image senior edition

Class of 2021

2 Senior Staff Senior Staff

As senior year comes to an end, we all started the countdown - the countdown until Prom, the countdown until the last day of high school and most importantly, the countdown until Graduation. The big finale of four years of hard work, embarrassment, hardship and friendship. We spend so much of our high school years waiting for it to be over that we forget to enjoy it while its happening. Most people eagerly wait to get out of high school because of the unbearable work and agony, but thats the thing about it. Almost everyone has had to suffer through the awkward parts of high school, our parents, our friends, our family members have all been there. While high school certainly has its downfalls, I am not super ready to move on to a new chapter in my life. I am accustomed to switching schools, as Lafayette is my fourth school I have attended, but high school does have its good parts. These years really do teach us who we are. We gain independence for the first time, learn how to manage our schedules, often get our first jobs and learn the value of money, and most importantly, meet people... and lose them. Underclassmen, enjoy both the good and the bad parts of your four years here. You will experience the pain of staying up late to finish your homework, in that, you'll learn how you work best, how you handle stress and how to push yourself past what you think you can do. You will lose and gain friends, even ones that you thought would be there forever, which will teach you to be careful of who you keep close and how to ind genuine people. All of the bad parts of high school come with good lessons, even if its hard to see at the time. As the end is approaching, I reflect on all of the things that high school has inadvertently taught me, and how I will carry my experiences at Lafayette to the next chapter of my life. Wow, just wow. These past four years have flown by. We graduate in a few days. Let's back up a little. Im Sophia, lovingly referred to as Shell Dog. You may have seen me around school with a camera, or maybe youve seen me at sporting events or even out on the field myself. Now regardless to whether Ive grown up with you, or just met you, I really feel as if Ive gotten to know all of you. Obviously some more than others, but joining student publications has been the best decision of my life. Theres a saying in the newsroom, If we werent there it didn't happen. That saying is why I went and photographed so many of our events here at Lafayette. Ill put it in Gen Z terms - I made sure to get the receipts. Ive covered many events and people here during my time on student publications. Ive photographed almost every single varsity sport our school has and Ive gotten to become connected with the Lafayette community through my work as a photographer and journalist. If I could pick one defining moment of the past four years, it would be last spring, when COVID-19 first hit. While you were stuck at home or working at an essential job, I was photographing the empty hallways at Lafayette, and trying to figure out ways to cover this time in our lives. During the summer, I covered the heated Board of Education meetings, with one group pushing for five days in-person learning, and the less outspoken group content with Rockwood's decision to start our last year virtually. The big thing that people needed to know about is how has COVID-19 impacted students. I went out of my comfort zone to experiment with new photography techniques to capture a portrait of Tommy Hagan to highlight his struggle with the coronavirus. The risks I took paid off as I won the Missouri Journalism Education Association award for Portrait of the Year. Most importantly I captured the light at the end of the tunnel; vaccination time. As we look forward to reaching a sense of normalcy again, please continue to show kindness and compassion to others as I have seen throughout my four years here. Continue to make your voices heard and stand up for what you believe in. Take risks and dont fear failure. You can create change in this world, no matter how hard it may seem.

Image seniors get a final word in

Sophia Scheller Kevin Vera Olivia Moran

Editor's Note: The Senior Magazine is a special edition produced by the graduating members of the Image staff. The information included was collected via a questionnaire sent through email to all Class of 2021 members. This year's Senior Magazine does not include a Class Superlatives section because fewer than 25% of the class participated in the voting. Its crazy to think four years have already gone by. I specifically remember my irst day as a freshman. I really should have believed those who told me that time flies by, because it really does. And, lets just say high school has been interesting. From coming here junior year, to joining staff and becoming the first student to broadcast and announce football games, I would definitely say my two years at Lafayette have given me memories that I will hold on to for the rest of my life. My best memory of high school without a doubt is just being allowed to be the schools broadcaster. Its something that truly changed my life and started the journey to my career. So thank you to all everyone who supported me in starting my life long dream. There are a lot of things in high school that I would have done differently, but also a lot of moments I will cherish for the rest of my life. Even when things werent going as planned, the good times are what always kept high school fun. Thats just part of growing up - learning from your mistakes and becoming a better person. Ive learned many lessons that will help me in the future as a person. We only have this time in our lives once, so cherish every moment. To any underclassman who may read this, just enjoy the moment, take risks, live every moment to the fullest, and most importantly, just be yourself and make memories for the future. In my two years at Lafayette Ive seen myself grow more than I could possibly imagine. Its truly been a great time, and I wish it didn't have to end. Thank you to those who have stuck behind me and supported me, wishing me to be successful. Thank you to teachers and my fellow classmates who I have made great memories with. But most importantly, thank you to the Lafayette student publications, its been quite a ride but I wouldn't change it for the world. We now enter a new beginning in our lives. Some of us will go off to college, some to the workforce and others to the military. Whatever it is, its a new chapter for all of us. Don't be sad high school is over, just be glad it happened. Its just the way life goes. Cover photos & design by: Liv Moran & Kevin Vera