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Nicole Mackowski ‘18 shares a special memory she has about her great-grandma. Mackowski and her great-grandma were best friends and they spent as much time as possible together. Sadly, Mackowski was recently separated from her when she passed and through this tough time her legacy continued to live on through Mackowski.

“My great-grandma is my biggest influence, she was always around when I was little and she helped raise me. She was just kind of my rock like she was the person I would always go to and it was really hard when I lost her because she was my best friend. She was the strongest person I knew she went through so much, she lost so many people, and she was still able to be a good person she was still there for everyone even when she kept losing people”

Although Mackowski had a hard time adjusting to life without her best friend, she realized all of the good things that came from being with her all the time. Having had someone so special to be able to connect with so easily was something that Mackowski treasured.

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After years of going to school in a diverse population, Izabel Sklarzewski treats all people with respect. Especially in the younger grades when kids are immature, it's frustrating to witness rude behavior.

"In middle school we started a campaign called 'Stomp out the R word'. I don't like when people use the word and it's not okay to joke about because kids with special skills needs don't choose to be like that."

Scenarios like this helped change Sklarzewski into a better person and also emphasized the importance of not using hurtful words.

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What is the best thing that happened to you?

"The day I got glasses. I was in second grade and it just changed my life. The day I took them home I went outside and I finally saw leaves on the trees for the first time."
Gabi grew up not wearing glasses, until she failed an eye test at school. She had to go get an eye exam at the eye doctor and she got to pick out her frames. "They where thin and pink and ugly." Gabi says humorously.

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I worry that one day... "I'm gonna realize and look back on my life that I didn't do everything that I wanted to do. I'm scared that I'll get married and have kids and it'll go by too fast, or that I won't find my actual soulmate. I worry that I didn't have fun and didn't have the time to appreciate everything."

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A Bright Future

Anna Kunka'19 speaks of her parents and the sacrifices they make to give her a good life. Kunka's parents moved to the United States with no job, no connections, and no idea what life would bring to them. Her parents came from Poland as teenagers and were determined to build a great life. With hard work, dedication, and a touch of hope, her parents were able to give Anna a bright future.

If she were to die with no means of communication, Anna said, "I would regret not talking to my parents and tell them how grateful I am because I've never actually told them." The story of Anna Kunka is far more intricate than ever imagined, one filled with the hard work of her parent and mountains of graditude.

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Actions Speak Louder Than Words

After a messy breakup with an ex boyfriend, Symantha Rohwedder '20 realizes the importance of understanding people and their actions before becoming closely involved with them. She considered her ex boyfriend to be one of the most influential people in her life, not because he was her soulmate, but because his actions taught her a lifelong lesson about getting to know the ones she surrounds herself with. After going through a difficult revenge breakup, she discovered the relevance of getting to know people.
"Know who you're getting yourself involved with before you start having an emotional relationship with them, because it could go either really good or really bad, and you don't want to take the chance of it going really bad, " Rohwedder said.

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Missing her family across the country in Warsaw, Poland, Paula Paliwoda, junior, said "I don't get to go to Poland every year, because ticket are expensive. It's hard because I always miss them." Hoping to see her extended family members whom she hasn't seem in 3 years, Paula plans to travel across the ocean this year and reunite with them.

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One thing I'm most proud of...

"I was at a wrestling meet, and I won first place. It was so cool because this guy was really tall and I wasn't sure if I was going to be able to win. My team was cheering me on, chanting my name, and it was such a nice feeling. I decided to do something I had never done before: put him in a cradle. I looked at my coach and said, "I'm going to do it", and in that moment he knew I was going to attempt the cradle. My attempt worked, and I succeeded. My coach was sitting there thinking, "what just happened?", and it was the coolest feeling ever. I've won first place before, but I've never won by putting someone in a cradle, so I was really proud of myself."

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Sam Lupo, senior from Prospect was asked to finish a phrase " I wish I ... Lupo said, "I wish I was more comfortable with myself and I wish I could be more open with people. When I was around people I was more of a shy person. Now because of yearbook I'm open more and thanks for the interviews it's way easier to talk and have a conversation."

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What is your biggest fear.....
"I'm scared of being left alone just people walking away. Like I wish I can do something about it but I'm a passive person." Joe had cancer twice once when he was 2 and the other time when he was 7. Although, that was a set back for him , he still has a big smile on his face .

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Anj is 15
What do you like the

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Many people have fears of snakes, spiders, or the dark, but for Cate Gudaitis her biggest fear is the future. For her, high school has been an identity crisis, when people ask her what kind of college she wants to go to or what she wants to do with her life it gives her some anxiety because she has no idea what she wants. " If you were to ask me to ask me three years ago what I wanted to do when I grew up, I would've had so many answers, but that has all changed now," Gudaitis '19 said.  As a junior, Guaditis hopes to figure out what she wants to do later in life and do what speaks to her.

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Tea Preradovic &Nicole Cwik by Shannon Brennan & Lia Tzoubris

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Tea Preradovic &Nicole Cwik by Shannon Brennan & Lia Tzoubris

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How long have you known each other?

"We didn't know we went to preschool together until yesterday and we've been best friends since 6th grade!!"

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Growing up, Grace Reynolds '19 couldn't focus in school. Whenever her parents would go to parent teacher conferences, they would hear she was too chatty. Walking out with her parents, all she would hear is "Grace, you have to stop talking in class." Reynolds tried, and tried, but over the years her parents just kept hearing the same thing. It frustrated her, because she was doing the best she could. She tried focusing in class, and would hear the teacher, but be thinking about something else. She would do everything she could, but it felt like it was never enough. Everyone thought this was because she wanted attention, but in reality it was because she had ADD. "I felt relived when I found out. I knew I wasn't crazy, and I knew I wasn't some off task kid. I wanted to cry because my doctor finally figured it out," Reynolds said. It took 16 years to finally have someone understand what frustrated her the most.

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"Injuries"

Escalating from a conversation she was having during lunch, Geli, sophomore from prospect, begin to describe the time her friend conquered the stairs. "It was the best experience from my 6th grade life," Geli said.  " He always had knee problems so I'd carry his backpack while we went up the elevator. Taking the elevator would always make us late to class so one day he decided he was tired of being late to class and wanted to take the stairs instead." Geli later told they ended up being 30 minutes late to class anyway.

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Elizabeth Jonas moved from her Chicago home to the suburb of Prospect in the middle of sixth grade. Her parents told her to pack her things because they were moving out of town. She didn't even have enough time to absorb the fact that she was moving to a new town with new people. She wish that she had the time to say goodbye to her friends and even her house because those were the only friends she had and that was the only home she knew. "When I came home from school everyday, me and my neighbors would go outside and play and I miss that."  When I was talking with Jonas about this experience, she started to tear up. "This was obviously the saddest moment in my life because I just made myself cry!"

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Although babysitters are often a nonessential person in someone's life, Sofia Koeppl (21) considers her old babysitter to be one of the most influential people in her life. Sofia recalled that her babysitter was often a second mother figure to her. Because Sofia's parents worked, up until about fourth grade Sofia would spend all of her breaks with her babysitter and her babysitter's grandchildren. Sofia enjoyed being treated as part of their family. Unfortunately, Sofia's babysitter moved away to the Philippines after the death of her husband, and Sofia has not heard from her since. "I hope that one day I can visit the Philippines to find her, but we don't know her address or have anyway to contact her so it may be very hard," Sofia said.

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Madeline McTigue- '19 has been friends with Annie McGuire for ten years. Their friendship began in kindergarten while attending a k-8 school. Annie asked Madeline to borrow a pink marker and later told the teacher that Annie took it. "Which I did not!" Annie said during our conversation. Ever since, Annie and Madeline have been close friends who shared multiple classes and live close to eachother.

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If i could have anyone as my dinner guest it would be my grandpa. He passed away from a heart attack 2 years ago. I never got to say goodbye to him and it kills me inside because i miss him so much. I think about him all the time and i would give anything in the world just to see him one more time.

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My biggest regret would be how much I argue with my sister because she's always on her phone, and when I want to hang out with her she says she's. busy. I have made a promise to be more patient with my sister because I know I will regret not being kind.

“I had a my quinceanera this summer. At first the venue looked normal, kinda small. But when we walked in on the day, everything was pink. It made me so happy. There was about 180 people there all my family and friends. The DJ messed up the music in the dance that me and my friends did, my dad helped by telling him to re do it. But my most treasured memory of that day was being the star of that day.”

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Alex (19) has never really had a great relationship with her brother. He decided to join the military and she didn't really care much for it. She never had trouble saying goodbye until he was assigned to a mission in Iraq. Alex said, "I was scared because he was leaving in one week and Iraq is not the most safe place to go to."

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Imagine going on vacation with your best friend. Well, Lia and Shannon have spent their spring break together for the past four years! Not only do they get to soak up the hot Florida sun but, they also get to create everlasting memories.

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what kind of advice would you give to a large group?

"be yourself because it doesn't matter what other people think. i've learned it from older people and family who are more experienced . When i came to high school i was worried about what other people thought but then when i was myself and it went well."

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Alex (Junior) has never really had a great relationship with her brother. He decided to join the military and she didn't really care much for it. She never had trouble saying goodbye until he was assigned to a mission in Iraq. Alex said, "I was scared because he was leaving in one week and Iraq is not the most safe place to go to."

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Kelly

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As if they didn't have enough people in their house, Jordan Luke's family is a habitat for six animals ranging from cats to Asian Water frogs. Out of the many creatures in her home, Jordan's favorite is her Husky German Shepherd mix, Maverick, who they got around Thanksgiving two years ago. "My mom was just scrolling through Facebook and saw a picture of the cutest fluff ball on my cousins page. My cousin fosters dogs and put a picture out there asking if anyone wanted one," Luke said. Maverick will be turning two on September 15th and still has the energy of a young puppy. Luke cherishes the love Maverick gives all of her family members and looks forward to seeing him after a long day of school.

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Serena Schne

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I met Tim today. He is a freshman at wheeling high school. He came to the county from Ukraine. About 5 yrs ago. He is most afraid of spiders and being alone. He loves pizza and chicken. When I said I like pizza he said, "That's my boy."

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I interviewed Megan. Megan Runnion goes to Hersey High School and she's currently a Senior. She has many accomplishments that she's proud of, however one that she felt was most important to her was, "hanging out with friends and meeting a lot of new people since Freshman year." I was very glad that I met someone new :)

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Steven tun was born and raised in Mayanr, till July of 2017,  then him and his parents moved to America. I asked him if he missed his friends from Mayanr and he said" not raely with facetime and texting I don't miss them that much". A little late in our conversation he asked me if his English is understandable, to me his English sounded perfect.

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Kelly Rivera who is a senior and is from John Hersey High School wants to be a make up artist after she graduates. She started to watch tutorials on YouTube in 7th grade and in 8th grade she started doing make up. Kelly was very inspired by Daisy Marquez because she is super talented.

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Mayanr to the United States

Steven tun was born and raised in Mayanr, till July of 2017,  then him and his parents moved to America. I asked him if he missed his friends from Mayanr and he said" not raely with facetime and texting I don't miss them that much". A little late in our conversation he asked me if his English is understandable, to me his English sounded perfect.

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Gabby Salzmann '18 reflects on the one memory that she treasures the most. Gabby visited Spain this past summer to experience the culture of the country. "We all stayed there for a week and got literally three hours of sleep because we were calling eachother on the hotel phones, it was crazy," Gabby said. The trip lasted for one week and during those seven days Gabby was able to learn and experience the culture of Spain and its people. "It's crazy how different it was compared to the U.S," Gabby said.

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Yaritza Martinez interviewing Olivia Walker

College decisions

Olivia Walker, graduating class 19' from Wheeling, shows a big smile in the lunch room. September 1, 2017 Walker is still deciding what college to go to with a four hour driving limit. She is still deciding a career. She fears not living up to expectations. She will continue to look into colleges. "I'm thinking about University of Iowa," Walker said.

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Mayanr to the United States

Steven tun was born and raised in Mayanr, till July of 2017,  then him and his parents moved to America. I asked him if he missed his friends from Mayanr and he said" not raely with facetime and texting I don't miss them that much". A little late in our conversation he asked me if his English is understandable, to me his English sounded perfect.

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Suzy Muneton- Elk Grove By: Maddy Dorsch

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Suzy Muneton- Elk Grove By: Maddy Dorsch

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Elk Grove student Suzy '19 accomplishes many goals in life. Suzy has accomplished saving up lots of money throughout her life. She saves up money for college but most importantly for shopping. Suzy loves to shop and buy new expensive things." My greatest accomplishment is probably how much money I have saved up. I have saved up money to go shopping with my friends because I always have a good time buying new things," Suzy said.

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Joshua Ryg

by: Emily Lasky

Freshman year. New year, new school, new chapter in life. For freshman Joshua Ryg, the stress of high school is two fold. Besides the obvious hardships of becoming acclimated to an entirely new environment and getting his bearings in the very large school of John Hersey, Ryg is forced to face the challenge of school itself. School work has never been one of Ryg’s strengths and has found the balance of homework and extracurriculars difficult. He is a three sport athlete, playing basketball, baseball and soccer, and has found that athletics comes much easier to him than math worksheets. The intimidating piles of homework that await as Ryg enters high school proves mildly nerve racking, but he's ready for the challenge.

“I've always had a hard time doing well in school, like getting my homework in and on time. I don't think I'm very organized..I think in high school it's going to be harder. I guess I'm kind of nervous about more responsibilities.”

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I met Josh.He is a Norwegian and he is a freshman.He play basketball,baseball and soccer.His greatest fear is afraid of high.He love his dog Maddie.He's from Hersey high school.He like playing video games.Pizza is his favorite.His favorite memory is he went to North Carolina in this summer.

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There are alot of things going on in the world that is bad or not going your way, but what if there was a world where nothing could go wrong? Annie McGuire says that her perfect world is, "somewhere on a beach in the mountains, calm, beautiful, and absolutely no stress with my friends and family where I can just not worry. Somewhere where I could just not think about anything besides just having fun and relaxing."

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Starting over

Moving from Poland just four years ago, Julia Kosobudzka, sophomore from Wheeling, did not speak any English. She had a hard time adjusting to the new atmosphere of her school. She took a special english class to help her adapt and fit in to her classes.

"I wish I knew that school wasn't as hard as it is in sixth grade because I came from Poland four years ago and I didn't know English and I was pretty freaked out and I didn't know anything. I had a friend who moved here the same year but she spoke a little bit better than me so she helped me. Where I am right now in four years, that's pretty good"

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Serena, a senior from Wheeling High School explained what the most traumatic thing that happened to her was. About a year ago she was hospitalized for trying to commit suicide. It started after she and her brother did the ALS ice bucket challenge. She had gone to the patio and saw her brother was overdosing on heroin. She said, "I remember all the air go out of me." She was trying to do CPR on him and he was able to come back. She was angry at him for trying to do this to himself and became depressed. She was hospitalized for trying to commit suicide but she came out a stronge

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Serena Schnekenburger, a senior from wheeling explained the most traumatic thing that happened to her. One day after doing the ALS ice bucket challenge with her brother, she walked to the patio to find he had overdosed on heroin. She began doing CPR and he was able to come back. When she saw this she said, "I remembered all the air go out of me." She went through a period of depression and missed about a month of school. Unfortunately she was then hospitalized for trying to commit suicide because everything that had happened. While she was in the hospital her brother was in prison. Two days after he got out he overdosed again. But this time she was able to cope better with it. After everything she had gone through she came out a stronger person and realized life was worth living.
By Anja Avramovic EG

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I met Josh.He is a Norwegian and he is a freshman.He play basketball,baseball and soccer.His greatest fear is afraid of high.He love his dog Maddie.He's from Hersey high school.He like playing video games.Pizza is his favorite.His favorite memory is he went to North Carolina in this summer.

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"My nickname is Sock, I got that nickname in camp instead of names we got called by nicknames and that's how I got my nickname."

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I've always had a hard time... a pause followed. Erichye, a senior from Hersey, reveals that she has always had a hard time being confident.  She went on to say that her toughest battle is that she is very shy and afraid to talk to people. When asked if there was anything that can help her improve, she went on to explain that she didn't know but will continue to work on it.

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Wheeling Student Serena Schnekenburger '18 smiles while she sports her adorable crutches and boot. Schnekenburger was walking by her Mastif-Pitbull mix dog on Wednesday, August 15th, 2017, the day before school started, when her dog saw another dog and bolted.  "Rex got really really excited and yanked my ankle. It hurt so bad and I heard it crack" Schnekenburger said. Schnekenburger wasn't too mad about the incident; however, she was disappointed she had to start her senior year on crutches.

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Mayanr to the United States

Steven tun, freshman at wheeling high school, was born and raised in Mayanr, till July of 2017,  then him and his parents moved to America. I asked him if he missed his friends from Mayanr and he said, "not really with facetime and texting I don't miss them that much". A little late in our conversation he asked me if his English is understandable, to me his English sounded perfect.

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Seeing Pentatonix live, going to the Joffrey Ballet, meeting Todrick Hall, what could make a more exciting life? While Prospect freshman Isobel Lebeau has experienced many new and exciting events, she continues to strive to live outside her comfort zones and push herself to live more spontaneously. She admits, "sometimes my parents decide to go and do something when nothing has been planned and I just want to sleep." Despite unexpectedly planned sushi stops and late night adventures, Lebeau continues to be optimistic and is willing to push herself to new limits.

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At nineteen, Jeanne Porges's mom was not ready to care for a child. She was given to a family who wanted to adopt a child. Just days after birth, Jeanne found a new home in Mount Prospect, after being born Fort Wayne, Indiana. Her life has been absolutely amazing since she got adopted. "I'm one hundred percent grateful for my adoptive parents," Porges said.

Isobel Lebeau

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While most upperclassmen wait for graduation to go to college, Yaritza Martinez, junior, wants graduation to come faster for other reasons. "I just want a dog," Martinez said. Martinez has wanted a dog her whole life, but wasn't allowed to because of her younger siblings.

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"My perfect day would be waking up late on a Saturday, going to the beach with the top down, jamming to music." -Fran

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Giuliana Geati 19 goes to Wheeling High School and plays softball and hockey. In fifth grade her passion for hockey started. She's the goalie on an all girls team. "Hockey is my passion. Just being apart of a passionate team makes me happy," Geati said. When she's not crushing it on the ice, she's on the field hitting home runs. Even though she just started softball in eighth grade, she picked up the sport very quickly. Geati loves to meet new people, which is one of the reasons she joined yearbook.

Katie Sipko

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Leah is a senior at Hersey. Her grandmother has had the biggest influence in her life. What she most appreciates about her grandmother is that she makes it a priority to attend her sporting events. She is involved in yearbook and is part of the badminton team. Leah is a four-year badminton player and will be a part of the varsity badminton team this upcoming spring. She joined the team as a freshman because her cousin was also a player and encouraged her to try it out. Any sport is great for teaching you life lessons. Badminton is no different “Badminton has showed me to be competitive on the field and has also showed me to make friends on and off” Ryg said. She has also been on Hersey’s yearbook staff for two and a half years. Ryg says “My favorite part of being in yearbook is getting to interview people and make new friends” . She believes that the most difficult part of it is being able to make the right decision and agree on something as a group. However, that for sure is something that they will be able to improve upon as the year goes by.

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Katrina Segalla takes English horse riding lessons on Saturday's in Palatine. Although she does not own a horse, Segalla has been riding since she was seven. She rode several horses at the stables

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This is Kristina Hammerstrom from prospect high school, and she is a junior this year. Kristina usually wears around 20 bracelets that all have a different story and meaning to her. Right now since she is on the swim team she isn't wearing all of them so that they don't get worn as quickly.

Kristina started to collect the bracelets this summer. All brackets take her back to a time and place. Here's the story from a couple of the bracelets

One was from a vacation with family friends

One of from a friends who went on a mission trip to st. Thomas

Another one was from her boyfriend

She has a family cabin in Wisconsin where she went to a flea market and bought a bracelet to remember her time there

Kristina doesn't only buy bracelets but she also makes them. Her and her friends got together this summer to bond and create them. Picking different colors and different designs help make everyone unique just like Kristina. Kristina's goal is to wear all their brackets until they either get lost or break.

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Leslie Aguilar, " My most treasured moment."

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Leslie Aguilar, " My most treasured moment."

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Leslie Aguilar most treasured moment was the birth of her first niece, that was born January 14,  2016. She explained the emotions of the week of when her niece was born. Leslie's niece was born on her most hectic week, her finals week, but nothing would prevent her from seeing her baby niece. - By Jackie Orozco

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Animals are a huge part of Maggie Heil's life. When her neighbors didn't want their dog anymore, Bella came into Maggie's life. Bella had previously been attacked by a dog and has a nerve damage in her neck that Maggie and her family have to be careful about with collars and leashes. Maggie also recently started horseback riding and finds joy and communication development through these animals. "I probably irritate the heck out of these horses and I fall off sometimes even though it's kinda hard to fall off easy horses." Through a shoulder injury, Heil has found out more about her own abilities and seems to have discovered a passion that will influence her career. "I hope to major in journalism and minor in something horse/animal related"