc is trying to motivate both JV and Varsity to perform in the last “easy” game of the season. He singles one guy out of the crowd.

“In my years involved in Manitou basketball, the best teammate I could ever hope for is Jesse.”

Jesse Jorstad is one of the more levelheaded guys that I’ve met, at least when it comes to his sports.

His presence was reassuring, because regardless of when he subbed into the game, he would make the best choice he could; and he tried to teach the younger guys to do the same.

Jesse was a class act all season.

MSHS Journalism photo file

Ready for action. Mustang starters wait on the bench for the pregame annoucements.

We beat CSCS, and now we’re on to Woodland, one of our main rivals. We don’t play them often, and for good reason. We are in practice, and it is time for shooting.

At one point I saw Thor Flett make 9 straight threepointers. He misses one, but then he hits another 5 straight.

Then another 4, then 2 more. He is one of the deadliest shooters I have seen, and I doubt I will see another one soon. He is loud and sound as a defender, as a teammate, and as a person, and he has my respect. Through the season, he never wavered in his determination. We are at St. Mary’s. How I wished that this was a home game. Our gym’s vibes are immaculate, while those of St. Mary’s are drab and weary. The first quarter is close, where we are trying to play at their pace, fast and faster.

Joah Armour goes up for a rebound and comes down on the foot of a St. Mary’s

MSHS Journalism photo file

Air Armour. Senior Joah Armour effortlessly commands possession of the jump ball in the season opener against Rye. The Mustangs would continue the season with the same dominance.

player. It is rare that I am left speechless or gasp, but this made both happen.

I wish I could have gone over, but I had a job to do: film. During halftime, while Vecc is discussing strategy, I walk up to Joah who is standing at the bottom of the stairs, whose landing St. Mary’s was forcing us to use as a locker room. As we stared up at the halftime speech, I somehow put an arm around his shoulder and

we hugged. I remember how much a sprain hurts, but I can’t even begin to imagine how much pain this caused at the time.

We ended up losing, but it made everyone mad in time for the playoffs.

We have a first round BYE, and I bring up the idea of a watch party to scout whatever team we end up playing to Vecc.

He loves the idea. We watched a great game between Buena Vista and Coal Ridge, and it felt almost normal, which is rare right now, needless to say.

We face the Coal Ridge Titans on our home floor, and go down 8-2 in the first 2 minutes. Joah is still healing, but he goes in. I see pain on his face with every step, but his presence energized everybody, like Willis Reed in the 1970 NBA Finals. Joah scored 9, T scored 11, and Lars scored 17 in a 18 point win.

MSHS Journalism photo file

THREE! Senior Thor Flett takes the open three against James Irwin while the James Irwin bench and fans look on.

Then, we get a visit from Colorado Academy. The Mustangs in Red give our boys a scare in the first quarter, but we battle back due to the young

talent that the Seniors helped to develop all year.

T led Manitou in scoring with 17, and the whole team rejoiced at getting to a place that nobody from Manitou had in 30 years.

The rematch against St. Mary’s. We know the story. We led for most of the game, but the Pirates got hot just as we went cold. Only one team goes home with rings at the end of the season, and we were not them this year. However, I can say that I am happy, and I am proud. For most of the Seniors, that game against St. Mary’s was the last game of organized ball they will ever play. Most realized that on the bus ride home. However, I do not think that we could have had a much better season. We outscored our opponents 1076744 collectively. We held Peyton to 2 points in a whole half. I would say we did pretty well. We made sure that Colorado knew who we were, and not to underestimate us, and that is largely because of the leadership, sportsmanship, and example provided by the Seniors this year.

Thank you.

Page 7

Dooley Makes History as the First Female Eagle Scout in the Pikes Peak Region

By Sophia McKeown

Photos courtesy of Sierra Dooley

On top of being a varsity cheer captain, prominent NHS member, and at the top of her graduating class, Sierra Dooley is the first female Eagle Scout in the Pikes Peak Region and the third in the state. Dooley first joined Venturing—a youth program apart of the Boys Scouts— when she was 14 years old. Before February 1st, 2019, girls were not allowed to join the Boy Scouts of America (Scouts BSA). While younger girls could join the Cub Scouts program, it wasn’t until only about a year ago that they could earn the rank of Eagle Scout. According to Dooley, she started her journey towards becoming an Eagle Scout the day the decision was made.

About half a year later in October of 2020, the fall of her senior year, Dooley completed her Eagle

Scout board of review.

This step in the process of becoming an Eagle Scout is essential because it allows a committee of adults to evaluate each scout’s accomplishments and determine if they are adequate for the ranking that they seek. Eagle Scout is the highest rank of Scouts BSA, and the road to get there is long, challenging, and requires immense amount of skill and dedication.

Dooley, “the last three emphasize adventure, service and leadership”.

In order to complete the final steps in becoming an Eagle Scout, Dooley had to complete 21 merit badges, serve in a leadership position, demonstrate scout spirit, complete a project, and participate in a Board of review and scoutmaster conference.

Although being in Scouts has given Dooley Dooley went through countless memories to each of the ranks: Scout, look back on, there are a Tenderfoot, Second Class, few moments that stuck First Class, Star, Life, and out to her. “My favorite Eagle. Within each rank, thing about being in Dooley completed the scouts is meeting new required 21 merit badges people and going on and earned a total of 34 new adventures,” says merit badges before she Dooley. Each summer she turned 18. “The first four staffs a national program ranks empathize scout known as NAYLE skills such as orienteering, National Advanced Youth camping, cooking, and Leadership Experience. physical fitness,” describes “I meet scouts from all

across the country and watch them grow into a strong contingent over a week,” describes Dooley. Group service is a prominent component in the Scouts program, so it no surprise that Dooley has found her favorite moments through supporting others.

Dooley’s impressive resume and extracurriculars earned her spots at many good colleges around the nation. Next year, Dooley is headed to CU Boulder where she will join a PreMed program and major in biology. Dooley’s love of service, adventure, and life itself inspired her to continue her studies towards fulfilling her passion for science while also helping those around her. Although college and life after high school is daunting to some,

Dooley anticipates her future with excitement as she recognizes it as a chance to expand her mind and exercise her developed skillset. As for Scouts, Dooley takes the lessons she learned in the program wherever she goes. “Scouts has taught me many things, but most importantly it taught me how to be a leader and how to be a mentor. I hope that moving forward I will continue helping others grow to greater heights,” says Dooley.

Joining the Scouts program and working her way up to Eagle Scout rank has evidently shaped Dooley into the strong, kind individual that she is today. To Dooley, being an Eagle Scout is “a symbol of being a leader, being morally strong and always willing to serve others.” While

many MSHS students look up to Dooley, Dooley has always admired the other Eagle Scouts in her life. Being in District 14 her while life, Dooley was told to change the future, to be something great. “In school we learn about women who take charge and achieve new things,” she says, “When this opportunity became available to me I knew I needed to embrace it”.

Although Dooley is set to graduate from the halls of MSHS this spring, her imprint of service, humility, and dedication will remain for decades.

Dooley embodies the true character of an Eagle Scout, and she “will continue to live by the Scout oath and law” as she heads toward her bright future.

Miss Wendy’s Jokes for the Journey 1. What did the horse say when he tripped and fell down? Help, I’ve fallen and I can’t giddy–up.

2. What sound does a bird’s phone make? Wing wing!

3. What kind of bird sticks to sweaters? A vel-crow.

4. What do you call a cow that eats your grass? A lawn moo-er.

5. What do you get when you cross a dog with a telephone? A golden receiver.

6. What breed of dog can do magic tricks? Labracadabrador.

7. What did the judge say when the skunk walked in the court room? “Odor in the court!”

8. What do dentists call their x-rays? Toothpicks!

9. How many tickles does it take to make an octopus laugh? Ten-tickles.

10. What did the mommy buffalo say to her baby boy as he graduated high school and went off to college? “Bi-son!”

Page 8

One Last Ride: Senior Relection

By Mahlia Glass

Senior Sunrise. Seniors gather together on August 21st for Senior Sunrise at Bear Creek Park. Senior Sunrise is a tradition that symbolizes the start of the school year.

Seniors will meet again on the last day of school for a Senior Sunset to “close off ” the school year. This year, participation was up dramatically as seniors took stock of their “Pandemic Senior Year” ahead.

Left: Rylan Dowling, Sierra Dooley, Spencer McCumber, Lauren Boyd, Abby Carlson, Lanna Searle, Lindsey Dwinell, Davis Ortonward, Chloe Donegan, Dana Gutiérrez-Santos, Tera DeRemus, Grace Trahey, Heidi Martin, Caden Harris, Ellie Wickes, Alexis Harper, Grace Olson, Isaiah Thomas, George Cerneck, Audrey Speicker, Lars Marquardt, Mahlia Glass, Joah Armour, Porter Fredrickson, Michael Vanderwerff, Travis Flett, Kat Yenne, Wally Hoehne, Sophia McKeown, Jesse Jorstad, Brian Blake, Harleigh Moreno, Kianu Flores.

MSHS Journalism photo file

Not only was the stress rising as the class of 2021 prepared for their senior year, seniors were also living through the added-on stress of a pandemic. Through all of the quarantines, online classes, canceled events, and covid outbreaks, there were also many positive things to remember.

To start off the 2021 school year, the seniors got together as a class for a senior sunrise.

Not being able to have the sunrise in its usual spot on the MSHS track, seniors met at Bear Creek park to eat donuts and watch the sunrise together before the first day of school. This was the last time most of the seniors were in one place

together.

Being on lockdown for almost 15 weeks, the Manitou volleyball team used volleyball as their outlet. The team used their free time during the summer and the first few weeks of school to get together and play outdoor grass volleyball on the high school practice field.

Getting outside every day and being able to see close friends for a couple of hours made staying home a little bit easier.

The volleyball team was able to start building connections early in the year so they could have a great season in the spring.

Seniors, Mahlia Glass and Sophia McKeown played huge leadership roles on the team and were 100%

ready for their season to begin. When everyone thought that things were just starting to get back up again Manitou had a bad outbreak within the football team. The whole football team and anyone they were in contact with had to be full-time online and were not able to come to school or participate in anything going on. The football season got pushed back to the spring and was now going to happen during boys soccer and volleyball.

With football now being in a new season, there was lots of new interest in people now wanting to play. The girls basketball team was during season B and after getting cut short last year, they were ready to have a successful season. Being so close to

the end of the season a positive test forced the whole basketball program to quarantine for two weeks missing many important games making them unable to make it to playoffs.

After a long time, things were finally starting to get back up in running.

Although girls volleyball and football are originally supposed to be part of the fall season, they were pushed back to the spring.

Volleyball got off to a great start to their season with a 3-0 record. Football doing the same with a 2-1 record so far. Football has a very strong senior class full of great leaders. All 12 seniors goal for the season is to make it to the state playoffs for the first time in a while. Theatre class was able to get started on

productions and senior Morrigan Williams has had the honor to be a student director this year. A big project she was in charge of was the Theatre Buffet and getting all of the pieces put together for that.

For choir, theatre, and band they were unable to have performances and productions in the first semester. As the second semester rolled around, band was able to start sending people to virtual competitions, choir was doing outdoor and virtual performances, and theatre was able to do outdoor productions while also doing fun activities in class. With activities back in action students were also very excited about being fully in person.

Being full in-person

school also meant student sections at events, eating lunch with friends, walking the track with other classmates, and seeing people in the hallway every day.

As senior year is coming to an end, seniors get to look forward to many positive things to finish off their high school years. Things like prom, homecoming, yearbook distribution and signing, award ceremonies, graduation, and a normal college experience in the Fall. Although homecoming is usually in the beginning of the year it is an exciting thing to end senior year on.

FuelEd seniors learn from home

By The Prospector Staff

way- or in a negative way, and that’s okay! I got the chance to do something a lot of people don’t do, and I learned a lot more about me and focused on growing with that person.”

Photo courtexy of Avrie Tomsik

Senior year online. Senior Avrie Tomsik works on her FuelEd course work in her room this year.

While most members of the Class of 2021 juggled changing school formats and quarantines, Araceli Roldan and Avrie Tomsik opted to complete their senior year online through the district’s FuelEd option. Both Roldan and Tomsik decided to complete senior year online because they prioritized keeping their high risk family members safe. Roldan, who lived with an aunt with stage IV pancreatic cancer, felt that the decision was the best

for her situation. “I knew I didn’t want to go back for the first semester because I wanted to spend any and all moments I could with [my aunt]. Not only did I grow closer with her in her last six months, but I also grew a lot closer with my other family members,” Roldan said.

Both Roldan and Tomsik found other benefits to FuelEd. “It was nice having the flexibility in creating my own schedule.

With no due dates, it

was great to be able to work and do school without too much stress.

It also allowed me to be around my family more often and do school in the comfort of my own room. I felt like I learned a lot and was able to do very well,” Tomsik said.

Roldan also enjoyed the time she had to herself this year: “I know it may sound silly, but in four years you realize that you change a lot,” she explained, “and you may change in a positive

In the end, both Tomsik and Roldan felt that their decision to spend their senior year at home completing FuelEd was a positive experience.

Both seniors thrived in their work and were able to grow personally and become closer to their families. Next year, Avrie Tomsik plans to attend UCCS and major in Criminal Psychology.

Araceli Roldan is taking a much needed semester off to spend time to discover what she really wants to do with her life.

Of course, spending senior year at home wasn’t always easy. “I missed being able to see friends and having direct contact with a teacher. Even though I enjoyed teaching myself, it is always nice having a teacher you can easily talk to if you need help, so I missed that aspect of on-campus learning a lot,” Tomsik said. Roldan felt the same way. “A person I missed from school was my advisory teacher Mrs. Kerrigan; she was a safe place at school. Not only her as a person, but her classroom was a safe space. She never judged you for who you were, and she let you be you.

She could talk to you about your feelings, and made sure you were okay.

As a teenager growing up and not knowing who you are, it’s always nice to have Photo Courtesy of Araceli Roldan Working Girl. Araceli Roldan cleans the bathroom at a person/place to go to,” Raising Cane’s with co-worker Mia Proctor at closing.

Roldan said.

Page 9

Senior Art Showcase

By: Lukas Jacobson

By: Lauren Boyd

By: Lanna Searle

By: Julius Kovats By: Katrina yenne

By: Chloe Donegan

By: Audrey Spiecker

Page 10

MSHS Athletes Commit To College Sports

By Rebecca Davis

Photo courtesy of Mahlia Glass

Photo courtesy of Mahlia Glass

Mahlia Glass signs her letter of intent to play volleball at Butler Community College in her home. Usually athletes have signing parties at school, but the pandemic made that impossible this year. Glass and her family hosted a party in their home instead.

Sports are a well loved and valued aspect of many students’ lives at Manitou Springs High School.

Like other activities, sports have a common goal of teamwork, competition, and support. The games and competitions signify more than just that, however.

Playing a sport, whether it be volleyball, basketball, soccer, swimming, or track events, requires a high level of passion, consideration, and desire for more.

Playing a collegiate sport accomplishes all of these aspects. The senior class of 2021 has seven athletes who have committed to participate at the collegiate level: Joah Armour and Isaiah Thomas (basketball), Mahlia Glass (volleyball), Lindsey Dwinell and Bella Kuzbek (swimming), Spencer McCumber (soccer), and Heido Martin (cycling).

Joah Armour and Isaiah Thomas will both play basketball for Nebraska Wesleyan University in Omaha, Nebraska next year. Armour is a talented basketball player at MSHS who wants to continue to play in college because he “just likes playing [basketball].” Although he is not sure what he is majoring in yet, Armour is looking forward to his experiences playing basketball for Nebraska Wesleyan. Isaiah Thomas has also committed to playing basketball and attending Nebraska Wesleyan.

Thomas is interested in studying sports medicine because of his experiences with playing sports throughout high school. Thomas is so excited for his time playing for Wesleyan and hopes to achieve his goals doing so.

Glass celebrates at a home game last season before the pandemic forced the team to wear masks during games and practice.

Mahlia Glass has signed to play volleyball at Butler Community College in El Dorado, Kansas. Glass has been a star athlete throughout middle school and high school in Manitou Springs, and she is very proud of all her hard work and determination.

Friends, family and coaches have made a lasting impact on her. Glass states that being confident has supported her when reaching her goals, and has from a young age. Congratulations to Mahlia Glass and her signing to play volleyball for Butler Community College!

Spencer McCumber is also a high performing athlete.

McCumber plays soccer as a goalkeeper and will be attending Marion University in Indianapolis, Indiana. After many years of playing for the Manitou boys’ team, as well as playing for PRIDE Soccer Club, McCumber says his biggest motivators are his parents and coaches. McCumber is looking forward to meeting new teammates and making lasting friendships during his time at Marion University.

Lindsey Dwinell has signed to participate in swimming for Ottawa University in Surprise, Arizona. She has been working so hard to meet her goal of swimming in college. Dwinell has been so positively impacted by improving herself and other teammates. These have helped her persevere through some of her struggles and made the best memories.

She has been on the Swimming and Diving team for Manitou throughout high school and has had an

Photo courtesy of Heidi Martin

Heidi Martin spends a good amount of her time cycling. Martin track cycles (above), long distance road bikes, and mountain bikes.

amazing experience with that. Dwinell is looking forward to new challenges and improving herself in college, both learning academically and in the water.

Like Dwinell, Bella Kuzbek will be swimming for a college team. Kuzbek is a current record holder for Manitou’s Swimming and Diving team, and has been swimming most of her life. Kuzbek has been motivated mostly by her amazing coaches and how they have helped her love swimming.

Her goals moving forward are to improve herself and be a stronger athlete and new experiences.

Congratulations to Bella Kuzbek for an amazing season and good luck in future swimming at Roger Williams University in Bristol, Rhode Island!

Finally, world class cyclist, Heidi Martin. Martin has signed to cycle for Lees-McRae College in Banner Elk, North Carolina. She has been training hard on her road bike, but she also has participated on the Manitou Mountain Monsters team for a few years.

Being a well thought of student and being involved in many extracurricular activities, Martin is most inspired by her friends and coaches she has gained along the way. She is so excited for cycling in the next few years.

Manitou Springs High School is so proud of these student athletes and all their hard work.

Congratulations to Joah, Isaiah, Mahlia, Spencer, Lindsey, Bella, and Heidi. Good luck and we can’t wait to see your successes!

Photo courtesy of Heidi Martin

Martin enjoys mountain biking in her free time, which is extremely different than cycling. The sports use different bikes and gear.

Page 11

Bringing Home Homecoming

By Jalen Lindh The senior class of Manitou Springs High School are finally ready to close a chapter on their years of school.

This year, Homecoming was a part of their last chapter.

Homecoming has been a tradition for many schools, since the year 1914. That’s been 107 years since the first Homecoming game; yet, Manitou Springs High School is still carrying out that tradition, even in a pandemic that has upended almost every other tradition. What made Homecoming 2020-2021more special and more unique was the fact that everyone had to fight COVID-19.

Every student is aware that COVID-19 is to blame for all of the cancelled activites this school year - the reason many seniors couldn’t partake in the things

that they love before it is time for them to graduate and move on.

But through it all, they managed to pull one last thing, one last victory out of all the bad luck.

They brought together a Homecoming, and it went out with a bang.

Every year, as Homecoming tradition goes, the school dedicates each day of the week to do something to show and express school spirit. This year there were only four days of the week that got dedicated to school spirit, due to SATs being taken on the Wednesday of that week. Monday was the classic, wear your pjs to school day. Senior Brian Blake’s Elf pjs were stunning. Tuesday was Decades day, where each grade was designated a certain hallway. STUCO members decorated each hallway according to their designated decade. The seniors got to delve into

the 70s, while juniors were in the classic 80s. The sophomores got to dress as if they were in the 90s, while the freshman had to dress as if they lived in the early 2000s. Then on Thursday, it was wear your class color, where the students wear whatever color that represents their graduation year. Friday was spirit day, where students could wear green and gold, while the seniors wore the traditional senior toga.

MSHS Journalism photo file

Spirit Week. Senior Brian Blake rocks his Elf pjs on the first day of Spirit Week 2021.

cheered.

MSHS Journalism photo file

Seeing Double. Senior Homecoming Court members Sophie McKeown, Thor Flett, and royalty, Dana Gutierrez, Caden Harris, and Grace Trahey pose with Esteban Munoz (disguised as Finn Evans) and the real Finn Evans, who flipped onto the field late.

The Homecomig football game against Clear Creek was on Friday night. And oh boy, what a game it was.

The Manitou Springs High School football team played an exceptional game on the night of April 16th, 2021.

Exceptionally well, isn’t really the right way to describe what happened, but in short, Manitou mopped the floor against their opponents.

“Y’know, most people just look at the score of the game, and think to themselves, ‘What a game!’ But I believe that it was the kids on that field that made it happen. Just six days of dedication to that day, to really come through and shine,” said Coach Jeck.

Homecoming week was also a week of sports.

Volleyball, Boys Soccer, and Football played multiple games, with great fan turnout. All teams did well this season despite COVID-19. The Powder Puff tradition continued as well. The senior girls took on the underclassmen girls in a game of football, while boys coached and dressed up like cheerleaders and

“I think that we got really lucky to be able to play this season. I believe that the leading senior group did a great job. Not just them but the coaching staff as well. It was a group effort to be able to pull everything together. And I think that the effort that the students portray is just about anything that a coach could ask for.”

The Manitou Mustangs won the Homecoming game, 58-0.

The only thing missing was the fireworks. It truly was an epic game that night, that the football team could go home and brag about.

Role Reversal. Far Left: Seniors Mariah Stevens and Abigail Kilpela rush to the endzone while coaches Lars Marquardt and Caden Harris look on from the side line. The seniors didn’t think that they would get the chance to play Powder Puff this year.

Giving Thanks. Left: Senior Thor Flett poses with his parents duing Senior Night. Flett played with intensity and was an integral part of the Mustang 58-0 victory.

Below: Team leader and defensive power house Nathan Hass poses with his mom, Holly Hass, during Senior Night before the game. Hass played with passion and grit during his last game.

He will attend Colorado State University next year with many of his teammates.

MSHS Journalism photo file MSHS Journalism photo file

But Homecoming was much more than the football game. Before kick-off was Senior Night for the football team and the cheer team.

Players walked under the Manitou banner with their families and other important people in their lives as they expressed their thanks with a rose.

Then, during half-time of the game, the school gathered to find out the winners of the Homecoming Court that night.

The Homecoming Court is where usually two students are picked from each grade, 9th-12th. Then one male is chosen to become the Homecoming King, while

one female is chosen to become Homecoming Queen. In Manitou, this tradition changed several years ago to be non-gendered, allowing students to vote for the people despirte their gender.

There was a three-way tie this year. The students who were crowned that night were Caden Harris, Dana Gutierrez, and Grace Trahey.

Homecoming came late this year, but it came and for many Manitou seniors, it won’t be easily forgotten.

MSHS Journalism photo file

Page 12

a Letter from the President

by Caden Salladay Storytelling is a tale as old as time. The end of our story in Manitou is only the beginning of our story as human beings. We have traversed the halls of this school, wide-eyed and scared, small freshman in a big, big world. Small fish in a small pond. We met new people, laughed, cried, and stressed about silly school work all the while making the memories of our lives that will stick with us forever. Oh the power of memories. Each of us held a brush in painting these memories and leaving impressions deep within the crevasse of our minds. It is not the endless work or the simple problems that seem to be big deals now that we will remember. It’s the smiles of our friends as we watch eagerly as our football team scores or the cheering alongside our basketball players in the League Championship game. Even the small things like the high fives in the hallways and the “good mornings’’ from Mrs. Wendy and staff.

I know as a senior there are a lot of freshmen and sophomores that we are leaving behind this year.

My message to you is to never lose that spark in your eyes, that innocent goofy part of yourself.

Continue to make memories and friends as you grow ever closer to being a senior, and never forget that we may be gone, but we are never far away and will always

remember you. It feels like we said hello to so many of you six months ago and goodbye rests at our feet as we look to the future and into the eyes of the people who have impacted us the most.

This year we say goodbye to those important people and to the family we have made here at Manitou Springs High School. We say goodbye to the teachers who have changed our lives.

We say goodbye to the countless friends we have found along the way and we cry. Not because the trip is over but because it happened in the first place. This school has been our home for the last four years and though it was only temporary, we left our mark - in the halls and in the minds of our mentors. And it left an impression on us. On each of our hearts there is a horseshoe branded.

Forever will this place be a part of us. It was there to witness the countless hours of practices, the constant laughs of friends, and the connections made forever. I like to think that when the Class of 2021 leaves this building it will remember us. Not by the problems of the times, but by the memories made in these halls.

Where the stained echo of our voices joins the thousands of others before us, and we say our final farewell. Something that will forever be ingrained in the walls for every generation after us to hear.

Photo Courtesy of Caden Salladay

Salladay Brothers. Student Body President Caden Salladay (right) stands with his “little” brother, junior Parker Salladay. The Salladay brothers have been involved in the Manitou Springs High School community since Kindergarten.

A memento to those past, and those yet to come.

This is Caden Salladay, and as a student here I bid you farewell and good luck. Don’t get lost and always remember where you came from. And remember everyone you met along the way. Cherish every moment and know when it is your time to go. Thank you all for the best years of our lives.

We couldn’t be more grateful, and we will see you soon-another day or another time, but sometime because we know we are never far from home.

Salad, Signing off.

To the class of 2021

By Dr. Moen To the class of 2021, There’s been much talk of loss: loss of learning, loss of experiencing, loss of freedoms, loss of responsibilities, loss of connections loss of traditions loss of accountability loss of...so much.

There’s been much talk of loss.

What if it’s not loss at all, but legacy?

Your legacy, dear ones, is one of resiliency.

You are stronger now for these challenges--overcome Your ability to cope has grown You are so much stronger than you’ve ever known.

You’ve gained perspective You’ve gained wisdom for what’s valuable You’ve gained shared jokes, shared hugs, shared time with friends You’ve gained in-person classes with your favorite teachers You’ve gained remote classes in your teachers’ homes You’ve gained appreciation for projects with your most trusted friend

You’ve gained, not lost, so much.

You’ve grown more fully into yourself-And no matter where you roam As you traverse the world of your dreams, Know that you can handle all of the obstacles on your road of trials-You’ve got this, whatever this is.

You’ve gotten through harder things.

And you’re not in it alone; No matter where you venture, Know that we are by your side, cheering you on.

Love, Doc P.S. If I may impart a piece of advice: Boldly invest in yourself in order to boldly be yourself.

Be bold, my dearest class of 2021

This publication is created and designed by the MSHS Journalism Class for the enjoyment of seniors and their families. Special thanks to Mr. Rogge and the yearbook class for their contributions. The prospector is advised by Mrs. Kerrigan.

Jack Embery, Jalen Lindh, and Colt Henricks