The Hoofprint – June 2019

In the past four years Buffalo High School has acted as a second home to the class of 2019. Soon we will be taking the final steps toward a new future away from BHS. The senior class treasures many people who will be going all across the country for numerous fields of study and work. For the past nine months, The Hoofprint has covered events that have made Buffalo students who they are today.

Sydney and I have walked these halls for four years now, and only recently have we realized that we will soon leave Buffalo to start a new chapter of our lives. The success we have found, the achievements we have earned, and the mistakes we have made define who we are. BHS has helped us develop leadership, loyalty, compassion, kindness, and maturity. As we move on to the next chapter of our lives, the classes will that BHS has equipped us with to not only better ourselves, but the communities we will soon be a part of.

In using these skills, we are demonstrating how impactful BHS has been to not only our education, but who we are as individuals. However, make sure to stay humble in our actions. While our experiences here have made us who we are today, it is what we do from now on that will define our achievements in the future.

So as we countdown the days until graduation, focus on the things that matter most at BHS. Whether it be a favorite advice for an activity, the group of friends that has been there since middle school, or the dedicated staff and administration that has supported us for the past four years, take the time to then check and enjoy person who has made our high school experience so special.

This issue focuses on only a handful of amazing people who call Buffalo High School their second home. They are leaders in activities, the Buffalo community, and even just everyday life. Overall, they are role models who we can all look up to.

For the final time this school year, as well as our final time as editors of this publication, we hope you enjoy the issue.

What’s one mistake you don’t regret?
“I don’t regret being completely and utterly honest with some people, even when I know it might hurt their feelings and my own. Sometimes honesty is the one thing that can hurt the most but have the best result.”

What advice would you give your past self?
“I would tell myself that you have so many amazing experiences to come so be patient, and you should probably stop that coffee addiction before it’s too late.”

What’s one thing you’ll take away from high school?
“As well as being kind and welcoming, I feel I’ve realized the importance of getting to know the people around you. Everyone has such a unique story and you never know the friendships you could make.”

Who/what inspires you?
“My family members and especially my parents inspire me to make the most of every day. Looking at the people I surround myself with inspires me to be kind and hard working. I strongly believe that the best parts in life are yet to come, and God has a plan and a purpose for each of us.”

Where do you find happiness/what do you find happiness in?
“I find happiness in music, and my musical hobbies.”

Where do you expect life to take you?
“I expect my talents to bring me where I belong in life, school or career related.”

How do you view obstacles?
“I view obstacles as a chance to learn how to overcome challenges.”

What are you proud of?
“I am proud of where I am as a runner and a musician as a freshman.”

What do you hope to accomplish by your senior year?
“I hope to be a 3:40 mile time, and I hope to be in concert band.”

What do you wish you could give your past self?
“I would tell myself to work my hardest, even though I have natural talent.”

How long have you been working at BHS?
"This will be my third year completed after graduation."

Why did you decide to start working at BHS?
"I was working for an online school before I started working here. When you're only communicating with students over the phone, you only can reach out so much and I wanted to have that in person contact and interactions."

What is your favorite part about working at BHS?
"The conversations. I think it's really cool, I get to see so many students throughout the day and I love that. We get a variety of different situations every day, so it keeps me on my toes and I love it. It's fun."

What type of impact do you want to have on BHS in your position?
"My ultimate goal in life is to make people feel welcome, safe, happy, and not nervous. No question is stupid, and I see it all through out the day. It is my goal to also help people want to come to student services for help if they need it."

How do you think you've made a difference at BHS in the past two years?
"I think that I've mostly influenced people in the music department. I met a lot of friends through Jazz groups and I think people tend to look up to me as a leader in music."

What extracurriculars are you involved in?
"I do some stuff with music in church, as well as jazz band and marching band."

What three adjectives would you use to describe yourself?
"I would say kind, intelligent, and honest."

What is something that makes you stand out at BHS?
"I would consider myself a very hard worker overall."

How has your eating disorder impacted you this school year?
It’s really consuming of my life, it took out two months of my school year with treatment, therapy, and I’m still in out-patient. Every time that I was in in-patient, it was three weeks each time. I think that was the biggest change, was just how much I was out of school.

What lessons have you learned from your struggles this year?
It’s definitely revealed a strength I didn’t know I had. The thing about eating disorders is that it’s a very personal fight that no one else can fight for you. You don’t get treated for it, it’s not like if an illness that you can take a medication and it goes away. It has taught me that I have to fight.

How do you think your positive attitude has impacted this school environment?
I’m a total people person, I love people. I love connections, and I have connections from every group you could think of in high school. Being that person, I’m able to connect other people with other people. I think we all share a lot in common, so it’s kind of my goal to bring more people together.

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Photo by Carter Barton

What inspires you the most at BHS?
I just want to do good for my family because they are very important to me, so I just want to be the best that I can.

What changes have you noticed since your freshman year?
I used to kind of be more boxed in, and I think school really does a nice job of opening up to people and being welcoming, so I really just think that it helped me open up more.

What do you do to help improve this school?
I’ve done some volunteer work through the AVID program. Last year we did ‘Red For Love’, so we did Club Foods bagging to raise money for (water) filters in Puerto Rico.

What has your experience been like in AVID?
AVID is a program that helps kids be organized and prepare for last for high school, but for college and careers. I feel like AVID has helped me be confident and it really helped me through some tough high school career. I really appreciate them for that.

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Photo by Carter Barton

What activities are you involved with at HHS?
“I am in Jazz I, Jazz II, Varsity Band, and I played in the Brass Quintet for Solo and Ensemble. For sports, I’m in Cross Country and Track. I’m in FB and International Club.”

How do you think your positive attitude has impacted this school’s environment?
“I try to never put anyone down; I mean, everyone’s going to have a bad day. I’ve never really looked at life as a negative thing because I’ve lived through a lot. I went to a brick to make people smile and not be cheesy, but making people smile makes me smile. I hope that it makes the school a better place and makes it more comfortable for even one more student. It doesn’t necessarily have to be the whole school. But if I’m changing one person’s life, that’s enough for me.”

What kind of impact would you like to have in this school environment?
“Hopefully a positive one. I don’t remember the exact, but I was in the car of this one kid once and he translated from German, and she said, ‘Make a good story of yourself. One second of your life because you’ll be on a stone someday, anyway.’”

What inspires you most at HHS?
“All the other great peers I work with. This school is full of a bunch of great teachers, and we’re all trying to do what’s best for kids. It’s hard to not be inspired when all your co-workers are just doing a phenomenal job.”

What kind of changes have you seen with your students throughout the years?
“In four years, I’ve seen our dependency on cell phones change. That’s been challenged in the classroom quite a bit. Relationships have changed between students and it’s changed how they interact with one another.”

How do you interact with students to make their experience here a good one?
“Being able to build some relationships besides being just a math teacher. I’d like to make something more about students. They’re not just a student, I’m also like to be able to interact musically with them. I’ve worked with the band before, and I play with the middle school choir now and then and accompany some of the choir. So that’s kind of a fun way to interact with students.”

When did you start doing photography?
“I think I started in seventh grade.”
Why did you decide to start photography?
“I just wanted an easy way to express art. I had seen a lot of cool art around me and wanted my own way of doing it. My brother is a photographer and he was able to teach me beginner stuff and help me find a camera.”
How have you been able to use this talent to influence the school environment?
“Next year, I’m going to be one of the photography editors for the yearbook. I’ve taken a lot of photos for Yearbook since freshman year. I’ve helped with Yearbook and Hoofprint and Journalism II.”
How has photography impacted your life?
“It’s definitely changed my views on things. In photography, you try to look at every angle of how to get a picture and that kind of translates into the real world. You look at every viewpoint on the situation, not just your own, and try to understand other people’s views on things. Like trying to understand how a different photographer might take the same picture you’re taking. It’s kind of teaches you real world skills, in a way.”
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Photo by Carter Barton

What made you choose to join the Spring Musical and Mock Trial?
“For the Spring Musical, I’ve done theater ever since I was in second grade and I wanted to continue that. Mock Trial, I’ve always had an interest in law, so I thought that it would be the best choice for me.”
How was it different being a freshman in those activities?
“For Mock Trial, I was moved up to Varsity, so I was one of only two freshmen, and that was definitely very intimidating.”
How did being younger than most of the other members in those activities change your perspective of being involved?
“It definitely forced me to work harder, which was a good thing. I feel like being younger made me better.”
How have the upperclassmen in these activities influenced you this year?
“In both activities, the upperclassmen were very open to helping me out. I was definitely not the best in either of them. It was awesome having older people to guide me with their experience.”
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Photo by Lily Ragab