SHS Learning and Progress

SHS LEARNING AND PROGRESS To Have Faith is to Have Wings BY KARO BEAZLEY REESE, COMMUNICATIONS DEPARTMENT INTERN

SUNNYVALE HIGH SCHOOL

“To have faith is to have wings.”

This phrase is more than dialogue in a play for the cast and crew of Vale Drama’s recent magical run of their One Act Play, Peter and The

Starcatcher — which extended through the regional competition. The words became a rallying cry for the cast, crew and director

Daniel Gambill throughout the entire One Act Play experience, which began with a scare that unfolded right before the district competition. On March 6, Gambill experienced a family emergency just as his cast and crew prepared to compete at the district competition. His three-year-old son, Grant, was very ill.

After rushing Grant to the hospital, doctors recognized that Grant — although very young — had a stroke as the result of a brain bleed.

“The head of neurology made a preliminary prediction of seven days in ICU, a couple of weeks on the neurology floor, and a month or two of in-patient therapy/rehab,” Gambill said. “That’s a total of two and a half months of living in the hospital.”

The OAP company worked through a scenario in which they would compete without their director. SMS counselor and former theater teacher Rae Harvill (who taught many of the students in the OAP company) was called in to accompany the team to their district competition.

“I knew that hearing from Gambill would ease their nerves,” Harvill said. “They were worried about him and his family, it was at the forefront of their minds. After Facetiming him before their performance, a sense of relief washed over them and they were ready to go make him proud.”

From there, the team and Grant continued to make excellent strides in a positive direction.

“They [the medical team] began medicines to help his clot heal, and within 30 minutes he quietly said his first word,” Gambill said. “Grant was not able to speak or use the right side of his body. But he spoke.”

The next day, Grant was already back to his playful self, performing sensory activities like throwing a ball to his dad and playing with play dough.

“The doctor called it ‘remarkable’ and ‘unprecedented,’” Gambill said. “He said this is better than best-case scenario.”

With the odds against them, faith prevailed. Just as it had with healing Grant so quickly, Sunnyvale went on to win first place at district competition.

“Grant was discharged on Monday, March 7,” Gambill said in a March 16 Facebook post. “Our neurologist let us know that Grant is in the top 1% of pediatric stroke victims. ‘No one heals like this.’”

RAIDER SOCCER WINS BIG WITH HISTORY-MAKING SEASON

BY KARO BEAZLEY REESE, COMMUNICATIONS DEPARTMENT INTERN

The SHS Boys’ Soccer team made school and program history this spring after making a trip to the Area Championship on March 29.

Altogether, the team broke 14 school records throughout their 2022 season. One of the record-breakers was sophomore Landon Marquez de la Plata, who scored a goal in the first ten seconds of a game.

“It was definitely a year of emotions,” sophomore Landon Marquez de la Plata said. “I feel honored that I am a part of a team with such an amazing group of guys.”

While soccer is an important sport to Sunnyvale’s spring sports lineup, many times it can be overlooked by other sports. This year, though, the team proved itself and turned heads in the Sunnyvale community. Not only did the team make it all the way to the quarterfinals, but they grew closer as a team in the process.

“The difference from this year and last year would be our chemistry as a team,” Marquez de la Plata said. “I view our team as a family and being comfortable with each other is a significant change.”

Coach Jay Campos worked hard to lead the boys to victory during their season. While it may not have ended exactly the way the team had planned, it was certainly a win on many levels.

“To be a successful program you can’t look back, nor look too far ahead,” Campos said. “We must stay focused in the present and take advantage of every day to get better and develop as a team, whether at practice or during a game.”

BPA NATIONALS

Congrats to the Business Professionals of America group’s Broadcast Journalism team, who placed second at the national competition!

The team is comprised of: Jewelin Sunny, Joanne Sebastian, Leah Mathews and Michelle Jacob.