Ashlyn Gillespie, Deputy Managing Editor-in-Chief
• December 9, 2022
“The day that I turned 16 and went to work at Windsor in the Galleria. [I like] the people, and that it's not a hard job. [On] Black Friday, everybody was there so it's crazy busy. [My favorite part...
Samir Shaik, Multimedia Editor-in-Chief
• November 25, 2022
“My biggest passion is dance. I enjoy it because it lets me express myself and it has created so many amazing friendships. I've been dancing probably since I was three years old and it's definitely made...
“My favorite thing about [the dance team] is the community that we build every year and how much we grow together as individuals. It just makes me really happy. Being able to lead the team in the direction...
“The best part of my year has been my German exchange student, Cecile. She’s made life much more enjoyable, [and] it’s a cool experience to have someone from a different culture and to learn about...
"My parents weren't as successful as they wanted to be so they really hold my sister and me up to a high expectations. They want us to be better than they ever could, and they definitely helped me go farther....
![“[I am most proud of] having the courage to go to another country and stay here for a year without my family. Christmas was hard because I missed my family and they were doing all of this family stuff that we used to do together, and I was not there. We called almost every day that weekend. They had put a picture of me at the end of the table so I was ‘there’ for Christmas. It was really cute. My mom was an exchange student and she told me all her experiences and how fun it was. That’s why I decided to [study abroad].” - Johanne Mortensen, 11](https://pwestpathfinder.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/JM.png)
!["[The happiest moment of my life was] when I got my braces off, because I felt free; [I had them] for six years, and finally got them off in seventh grade. I didn't enjoy them, because my teeth hurt all the time and I would not want to bite down on anything unless it was soft. People say to be excited about braces, don't [be]. But I [feel] a lot more secure about my smile now, [because I think] I look better," - Sophia Metroulas, 10](https://pwestpathfinder.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/unnamed.jpeg)
![“[I was happiest during] this time in choir class in sixth grade. We were doing a show-and-tell on projects of our choice and I did mine on programming. It was a basic math program where it would simplify certain complex numbers like square roots. I found it really interesting that I could create and develop stuff without an existing engine, [and] it was a big accomplishment because it was the first program I've ever made. I felt like I had done something without anybody's help and therefore I had done something by myself in the world. I shared it with my class, it was not a very complex thing, so they weren't enthusiastic but they were definitely interested. It was a good moment for me. [I have been programming] for five years since then, and I like it more now than I did then. [Now,] I usually recreate old games like "Pong," "Asteroids" and other small things like that,” - Tyler Michajliczenko, 10](https://pwestpathfinder.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/AMichajliczenko-900x600.jpg)
!["[My happiest memory was] when I got accepted into the Sheldon choir. I've been singing my whole life, and [one day] I ran into one of the directors, they saw me, and asked [me] to come to one of their practices. I was so happy I screamed, and my mom was really happy [as well]. I don't sing with them anymore, I wanted to play basketball instead — but it was such a happy moment," - Kanya Livingston, 9](https://pwestpathfinder.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/KLivingston-900x600.jpg)
