Most Intriguing Seniors•pgs

“I am deaf, and strong willed.”

“I want to own my own auto shop”

“I am not sad. I’m more excited for the future.”

“Failure.”

“My older sister. She’s supportive, motivated to learn sign, and she’s always there.”

“Always chase your dreams and whatever happens, just keep going.”

“I draw, study cars, dance, write, and ride horses.”

“When I first saw my dream car – a red and white 1969 Camaro – driving next to me on the highway.”

“To work in the car industry.”

“Probably my dad. He passed away a couple years back because of brain cancer.”

“The Star-Spangled Banner. I am a patriotic person.”

“The honey badger. Have you ever seen those things? They can attack a lion.”

A lot of the people you don’t hang out with after school, but you have classes with and are nice talking to.” 22 • FEATURES

“I would say my style. I like dressing up and doing my makeup sometimes, while other times I’m lazy and don’t have the energy to. I collect dolls, I make costumes, I am currently in a beekeeping apprenticeship program, and I want to become a park ranger.”

“I just like to hang out with my friends. I don’t think I’d really like to hang out with any famous person because it would be weird, but I’d hang out with my friends.”

“My favorite memory recently. I just thought it was really fun. My dad and I went to New Mexico. We were up in the mountains and we decided to go hiking, but by the time we got to the hiking trail, it started raining. So we just went hiking in the rain and it was really fun. Another good memory was seeing a Mother Mother concert, which was my favorite concert.”

“Style wise, I would say like Siouxsie from Siouxsie and the Banshees. But as a person, I would say my dad really inspires me. He has always been really supportive of anything that I wanted to do. And also my aunt, she’s really cool.”

“I play softball, I’m in the Ready Set Teach program, and I’m in AVID. I am going to Odessa College to further my academics and softball carreer.”

A cheetah. They are quick and they can stand up for themselves when they need to.”

“Rachel Riley. She was my coach.

She played softball at the collegiate level, was extremely strong, and was overall a good person. She always knows how to light up somebody’s day.”

“I don’t really remember any specific words of advice, but I just think not being afraid to be myself and show who I am is something I’ve learned over the years.”

“I run a small engine repair business. I’m a wedding piano player, once. I like photography, hiking, moutain biking, fishing, hunting, and cooking. I drive a Jeep that I got the engine from a junkyard. I’m the president of the Bass Fishing Team. I also have a pressure washing business.”

“I want to roll down a hill in Scotland. Like tumble down a hill.”

“Cooking, smoking brisket, photography, fishing, guitar, working on engines, hiking/trail building, extreme Sudoku chemistry, level walking, hunting. I go hunting in Nacogdoches or Cisco.”

“I play softball, I’m in the Ready Set Teach program, and I’m in AVID. I am going to Odessa College to further my academics and softball carreer.”

A cheetah. They are quick and they can stand up for themselves when they need to.”

“Probably my grandpa becasue he was also a pilot, but I didn’t know him very well, so I’d say my dad, Mike.”

“I don’t know...maybe my height or my socks with Birkenclogs.”

“I don’t think high school is my peak, so the only thing I’ll be missing is my friends.”

“Rachel Riley. She was my coach.

She played softball at the collegiate level, was extremely strong, and was overall a good person. She always knows how to light up somebody’s

Kendal Rushing

“I want to teach Algebra because I find solving equations with multiple steps fun and it can be challenging at times. The main reason I want to teach is to be able to be a safe place for students and give them helpful information they can use throughout life. I would gladly teach anything if it means I can have a positive impact on students’ lives.”

“Our coach says, ‘Either you did or you didn’t,’ so you can’t give excuses for something you didn’t do.”

“The best memory was walking into the office and them giving me the green light to make my Skateboard Club because I was trying so hard for, like, weeks and months. No, years. I’ve been trying for years. And then when they were like, ‘Okay,’ I was like, ‘Okay, cool, sweet.’ That is all I was thinking about. It’s Mr. Bill’s (Bill Thorburn) room for the meetings. But after school, we go to Vandergriff Park every Wednesday.”

“My brother. He has autism. And he’s the best thing in the world. If you could met him and understand his personality, it’s amazing for him to unravel his shell around you. He is the best person in the world. If I could be anybody, he would be it.”

“I got two phones – one for the dough, one for the girls. Just playing. I only have one phone. I don’t know. I’ve never had somebody sit down with me and be like, ‘Listen, you’re gonna have to chnage the world someday.’”

“Teddy Roosevelt because of the impact he had on our National Parks.”

“In five years, I hopefully see myself getting out of college with an officer commision for a pilot slot in the Air Force or working for regional airlines before commercial airlines.”

“Freshman year, the entire wrestling team including our coaches played paintball. It was terrifying but awesome at the same time.”

“I fly planes. I am training to get my private pilot license. We have ground school some days. I rent the plane from the flight school. Everyone is on their own track but it’s usually one-on-one training. The longest flight I’ve flown is two hours. My best flights are my solo flights.”

“If you’re trying to work towards something, be patient but also persist towards your goal.”

“Crocodiles are my favorite animals, but I think I’m more like a moose. They’re the coolest out of all the deer-looking ones.”

“Bob Marley. And just Bob Marley becasue like, oh my God, do you like taking time to listen to his music and the things he says? Oh and Tupac, just because like, is he dead or alive? I’ve been seeing things I don’t know anymore. Too much speculation.”

“Math, becasue I’m just naturally, for some reason, good at it. Math because that’s the easiest subject I understand. And I feel Like I can explain it.”

“The memories of the people that I remember since kindergarten just making memeories and becoming friends with these people and just having them in my life either for a good reason or a bad one. They gave me a lesson from something and you may not know what, but you eventually will know. So I’m just gonna miss everybody that I’ve ever had a friendship with.” FEATURES • 23

“Definitely my pageant experience. I have been competing in pageant since I was eight and I have definitely grown to be more open and become a more confident person through pageantry. I love public speaking, I love community service and inspiring others. I feel like a lot of other people don’t, especially in this day and age, so I think that is what makes me more intriguing.”

“Honestly, I’m going to be open about my faith, but Jesus. I really want to know about his journey and I want to know about it one-on-one.”

“In five years I want to be out of college and pursuing my news anchor carreer. I really want to be a news anchor and just share the news with everyone. I’m going to UNT and I’m really excited about that.”

“My biggest fear is to look back on my life and feel disappointed. I have thought about that a lot. I just don’t want to look back and think I could have done a lot better. I want to know that I was successful and accomplished.”

“A Monarch butterfly because I’m free and I can’t stay in one place. I want to travel the world just like them.”

Five to seven days a week I work as a chef at the Vault in Mansfield. On average I work 50 hours a week.”

“Does it have to be one specific moment in time? Probably just when I was little. That’s really when I learned to start cooking. I learned to cook from watching TV shows and playing around in the kichen when I wasn’t supposed to.”

“Something along the lines of not reaching my potential or missing out on opportunities.”

“I see myself on the Tomorrowland stage or Miami Music Festival. Those two festivals are like my dream.”

“I make music. That’s pretty much what I do. I DJ but also I’m really into welding and mechanical stuff. I love working with my hands. I’m part of the Robotics Team. I’ve also done STEM raves in the past, like my sophmore year before Covid.”

“My sister. Right now she’s in the

NAVY and I don’t know where she is right now. She’s one of the strongest people I know.”

“Not leaving my mark, you know? I want to do something that means something and if that doesn’t happen, I guess we are just there.”

“I think part of it is my position as President for NHS. I think that’s how a lot of people know me. And also I would just say my involvement in extracurriculars. So, writing a book, illustrating for the organization Climate Science, and I also have an architecture internship at Dovetail Design Studios. I think it’s just kind of a combination of the different things I do.”

“Sal Khan from Khan Academy, becuase I was listening to an interview of his and I really admire his story and how he got to where he is. Or Henry Thoreau because I’m reading Walden, and I really like his point of view on the world and his emphasis on nature, and how you should always pay attention to it. “

“My favorite memories would be my childhood summers in Poland because my mom is from Poland, so we would go there really often. It’s one of those ingrained memories.”

“I want to go to a bunch of national parks. I travel more often overseas to visit family, so I haven’t gotten the chance to travel much in the U.S.”