The Official Student News Site of Parkway West High

Pathfinder
The Official Student News Site of Parkway West High

Pathfinder
The Official Student News Site of Parkway West High

Pathfinder
“Whenever I was younger, I did competitive cheer and I loved it. I was mid-competition of my cheer when my appendix ruptured. After that moment, I stopped doing competitive cheer. Obviously, it wasn't my ideal situation to be in. I wasn't very happy that I discontinued competitive cheer, but I decided that I wanted to start doing something else that filled the shoes of competitive cheer. That was tennis. My parents pushed me [to become] the player I am today. Of course, like any other athlete, I've had regrets and moments I felt proud. After all of it, I knew I was happy with the friends and the person I have become from tennis. The environment [around] tennis was just amazing. I continued playing tennis and now, freshman year, I'm on junior varsity and love it. I look forward to practices and matches after school. I love the activities we do as a team and I love how my team just bonds. Overall, taking the risk is scary but it's worth it.” - Kaitlyn Sundermeyer, 9

Kaitlyn Sundermeyer

Megan Price, CJ1 Writer • November 6, 2023

“It's nice having [my dad, senior principal Mario Pupillo] in the building, [but] It's kind of funny [because] everybody knows who he is. I [could be] walking to lunch [and see] him in the hallway. I stay after school and sit in [my dad’s] office and get most of my homework done between 2:30-4:30 p.m., [because I have] cheerleading [soon after]. [It’s good because] the workload and the amount of homework is a lot. I'm taking a few honors classes, but [they are] pretty manageable. I try not to procrastinate my homework [because] I would like to have all 'A's and 'B's. So, [going to my dad’s office after school] is really nice because I can get a lot of [homework] done before going to practice [by] having him here.” - Gabriella Pupillo, 9

Gabriella Pupillo

Sophie McCarthy, Staff Writer • October 23, 2023

"My favorite part of being on the softball team is definitely just having fun with all the girls. It’s so fun talking to them about everything and especially school-wise, because they’re older. So they can kind of help and answer questions because most of them have been in the same position. I would say I look up to all of them. I feel like they [are all] role models for the freshman. I think the hardest thing about playing softball is definitely the mental side of it. It's really hard not to [bring yourself down], but I think you just have to be confident and that will help a lot. When I have a slump, it's really difficult to get out of it. The upperclassmen, coaches, and my parents have helped a lot with my [struggles] . I feel like you just have to surround yourself with the right people that will help you." - Kennedy Shea, 9

Kennedy Shea

Rylee Fahs, CJ1 Writer • October 20, 2023

“I do cross country; I get a shirt [for running five hundred miles over the summer] and running those miles improves your endurance. I didn't think of the five hundred miles as, ‘I have to run five hundred miles.’ I [have the mindset that], six days a week, I have to run. [I] started [running] about four to five miles a day and was able to build up over the course of the summer. It's just that I had my goal; I wanted to be on varsity. I wanted to get the red legs this season, so I had my goal in mind. Red legs are a new set of warmups made up of a nicer jacket, thin hoodie, and red sweatpants, given to anyone who runs sub-18:15 in the 5k [race]. They have been a goal since I joined [the sport in] sophomore year. They are often a mark of being on varsity as well and can make you feel like you made it. I guess the same thing is true for motivating myself for school; I have my goal of keeping up my grades. Stay involved with something because it's good to have multiple [hobbies] going on. Make sure to decide what you want your focus to be. You can be involved in multiple things, but, if you want to focus on sports and school, make sure to keep it balanced. Enjoy your high school years. Have some passion in what you do.” - Ryan Smith, 12

Ryan Smith

Sage Kelly, Staff Writer • October 19, 2023

“I’m really enjoying my band classes. I'm taking both Concert and Jazz Band. I'm really having fun playing in both of those and having that community. I am in marching band and so having been able to meet people before the school year and go around the school and meet actually a couple of my teachers. It was just kind of special and nice to be able to form those relationships and be able to know who I can truly come to if I need to. I guess [people who inspire me are] the upperclassmen who I'm friends with. Just being able to see them work through like their own work and talk about the classes that they're taking and seeing them do their work whenever they can. I guess it's one of my big motivators because it kind of gives me a look into what I'll be expecting over my next four years, and it just gives me a bit of a view." - Rowan Ravenscraft, 9

Rowan Ravenscraft

Anna Wunsch, CJ1 Writer • October 18, 2023

“Even though I really love performing and practicing every day, my favorite part about the dance team has to be the people on the team and the bonds that I've made the past two years. That's really what's kept me coming back. I've made friendships on Longhorn Line that will last a long time and I have met my best friends through dance. This year, I'm taking harder classes than I did last year. So, my biggest fear going into sophomore year was having too much homework and having to either pull back on the amount of dance that I was doing on the dance team or quit dance altogether in order to get all my work done. Around this time last year, I dislocated my shoulder during a performance. It took me out of dance for a really long time while I tried to rehabilitate my shoulder. It was really hard for me because I couldn't move my arm at all. I pretty much lost any strength I had in my arm. I had to get it all back and it took a really long time. I had to work everyday to get my strength back. It was a struggle for me because I couldn't dance and I literally had to dance with one arm. A struggle for me right now is balancing everything that's going on in my life, like studio, Longhorn Line and homework. It’s hard because I try to make sure I get all my homework done, but also knowing all my routines and [being able to] go to practices and studio every night. I’m happiest at studio dance because that's where all my best friends are. When you go to the studio each night you can forget anything that happened during your day. It's kind of like a little escape from the rest of your life or whatever is happening at that moment.” - Lila Kayser, 10

Lila Kayser

Marley Wright, CJ1 Writer • October 17, 2023

“I have always wanted to play a sport that I was good at, and have [a] strong community [within] a team. I hadn’t played a sport since 6th grade so I was very excited when I made C-team lacrosse at tryouts last year. During the eighth practice of the year, I stepped in a hole in the back field [at school] and shattered my ankle. At the time, I felt like my whole team was improving while I had to sit on the sidelines. But as I have grown, I’ve realized that it brought me closer to the people on my team, but especially [my] coaches. It made me realize how close our team really was because they treated each other like family. [If someone is going through the same thing], ask them if they need help. Moving around was hard, getting to class with your bookbag, [and] going up the stairs to your house. [But] my friends were really helpful during this time, making sure I was okay and didn’t need anything. It’s important to keep your friends close to you. Especially when they go through hard times because you never know what they're actually going through.” - Kendall Conway, 10

Kendall Conway

Kate Roland, Staff Writer • September 20, 2023

“I love working with students. I love seeing ‘aha moments’ [from my students] and when things click. I enjoy offering study opportunities or travel opportunities specifically. I'm really eager to take students on trips, especially Spanish-speaking communities to see them interact in a real-world scenario with native people. The hardest part of teaching is its crazy political. There are a lot of agendas that get pushed in school and it frustrates me because it shouldn't be about agendas, administration, and politics. It should be about students and their learning and providing the best environment so sometimes it is like a dual-sided coin.” - Jessica Verweyst, Spanish

Jessica Verweyst, Spanish

Raneem Hussein, Staff Writer • August 29, 2023

“My biggest accomplishment was when I placed second at nationals for racquetball. I started playing racquetball in sixth grade because I was passionate about beating my brothers in the sport, and it was just fun. My brothers have played racquetball for years, and they inspired me to start. I did not have a winter sport, so I decided I might try racquetball. I am glad I started because I have found a good community through [the sport]. I met many nice people and made good relationships. I beat someone at state, but when [I played singles], I placed second at nationals, I felt defeated. At nationals, I played both singles and doubles. The people I lost to at nationals — [when I played doubles] were upperclassmen, a senior and a junior. Getting that far as a freshman [was] an accomplishment. Racquetball has taught me that pain is temporary and legends are forever. It is painful, but it is worth it.” - Matt Lancia, 10

Matt Lancia

Kate Roland, Staff Writer • August 28, 2023

“I’m grateful to have had the opportunity to memorize the Quran — the holy book of Islam. It has 604 pages and 114 chapters. Memorizing the holy book has a strong significance in my religion and it is very rewarding. I recite it to this day to make sure I don’t forget it. I’m the co-founder and vice president of the Muslim Student Association [at our school]. It is a club formed to create a community for Muslim students here at West. I [moved] to West from an Islamic private school and homeschooling program, so I naturally yearned for that consolidated Muslim community at West when I joined in-person [school]. I got to know many Muslims at the school, but they were scattered. In Islam, forming an ummah (a muslim community) is very significant. However, when I first came to West, I saw that there was a population of Muslim [students], but they didn’t form one solid group. So, along with one of the new senior Muslim friends that I made, we took it upon ourselves to create a club forming a solid Muslim community, and it has been great. We’ve done volunteer opportunities, projects and even Islamic board games. It really has been such a fun experience that I want to keep up next year.” – Zahraa Sajid, 12

Zahraa Sajid

Sakenah Lajkem, Staff Writer • August 25, 2023

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