“I’m very overly attached to my hair. It’s a big trademark of who I am. If you’re reading this, you probably don’t know who I am, but if you saw me you’d be like, ‘Oh, that’s the redhead who I see in the hall sometimes.’ I really like leprechauns and Irish culture. I am very happy to be a redhead. 

I first got interested in theater because when I was a little kid, me and my dad would watch an insane amount of movies all the time. That’s how I got really interested in storytelling and acting. All throughout elementary school and middle school, I did theater, and my goal was to be a movie actor. I really just saw stage theater as my in-school stepping stone to that. It wasn’t until I came to Bellaire and Red Bird Productions [that] I really started to fall more in love with theater and not just movies. That was when I was like, ‘Wow, I don’t just love acting. I love stage theater, and that’s what I want to do.’ 

I just really love theater. I love that it’s a community that’s very different from most communities at school. Everybody has their extracurriculars but there’s just really something special about theater where people are comfortable to be themselves and to be as crazy and out there as they want to be. Something about the fact that you’re loop working towards a common goal — not just a goal but you’re creating a story together — brings people together in a very unique way and develops a really strong and unique community. 

I found my true joy in theater here at Bellaire in RBP. But most importantly, it’s where I’ve made lots of good friends [and] most of my best friends. They all really mean a lot to me. I love doing a show and then going to a cast party after, having a rehearsal and then going and getting lunch. My main takeaway from high school is an incredible friend group that I hope will stay as lifelong friends. When I think back on high school, that’s definitely what I’ll think about. I won’t be thinking about tests or homework or whatever. I’ll think about all the memories I have with my friends. 

My other big takeaway is that high school was very hard, but it is hard things that make it easier to grow closer with God and to grow as a person in general. I have definitely grown stronger in my faith, and I’m eternally grateful for that.

I’m an officer of FCA (Fellowship of Christian Athletes). My faith is very important to me because it is literally my life. [It’s] how I’ve gotten through high school. If I’m having a horrible day, Jesus is what pulls me through and comforts me. I love getting to express that at school through FCA or just like in theater with my friends. [Jesus] has definitely strengthened my relationships with other people. I’ve loved getting to share my faith with my friends, and I love bringing people to church with me and just showing them the love of God. I think that has made my senior year extra special. 

I’m going to Hardin-Simmons University, which is a small Christian University in Abilene, Texas. 

I like that I will be close, like a six-hour drive, so I can come back and visit all my underclassmen friends and see RBP’s future productions. I’m going to major in theater in the honors program and then hopefully minor in ministry. I just want to go where God leads me, but right now my future plans are to combine theater with ministry and use my talents and skills to glorify Him. One thing I’ve considered that would be really cool would be having an actual professional theater program where I produce, write, direct or act [in] shows with Christian themes. Not just doing a Nativity scene or a Bible story, but stories that are in modern times with relatable characters, something that’s more accessible to a modern audience that includes Christian themes, such as hope, sacrifice, getting through it, stuff like that. The other thing that I’ve considered that I think would be really cool would be having a theater ministry at a church. It’s pretty rare to have an actual theater thing year round, so that would be really cool.

Don’t stress so much. If you fail a test, it’s fine. I feel like our generation has been told that if you don’t get a 5.0 GPA, and you’re not a literally perfect student, then you’re not going to go to college and your entire life is ruined and you’re just done for. [But] you’ll be fine. One bad grade is not going to ruin your life. If you’re giving 100% of yourself all of the time you are going to burn out immediately. Just give what you can give the most that you can safely give without harming your physical or mental health. Make time. Make time for a life, make time for friends and for sleep and eating. Just do your best.”