Michael Tigue
“Something I’m proud of is how much weight I have lost, and the amount of muscle I have gained back. At the start of quarantine, I was around 220 pounds, and I just wasn’t satisfied with how I looked. I felt pretty pressured by social media influencers, and that’s something that motivated me to want to change my lifestyle. At first, I would just play video games all day, and I was losing weight in an unhealthy way, but one day my friends started going to the gym, and I just thought it was finally time to change. Now, I’ve been going to the gym for almost two years, and I have lost around 60 pounds. I try to go almost every day because it’s just a part of my daily routine now, and it’s something that makes me happy. I also feel proud to see how much improvement I have made, but I’m still not satisfied with how I look yet. I want to be able to compete in the future with weightlifting, and I’m hoping to gain even more muscle than I have now.” – Michael Tigue, 11
More to Discover
![“I started playing basketball in first grade. I kind of played every sport when I was younger, but basketball has always been the one that stuck with me [for] the longest. Basketball is important to me because pretty much everyone in my family plays basketball, and overall, a very enjoyable sport. I’m definitely excited for basketball season. I’m hoping that we can have a pretty good team this year, win a lot of games, and have a lot of fun. My goal is to get into basketball coaching. A lot of my family is involved in that, and I think that it would be a great career for me. I really like to be a leader, and inspire people. I am really passionate about the game of basketball. Being a senior is so special because [I] get to be [a] leader [in] the school. [I] also get to help out the underclassmen, and it’s [my] last year here so I want to make the most of it, and really enjoy it. It feels great; I’m really happy that I made it through the first three years of high school and get to continue [to] further my education.” - Jamie Franciscus, 12](https://pwestpathfinder.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/DSC_0020-1-1200x800.jpg)
![”Sophomore year is going really well. I have gotten so many opportunities this year and [it has been] a big step up from last year. I didnt think that was possible. I [enjoy] playing guitar in [a] jazz band. It has led me to have more guitar [playing] skills. I get to learn how to play good riffs and get more familiar with the fretboard, which is something that I wasnt able to do by myself without a push. I love the guitar because all my idols play it, like Jimi Hendrix [and] anybody who has ever play[ed] guitar, like Rick Rubin. My band teacher has [pushed me] because I wasn’t familiar with any of the [chords] charts. I didnt even even know how to read music before this year, so that was pretty cool just to be forced into that and learn music theory. [Advice I have for new musicians is to] practice as hard as you can build up those calluses. Got to make it hurt and then you’ll be fine.” - Addison Smith, 10](https://pwestpathfinder.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/AddisonSmith10-1200x800.jpg)
![“I’m originally from Milwaukee, Wis. I started out [working] at a retail music store. to pay the bills when I was still back in Milwaukee. I could play piano since I was six and taught myself the guitar and drums. In high school I was in a band, but then I started writing music seriously when I was in college. By the time I finished college, I had enough [music saved up] to make a CD. I went ahead and loaded a CD and started promoting it. [Later] I made another EP which is a shorter [version of a] CD. In the midst of moving to St. Louis, I built a recording studio. By the time I was in St. Louis, I was actually recording a lot of my own stuff, and then I started working with rappers for a while. I was trying to find [an] angle in the music [industry], so I experimented with different things. At the end of the day, I just kind of got burnt out, and I knew that retail didnt have a future for me. So my wife just suggested that I become a teacher. I thought I liked kids, I liked history, and I already had a history degree. I liked the lifestyle of a teacher, so I decided to give it a try and it was a good choice. ” - Aaron Bashirian, History](https://pwestpathfinder.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Aaron-Bashirian-Staff.jpg)
![“Im excited for what the future holds. [Being a professional dancer] gives me a space where I can just be myself and I can transfer [my] emotions to my dance. My favorite [type of] dance is Jazz. Its really fun and there are a bunch of different styles within it. I can do a bunch of a bunch of tricks, [and] I like turns. Im most happy [when I’m with] my dance friends because they just get me. Weve grown up together, and theyre really special to me. My biggest struggle is being a perfectionist, because with being a dancer [I] have to get everything right. [I have to have] the right counts, [and do] the tricks right, so [I] just have to be perfect [in] doing things. My favorite memory is probably [going to] nationals. We won the entire competition. We got first place, and it was really fun, seeing everyone in the audience tear up. We were all so happy, we just forgot about all of our worries.” - Poppi Wright, 11](https://pwestpathfinder.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/IMG_7178-1200x800.jpg)
![“Im more than an athlete. My whole life, Ive been known as a serious athlete. I want to do sports management and coaching [in the future] because of how I was influenced by others in the sports that I love. [Although], my life has been all about sports, I want to be known for more of my personality as I get older. My favorite experience is the team atmosphere and all the different experiences and knowledge I’ve gained. Ive learned more general life lessons from sports than sitting in a classroom. I’ve learned how to step up and be a leader in the right way. I will forever be grateful for everything sports has taught me.” - Rachel Livak, 12](https://pwestpathfinder.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/IMG_6612-1200x800.jpg)
![“[High School] is definitely better than middle school. [I’ve been on] the step team [since middle school]. It’s been around for many years. What [we] do as a team is a form of cultural African American dance that originated in the 1800s to communicate without words. It has been used by sororities and fraternities for 50 plus years. In elementary, they came to perform at my school. So [then] I was interested in it and it made me want to join when I got to sixth grade. My mom has supported me every step of the way since I was in sixth grade. And she intends on doing it until I decide I don’t want to be on the team anymore. I look up to my mother because she has always put 10 toes down [ & devoted herself ] to me, and she just supports me in every way. She always has my back. [Step has] impacted my life, Ive made new friends, of course. Ive actually learned more by being on the step team. Education wise, it has [even] helped me get my grades up.” - Trent Young, 9](https://pwestpathfinder.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/DSC_0390-1200x800.jpg)
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