SFHS students named Academic All State

Dallin Parkinson

Dallin Parkinson, a senior at Spanish Fork High school and captain of the swim team has received Academic All-State for swimming. Dallin is the son of Cameron and Marlene Parkinson. “I would like to thank both my parents for their patience and help on those late night English essays, and their support in all my academic goals. I would also like to thank my mom for first getting me started in swimming and my dad for the encouragement and motivation to get faster times than he did when we was swimming.”

Dallin also attributes much of award to his Coach Melissa Hartley, “When I was a sophomore at the state meet they were presenting the Academic All-State Team for 07-08, and Coach Hartley turned to me and said, ‘I expect to see you up there in two years.’ She has always known what I was capable of and wouldn’t let me achieve any less than my potential in the classroom or in the pool, and I thank her for that.”

When asked to give advice to younger athletes Dallin had this to say, “School should always come before sports because that is what’s more important. If you can succeed in school you can succeed in life.”

Rebecca Greene

Receiving the Academic All State Award was a great honor. Having done well enough in swimming as well as in my education proves that I can accomplish anything I want to. Ever since my sophomore year I have aspired to receive this award. I remember watching the seniors on my team stand on deck and get their name called. I knew that I wanted that was well and I had the capability to achieve it.

My parents, teachers, and coaches all played a vital role in my accomplishments. Push me to succeed, my parents Ed and Mary Ann Greene, made sure that I knew how important my education was, but also wanted to see me succeed in the water. They have me the confidence and opportunity to be involved in sports but made sure I had my priorities straight. Both my teachers and Coach Hartley pushed me to first do my best in academics, and second become an accomplished swimmer. It is important to be a competent student before an athlete because your education will stay with you longer than your athletic skills. However, the lessons of teamwork, dedication, and endurance that I gained in athletics will benefit me as I go in to the world beyond high school.

The prestigious honor this award gives is something all athletes should aspire to get. When my Coach Melissa Hartley called men in she was ecstatic that I was one of the ten girls who received this award. I too was excited. I had worked hard towards this and am grateful for all those people who helped me achieve this goal.

Erin Redd

Earning this award is a great accomplishment. It doesn’t come easy though. With being an athlete also comes responsibility of setting a good example to have a positive influence on others. There is no better way than doing well in the classroom as on the court. Both of these situations are both learning environments of life lessons. They both require hard work, dedication, focus, participation, and performance. As you work hard, in the classroom this will carry over into your athletic performances. You have people all along the way to help you. Your coaches, parents, friends, and teachers all support you and give you a lot of encouragement. Remember to always set goals and work towards them to make the most of your life.

Kaleb Ashworth

Academic All State has been a major goal I have since my freshman year. This award to me means that I pushed myself every second possible on the mat and in the classroom. I have my parents to think for all of this, they stuck with me no matter what. They made school the most important thing and could see the great outcome even when I couldn’t. I feel so good when I step on the mat, like I have accomplished everything. I get he same feeling when I not only get a good grade, but learn things. I would tell all younger athletes to shoot for this someday. If you work hard, everything will come together.

Mallory Murphy

Being named Academic All State is a great and honorable accomplishment. I love to dance and I’ve been dancing all my life! However, my athletic talent won’t last forever, and that is when academics will be a key for success throughout my life. I didn’t intentionally plan on receiving this award. To me, getting good grades and being academically successful has always been important, but getting recognized for my hard work is really rewarding as well.

My teachers, my coaches, and most importantly my parents, Rhett and Angela Murphy, have all helped me to become an Academic All State participant. They have all worked with me and encouraged me to try my very best in all aspects of my life. There were times throughout high school when I would be extremely overwhelmed and stressed. Being the president of the Drill Team, I had to be responsible for our Drill Team and all the activities, practices and performances we were involved in. On top of that, I had to do homework, go to work, and try and manage a social life! Fortunately, I am surrounded by great examples that were there to catch my back! They not only helped me, but they brought my talents and hobbies to a whole new level. I believe in the saying of what you put into it, you will get out of it; whatever I work hard in, I will get great benefits in return.

I believe that mixing academics with athletics is a great opportunity to become a great student, a great athlete, and a well rounded person all together. Although this award is hard work, it is completely worth it. What ahs kept me going when the going gets rough is personal motivation. I had to remember how much my future meant to me, as well as my team. In order to keep and even balance between these things, I had to be organized, driven and passionate. I think that having a great relationship with teachers and coaches help a lot as well school and athletics will conflict at one point, its inevitable! Being able to communicate with these people was crucial to help me achieve all of my tasks and responsibilities. As for your younger athletes looking into this accomplishment, do it! It feels so great to be recognized for your hard work as a student, and as an athlete. Work hard, play hard, and leave the court with no regrets! Your family, coaches, and teachers will be there to help you. Believe in yourself and the world will be yours.

SFHS Drill Team 2010-2011

The year has gone by quickly for the Las Chalitas drill team. This year’s team represented Spanish Fork very well and brought life to SFHS campus. The girls really showed what it meant to be a Las Chalita. This week it was time to pick out a new team for the 2010-2011 school year. This week the senior girls put on workshops Monday-Wednesday morning from 6:30-7:30am. The tryouts were Thursday afternoon, and the new team was decided Thursday night. For some it is another year filled with excitement and never ending fun. But, for others it will be an amazing first time experience. The members of the 2010-2011 Las Chalitas Drill Team are Kennedy Anderson, Taylor Baum, Leslie Beck, Alisha Boyack, Cassie Cooper, Audra Dedrickson, Bailey Diamond, Kailey Doty, Linzi Leifson, Jenna Lewis, McKenzie Murphy, Whitney Nielson, Marlee Olsen, Jori Pace, Tailyr Peterson, Samee Pruitt, Brenley Shenk, Paige Stodtmeister, Claire Stodtmeister, Alyse Van Ausdal, and Tiffany Wyson. Good luck to all of you girls and represent Spanish Fork well throughout the year.

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ProStart - Anjuli Humphreys

On March 4th Spanish Fork High School’s Pro Start team consisting of Casey Shakespeare, Anjuli Humphreys, Sara Almanza, Mathew Christiansen and Sarah Nelson, competed in the Pro Start foods competition held in Salt Lake City. During this competition, the team was required to prepare a three course meal in under one hour. The team prepared a delicious meal which was then judged by a panel of judges, which consisted of chefs and restaurant owners. Throughout this completion the team was also expected to fabricate a chicken into eight parts showing their knife skills. All together the team was judged on the food’s appearance, sanitation, organization, knife skills and technical difficulty of skills. This was the first time Spanish Fork High School has been involved in this competition. Shakespeare said, “I would do it again now that we know what to expect!” Carol Larsen, Foods teacher at SFHS said, “They were able to grow close as a team.” The team was able to increase their talents in culinary arts as they represented Spanish Fork High School very well.

DECA _ Tanner Holt

DECA is a marketing club that focuses mainly on business. The members of DECA have the opportunity to compete in a business competition, all with high hopes to make it to state and do well with their deep knowledge of business which would then carry them to Nationals. Every year the first place winners of the state competition move on to nationals which is being held in Kentucky this year. Only few from Spanish Fork High School have made it in recent years, and this year Tanner Holt and Preston McConnell took the first place position for our state under the Virtual Business category. Holt will be representing our school in Kentucky during the vigorous competition coming up in April. When asked how he felt about attending this event, Holt responded, “I’m very nervous to be competing against so many state qualifiers, but I’m also excited to go hang out in Kentucky.” We wish him the best of luck as he foregoes his journey. Go business!

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Choir -Practice

On March 17, the choirs from Spanish Fork high School will head to California. The choirs have put in long hours of practice and hard work preparing for the festival competitions in Anaheim. The choirs will arrive early Thursday morning and will spend the day in Disneyland. The Spanish Fork Singers have the unique opportunity of performing in the park. The following day, they will travel to a local college to compete against choirs from across the nation. Last year the Singers received the prestigious Adjudicators Award as well as gold in the Show Choir competition.

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Hope Week - Courtney Acosta, Sadie Ethington

Spanish Fork High School’s Hope Squad had a ton of fun activities planned for Hope Week. On Monday, students learned suicide statistics and passed out “life savers.” The rest of the week included arm wrestling competition, clash day, and door decorating contests. Students also bought a rubber duck for just one buck and their name was entered into a drawing. “The winners of the drawing received gift certificates to all sorts of places around town,” said Candace Wride, a Hope Squad member. The Hope Squad was hoping for the week to be uplifting and fun so students could see there are other approaches to struggles in life besides suicide. Door Decorating Pictured: TaLeah Belliston, Tiffany Binks, and Veronica Cruz

French Club Sponsored Mardi Gras

Spanish Fork High School’s French Club threw a Mardi Gras party in the Commons at SFHS. Mardi Gras or carnival season (in English) refers to the events of the Carnival Celebrations beginning on or after Epiphany and ending on the day before Ash Wednesday. Mardi Gras is French for Fat Tuesday; this is when they would eat richer, fatty foods before the fasting of the Lenten which started Ash Wednesday. New Orleans is famous for its Mardi Gras celebrations and size of parties. Although the French Club celebrated slightly differently, they still had a traditional king cake and participated in a pancake eating contest won by Devrick Luckau, a sophomore at SFHS. They had many other games and food. Prizes were given to winners of the different games. They also crowned a Mardi Gras king and queen, Trevor Long (king) and Whitney Hughes (queen), which was determined by a marble or in this case jawbreakers in two different slices of the king cake. Long and Hughes were given their prizes and got to run through the Mardi Gras banner. “It sure was Mardi Gras!” said Long, when asked what he thought about the party. The French Club enjoyed their miniature Mardi Gras and came close to the festiveness of the common New Orlean’s Mardi Gras.

Intern - Dallas Smith

Dallas Smith, student at Spanish Fork High School, interns with the police department in Spanish Fork. “Learning the laws and getting to pull people over is a lot of fun,” says Smith. Smith also gets to learn how to process papers and other things at the police station. Dallas gets to work with the City Attorney sitting through court trials. He wants to continue his education at Dixie State College.

SFHS Jazz Band March 2010

On March 16th, Spanish Fork High School’s Band and Orchestra’s will be holding a Benefit Concert for the Red Cross. The Band Presidency, with senior Taylor Allred as President, decided to have a benefit concert to donate to others around the world, especially in light of the many disasters recently, settling on the Red Cross as the recipient of any money collected.
Playing their festival pieces, performances will include the Jazz Band, Concert Band, Chamber Orchestra, Philharmonic Orchestra, and the Symphonic Orchestra. The Art Department will also be having a display in the commons for visitors to look at before and during the intermission of the concert. Guests will have a chance to see some of SFHS’s Fine Arts firsthand.
Students have been working on their concert pieces for months, practicing and polishing since after Christmas. Selections include: “The Washington Post March”, “Chorus Angelorum”, “Sonata for Strings”, “Academic Festival”, “Procession of the Sardar”, “Ghosts of Brandenburg”, “A Night in Tunisia”, and” I Don’t Stand a Ghost of a Chance With You”, each piece challenging and teaching the students about different types of music.
The Spanish Fork Jazz Band recently participated in the Region Jazz Festival on March 3rd. The Orchestra’s will be performing at Region on March 24th. Later in the month, SFHS will be hosting Region Concert Band on March 31st.
The Benefit Concert will be on March 16th at 6:00 pm in the Spanish Fork High School’s auditorium. The concert is free, but donations for the Red Cross will gladly be accepted throughout the meeting.

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SFHS National Honor Society Presents $914.98 check to the American Red Cross for Haiti and Chile.

Spanish Fork High School may have lost some of its numbers with the building of two new schools, but that doesn’t mean it lost any generosity or caring for others. When the massive earthquake hit Haiti, the National Honor Society of SFHS took charge of a fundraiser to send some Spanish Fork Don support to Haiti. The whole school took part by donating money, personal care items, and writing letters for the Haitian people. Not long after, news spread about another earthquake, in Chile. Once again, the students of Spanish Fork emptied their pockets, donating their lunch money to those who needed food more than them. Christina Heywood, a member of the NHS, said, “I’m really proud of how the student body pulled through on our fundraiser! We were able to raise over nine hundred dollars which will go straight to helping people.” As the money was counted and a check was given to the American Red Cross, it was truly seen how the students of SFHS were “Rock Solid”, emulating this year’s motto. We can only expect more great things to come from this amazing school.