Photo of the Week- Feb. 11
Photo Courtesy of Megan Vanvalkenburg
Posing in a picture with her family, senior Megan VanValkenburghsigns her National Letter of Intent to be a part of the swim and dive team at Butler University next fall. VanValkenburg committed and signed in December, but signing day at school occurred on February eighth. “All of the support from everyone on signing day made [committing] feel very real now. I feel like every little step I have taken in this process has led to that moment,” Vanvalkenburg said. “I have always loved the campus and location of the school, but [the girls on the women’s swim and dive team at Butler] made me feel a part of their team on my visit, that’s when I knew I wanted to spend my next four years there.”
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![Crouching back and preparing to lunge, freshman Matt Lancia points his faux sword toward his opponent. Lancia, as part of his English 1 class, reenacted a scene from “Romeo and Juliet” to better understand the story. “It showed me how people fought very long ago,” Lancia said. “[My favorite part of the unit] is probably all the activities we do. I’m a very energetic person and I don’t sit still.”](https://pwestpathfinder.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/unnamed-1-240x150.png)
![Carefully arranging chemicals with a pipet, senior Grant Meert works to identify unknown solutions in an AP Chemistry lab. After completing the AP Chemistry exam, Meert’s class participated in a lab competition to celebrate the end of the course. “It was very fun. It allowed me to relax and have a good time after a full year of busting my butt in that class. It was both relaxing and intense because [the] score we submitted determined the amount of extra credit points we were given,” Meert said.](https://pwestpathfinder.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/image1-1-240x150.jpg)
![At the Teacher Appreciation game, junior Maddie Jennings cradles the lacrosse ball and runs up the court against the O’Fallon Panthers. The team won 8 to 5. “[As the season closes] things got real. It was not about your record anymore. It was about staying in [the game] and surviving as long as possible,” Jennings said. “It was fun because things were starting to come together and we worked well together as a team.”](https://pwestpathfinder.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/DSC_0970-copy-240x150.jpg)
![Standing in front of a crowd, senior Molly Glisson performs one of her five solos in the Jazz Choir concert April 25. Glisson performed in the Jazz Choir all four years and enjoyed hanging out with her team members outside of school. “Jazz is such a special genre to sing, and I enjoy[ed] doing it a lot. Being able to sing such a fun style with such fun people [was] my favorite part of being in this group,” Glisson said. “[Being a senior brought] a sentimental feeling [to the show] just because I have been singing so long, and it’s coming to an end so fast. I’m sad but also thankful for the opportunities I have gained from being in this group and the people I have met.”](https://pwestpathfinder.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/DSC_7440-copy-240x150.jpg)
![Freshman Evelyn Fitzpatrick and sophomores Risa Cidoni and Hanna Wentzel work together in Honors Biology 2 to dissect owl pellets. Due to the nature of this hands-on experiment, Cidoni found herself weary at first but was still interested in learning how to dissect the pellets. “You had to literally touch the pellet and do stuff with it, and it was not as bad as you would think it would be. I think the lab was supposed to teach that you don’t have to be scared of dissecting something,” Cidoni said. “This lab was fun. It seemed scary, but it wasn’t as bad [as I imagined]. It was more hands-on than other labs, and that made it more enjoyable.”](https://pwestpathfinder.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/DSC_0006-copy-240x150.jpg)
![Crouching back and preparing to lunge, freshman Matt Lancia points his faux sword toward his opponent. Lancia, as part of his English 1 class, reenacted a scene from “Romeo and Juliet” to better understand the story. “It showed me how people fought very long ago,” Lancia said. “[My favorite part of the unit] is probably all the activities we do. I’m a very energetic person and I don’t sit still.”](https://pwestpathfinder.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/unnamed-1-475x353.png)
![Carefully arranging chemicals with a pipet, senior Grant Meert works to identify unknown solutions in an AP Chemistry lab. After completing the AP Chemistry exam, Meert’s class participated in a lab competition to celebrate the end of the course. “It was very fun. It allowed me to relax and have a good time after a full year of busting my butt in that class. It was both relaxing and intense because [the] score we submitted determined the amount of extra credit points we were given,” Meert said.](https://pwestpathfinder.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/image1-1-475x317.jpg)
![At the Teacher Appreciation game, junior Maddie Jennings cradles the lacrosse ball and runs up the court against the O’Fallon Panthers. The team won 8 to 5. “[As the season closes] things got real. It was not about your record anymore. It was about staying in [the game] and surviving as long as possible,” Jennings said. “It was fun because things were starting to come together and we worked well together as a team.”](https://pwestpathfinder.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/DSC_0970-copy-475x317.jpg)
![Standing in front of a crowd, senior Molly Glisson performs one of her five solos in the Jazz Choir concert April 25. Glisson performed in the Jazz Choir all four years and enjoyed hanging out with her team members outside of school. “Jazz is such a special genre to sing, and I enjoy[ed] doing it a lot. Being able to sing such a fun style with such fun people [was] my favorite part of being in this group,” Glisson said. “[Being a senior brought] a sentimental feeling [to the show] just because I have been singing so long, and it’s coming to an end so fast. I’m sad but also thankful for the opportunities I have gained from being in this group and the people I have met.”](https://pwestpathfinder.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/DSC_7440-copy-475x317.jpg)
![Freshman Evelyn Fitzpatrick and sophomores Risa Cidoni and Hanna Wentzel work together in Honors Biology 2 to dissect owl pellets. Due to the nature of this hands-on experiment, Cidoni found herself weary at first but was still interested in learning how to dissect the pellets. “You had to literally touch the pellet and do stuff with it, and it was not as bad as you would think it would be. I think the lab was supposed to teach that you don’t have to be scared of dissecting something,” Cidoni said. “This lab was fun. It seemed scary, but it wasn’t as bad [as I imagined]. It was more hands-on than other labs, and that made it more enjoyable.”](https://pwestpathfinder.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/DSC_0006-copy-475x317.jpg)
![In Fashion Merchandising on Tuesday, students worked on designing unique dresses for Barbie. After taking the Fashion and Apparel class, junior Alia Hammad found herself deeply interested in learning more about fashion and wanted to continue expanding her knowledge and practice. “It is a huge hobby for me,” Hammad said. “I designed this dress in pink because it was for a Barbie, and Barbie’s are always pink for me. [I wanted to make] a fancy design, so I added a bit of sparkle and made it off the shoulder.”](https://pwestpathfinder.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/DSC_0037-copy-475x317.jpg)
![Wednesday and Thursday seniors gathered in the cafeteria to create the hand wall for 2023. Senior Joseph Britt removes his hand from the wall, leaving his mark amongst the other handprints of peers. “There’s that knowledge that we are passing down with our legacy. The hand wall is a visual representation of [our legacy] to show that we were here,” Britt said. “I remember voting [for the design] a while back and I liked the Monopoly board a lot. Seeing some of the other hand walls that are up there I like ours [the most].”](https://pwestpathfinder.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/unnamed-475x356.jpeg)
![After three months of preparation for the first annual blood drive, National Honor Society (NHS) President and senior Nikita Bhaskar lays in one of the stretchers holding senior Jame Wild’s hand as she donates blood. The blood drive gathered 61 bags of blood to donate to ImpactLife. “I loved seeing the NHS volunteers shine. Katie Jauss, Jame Wild and [senior] Adam Lancia choreographed dances to perform in front of the donors to distract them, and it genuinely brightened the event. They let their personalities shine to help others, and I felt thats what NHS is all about. It was inspiring to see,” Bhaskar said. “Knowing that I could save three lives by donating a pint of my blood made it a no-brainer; donating was an easy choice.](https://pwestpathfinder.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/DSC_0007-1-475x317.jpg)
![Celebrating in Victory Village during Special Olympics, junior Caitlin Brandmill and her buddy Franchesca Chevalie decorate a paper bag to hold her crafts, like necklaces and slime. Brandmill wanted to participate in the Special Olympics because she thought it was an excellent opportunity to make an impact in the Parkway community. “I loved all of it. I had so much fun getting to know Franchesca and all the kids in our group,” Brandmill said. “My favorite part was making slime, but also basketball was fun because a lot of the athletes were getting into [the activity].”](https://pwestpathfinder.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/DSC_0157-1-475x317.jpg)
![Learning the chemistry behind how popcorn pops, juniors Talie Seers and Nykira Johnson use a beaker clamp to shake a beaker full of popcorn kernels and cover the beaker with a sheet of mesh. The lab helped Seers better understand the kinetic molecular theory concept. “My favorite part [of the class] is how Mrs. Robert leads the class. We get to do labs pretty often which helps me understand the material more and it all ties into what we were learning,” Seers said. “The hardest part was being impatient and waiting for the popcorn to pop and see if we actually did [the lab] right.”](https://pwestpathfinder.com/wp-content/uploads/2130/03/DSC_0189-1-copy-475x317.jpg)
