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![“My biggest inspiration would have to be my father. His work ethic is amazing, and he never gives himself a break. He pushes himself to go further than he normally could. He always gives his best and tries to make my siblings and I lives as easy as possible. I admire him a lot because he is a contractor, which means he has a good amount of work to do. Whenever he works a little less on some days, he tries to push even harder the next [day] to make up for it. I try to teach my younger siblings to work just as hard and set a good example myself. I try to keep his lessons with me every day and apply them to my daily life. He is someone that I have looked up to for a long time, and he taught me to appreciate the smallest things in life.” – Tyler Grissom, 9](https://PWestPathfinder.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/image1-11-900x600.jpg)
![“The most stressful thing going on in my life is grades. Teachers put a lot of pressure on me, and they constantly challenge me with homework. I do track currently, and I did cross country during the fall and swimming during the winter. So just all of that can be stressful. There’s a lot of pressure on me from my parents because I feel like they compare everything I do to my [older sister]. Lexi was the first child, [she] was like their norm, and I have a completely different learning strategy than her. She gets things done five months ahead of time. Her room is always tidy and clean, and shes just on top of it all the time. I am the complete opposite. I do things at the last minute, right before its due. I dont keep [my room] clean until I have to. Like my life is unorganized but organized in my way. I’m happy I have my friends and family to help me with all the stress.”
— Sydney Etchason, 9](https://PWestPathfinder.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/image1-6-900x600.jpg)
![“[This season] my ice hockey team, the Rockets, won our state championship. This was my seventh year playing ice hockey, so it was very exciting to win. I remember there were just a few minutes left [of the game], and we were winning by two. The final score ended with 5-3. It was such a good experience with my teammates to play in the championships. My team and I celebrated our win by going out to eat pizza.”. Someone who inspired me to play ice hockey is my dad. [Growing up], he played roller hockey, a sport [similar to ice hockey] but instead, you are on wheels. Now, he is the coach of my ice hockey team and one of my biggest supporters.”
- J.D. Horenkamp, 10](https://PWestPathfinder.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/image1-13-e1650735572582-900x612.jpg)
![In eighth grade, I used to be depressed and in a bad place. I just wasn’t myself. I dyed my hair super dark, and I was absolutely disgusting. People probably did not know that I was so depressed and went to therapy. Every night I would go to bed feeling unfulfilled, lonely and unhappy. I feel like, over COVID, talking about mental health was more normalized because everyone was wondering when COVID would finally end. I would cry every night and have panic attacks often. I finally asked my mom to go to therapy, and I am so happy I did because I wouldnt be where I am right now without it. My biggest achievement is that now I am the best version of myself, and I am so happy. I have straight A’s and played field hockey and now soccer I am just really enjoying it. [I learned] to focus on myself and enjoy all of my time alone. I am proud of myself for getting out of therapy and being so happy now.” — Mia Lauer, 9](https://PWestPathfinder.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/image4-5-900x585.jpg)
![“[The most influential person in my life is] Indiana guard Xavier Johnson. One day, he had a really good game. [He] didnt miss a shot [and] hit 30 points. I messaged him after the game [and told him] he did a really good job. He has a bunch of followers, so I didnt expect a response. He responded back to me and gave me some words of encouragement. After that, I started playing basketball a lot more and trying to get better. It inspired me to work harder [in life and in basketball].”
— Finn Smith, 9](https://PWestPathfinder.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/image1-5-e1652130806414-900x653.jpg)
![PHOTO OF THE WEEK!
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During the 54th annual graduation commencement ceremony at St. Charles Family Arena, principal Jeremy Mitchell applauds cum laude students’ academic achievement. Mitchell has been the principal at West High for the past 12 years and plans to retire after the 21-22 school year ends. “Kids are good. I get irritated by news reports and friends [who say,] ‘Oh, I couldn’t do it, how do you put up with those high schoolers?’ Are you kidding me? I mean, you guys are great. Anytime I doubt that something happens, and boom. So I think that’s the lesson that has been verified and reinforced year after year,” Mitchell said. “It’s fun because I have my own children, and when I’m with those kids, it’s kind of the same thing. I just think the teenage years are really interesting. That’s why I work here. I’ve been going to school since 1978, and it’s just so fun to see the growth in students. So I think my life lesson is learned from that enjoyment.”
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📸: Abbi Vanvalkenburg- @abbi.vanv
caption: Madi Michajliczenko- @madi.michajliczenko
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#pwestpub #publications #parkway #photooftheweek #pathfinder](https://PWestPathfinder.com/wp-content/plugins/instagram-feed/img/placeholder.png)
![Sophomore Rand Al-Hachami poses for a picture at school, donning her hijab and Zulfiqar sword necklace. Even though Islamophobia is very present, Al-Hachami says she has met a lot of positive reactions concerning her decision to start wearing hijab. “[Hijab symbolizes] positive character traits that Islam promotes, like dependability and honesty,” Al-Hachami said. “Wearing it has made me feel closer to my Muslim friends as well as to my religion in general.”](https://PWestPathfinder.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/randfeaturedphoto-300x200.jpg)
![Wearing a bright smile, custodian Sean Smith sits on a bench greeting students in the morning. Smith believed that if the first thing students see when they enter the school is someone saying good morning, it will make their day that much better. “Now, if youre walking up that walkway with an attitude, I want [you] to see a cheery face that says ‘hey, Im glad to see you,’” Smith said.](https://PWestPathfinder.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/IMG_1186-300x225.jpg)
![Principal Jeremy Mitchell sits in his homecoming float and waves to the students lined on the sidewalk for the homecoming parade. During homecoming week, he enjoyed getting to build connections with students. “I couldn’t have asked for anyone better to work for,” Athletic Director Brian Kessler said. “[He] pulled off homecoming, [when] nobody knew what it was going to look like. It happened, it was great, it was beautiful, and [students] loved it.”](https://PWestPathfinder.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/IMG_0579-300x200.jpg)
![Greeting students with a poem and a smile, junior Nicole Imral hands out one of many pocket-sized poems in her stack. Spread out near the school entrances, Imral and several other National English Honors Society (NEHS) members informed students and staff about the day and handed out poems. “I love poetry. I was excited about [Poem in Your Pocket Day] because its fun to read a bunch of different poems youve never read before, especially short ones because its easier to get through them,” Imral said.](https://PWestPathfinder.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/DSC_0093.JPG_-1-300x200.jpg)
