Jacket Spotlight

By:TheBleedingOrangeStaff

When a student joins a group their freshman year of high school, they often don’t realize that they are actually joining a second family When people work together fivedaysa week for four-years, hitting deadlines, preparing for contests, seeing each other’s highs and lows, you become attached in an unexpectedway

Every year, the staff dedicated articles to our graduating staff members as a way to say “goodbye,” but also “thank you” Thank you for the memories, the editing, keeping us organized, and your dedication to this staff which took up quite a bit of thetimeyouspent here over the lastfouryears Thisyearwehave four staff members headed out into the real world, and we will certainly feel their absence next yearwhenwereturn Atthesametime,we are looking forward to seeing what the future holds for them Thank you for all you’ve done for our little paper: Cora Creech, Katelyn Anderson, Carmen Lawless, and Baylee Marcum

Katelyn is known for her spunky attitude and ability to add humor to almost any situation

“On the first UIL trip that I went on, I remember that Katelyn, Izzy, and I were in the back seat,” sophomore Nikki Silas said “She started singing “Baby” by Justin Bieber and was kinda off-key, but she definitely made the song more fun than normal And her “I don’t care about what anyone thinks” personality is just fun to be around in school and outside of school”

Journalism teacher Amanda Warewillalso misstheenergyforwhichKatelynisknown

Carmen is definitely leaving her mark on thejournalismprogram

“Unlike Katelyn,Carmencameinquietly,” journalism teacher Mrs Amanda Ware said “I’m not sure she realized, at first, just how good at this she was going to be During her junior year, she wasthefirstjournalismstudent I have ever had make it to the state level (and as far as I know, shewasthefirstEFstudentto do that as well) Carmen is, simply put, the kind of student every teacher wants in their classroom She’s dedicated, punctual, and helpful She became a role model for many of the students joining the program because she set the bar high One of the highlights of my teaching career was letting her (and hermom!) know that we were headed to Austin I know that once shesetshermindtosomething,sheis unstoppable We are all going to miss her so much but I am excited to watch this next c

As graduation draws near, staff members reflect onCora’swelcomingattitudeandability tohelp

“I’ve enjoyed having Cora on the staff,” junior Jaicey Rich said “I remember freshman year when she was one of the only ones who made me feel welcomed Over the years, she hashelpedmealotasajournalist”

JournalismteacherAmandaWareis nervousaboutlosinghersenioreditor,whohas becomesomuchmorethroughtheyears

“Well, if people think I’m scattered now, wait until they see me after Cora graduates,” Ware said “She wasn’t just my student- Cora kept me sane She reminded me about deadlines (or just anything she knew was on my to-do list that needed to be completed), edited and often arranged the papercompletely by herself, and has even beenknowntotellme to stop whining! Ha! I’ve had her every year since she was a freshman, and this year, I had her three times a day I honestly don’t know what Iamgoingtodowhensheleavesme Ido know I will bebuyingsomebluebecauseIwill definitely have to see her pitching at the collegiate level She’s taking a piece of my hearttoKansas,butIcouldn’tbeprouderofthe young woman she’s become over the last four years”

“Oh, Katelyn,” Ware said, “where do I start? When Katelyn Anderson first arrived to my journalism class, she wasaballofenergy I didn’t know what in the world I was going to do with her But it didn’t take long before her spunky attitude earned her a big ‘ole place in my heart, and I realized she could easily channel all of that energy and wit into exactly what we needed for our paper and our class She is a big goofball with a huge heart, and I can’t imagine the last four years without her I am going to miss seeing her everyday, but I think she also knows I will hunt her down if she doesn’t stay in touch I’m excited to see w

Bayleejoinedthestaffasaseniorthisyear, but she jumped rightinandfoundherstrengths quickly She competed in one of our most challenging events at district UIL competition, copy editing, and she secured 3rd place, advancing to regional competition Although we wish we could have had her all four years, we are grateful she decided to join The BleedingOrangeforherfinalyearatEFHS

Staff members had nothing but positive things to say when talking about this sweet senior

“I met Carmen during my freshman year while she was a junior,” sophomore Elleanna Gonzalez said “The day I met her I knew she was going to beoneofmyfavorites Carmenis just such a funny person, and she keeps it so real I am really sad that this is her last year here because we just started to get close this year I will miss CarmendeeplybutIknowshe will be offtodobiggerandbetterthingsinlife I love her so much, and I know she will continuetogrowandsucceedinlife”[cont]

“I’ve been so impressed with Baylee this year,” journalism teacher Amanda Ware said “It typically takes several years for students to be ready to compete at the level required for journalism UIL events, but Baylee came in ready to learn She picked up AP style very quickly, and she was a huge asset to the journalism team I’ve enjoyed having her a second year (after having her for English III last year), and I am so happy she decided to give journalism a chance I look forward to seeing what she does in the future She’s a smart, hard-working young lady who I truly believecandoanythingshesetshermindto”

Junior Yzabella Brown was excited to learn that Marcum would be joining the staff thisyear

“Baylee and I connect on a differentlevel, with things that have happened in our past and working together in journalism and on the softball field,” Brown said “She is incredibly bright, and her ideas areamazing Thiswasher first year, and whilethisismysecond,wehave learned things together and grown in journalism as individuals and as a class I'm kinda disappointed thatthiswasherfirstyear,I wouldhavelovedtoworkwithhermore!”

By:L.Smith

InvestigationstryingtogettheWi-Fi code,longtalksinthefive-minutegrace periodbetween2ndand3rdperiodand smilescoveredinmetalwiring The four-yearperiodofhighschoolforthe 2023seniorsisending,butthememories andlessonsarestillalive

SeniorChevyHeltonplanstofurther hereducationandpursueanursingdegree followinghighschool,andshewilltake thelessonsshelearnedinhighschoolwith her

“Ithink,whenitcomestothelastfour years,I’velearnednottotakepeople’s opinionstoheart,”Chevysaid

Whilehighschoolbringsimportant lessons,manygraduatingseniorsstillfeel theyhavealottolearn

“Talkingtotherecruitersattheschool helpedmemakemydecision,”senior CollynThomassaid “Iwanttobe independent,andIthinktheMarinescan helpmewiththat”