Two 18-year-old cousins are living their long-held dream of spending their senior year together and graduating from Coupeville High School.
Coupeville High School senior Katelyn Wynn, 18, loves history and performing.
On Saturday, March 9, she took first place at the Regional History Day competition at Western Washington University with her dramatic presentation “Service Alternatives and Deinstitutionalization.”
Kole Kellison, a senior at Coupeville High School, is the youngest son of Ray and Christy Kellison, who own the Keystone Café at the Coupeville ferry landing.
Nathan Lamb, 18, knows what he’ll be doing but not where he’ll be going in the two years after he graduates from high school.
As a young man and a Mormon, he knows he’ll be sent on a two-year mission for his church.
Coupeville High School senior Kelsey Pape, 18, has attended Coupeville schools since she was in second grade though she lives with her family in Oak Harbor.
“My parents thought I’d do better in a smaller school and they were right,” said Pape.
Coupeville High School senior Drew Chan, 18, is a team player.
In his years at Coupeville High School, that’s meant playing both basketball and baseball, participating in ASB activities as a representative and secretary, being co-president of the National Honor Society, acting as a Big Brother to a 12-year old boy, and serving as president of the Leo Club, a new teen offshoot of the Lion’s Club that performs community service.
Coupeville High School senior Vanessa Bernales, 18, moved here with her family from the Philippines when she was just seven years old. Her parents came here to find a better life for their family.
Entering the American culture at such a young age was a challenge, and her first task was to learn English.
“People like helping Habitat for Humanity,” said Sandra Stipe, manager of the nonprofit organization’ retail store in Freeland.
“Habitat has hit on a good formula of helping people and having fun while we’re doing it,” she said with a smile.
The store, which opened in late 2011, occupies the building vacated last fall by Skagit Farmers Supply and offers affordably priced furniture, mattresses, building materials, plumbing fixtures and appliances – all donated by Whidbey Island residents.
Coupeville High School senior Luke Pelant knows what he wants to do with his life but hasn’t yet settled on where he’ll learn the skills for his dream career.
Pelant, 18, wants to be a forensic engineer. A person in that profession visits crime or accident scenes and reconstructs what happened, then provides that professional expertise in court cases.
Coupeville High School senior Danny Savalza is known for his upbeat school spirit, whether he’s playing on the Wolves football team or wearing his “Shaman Savalza” regalia to lead cheers at other school sports events.
“I invented this character, ‘Shaman Savalza,’ as a goofy way to get people involved in cheering for our teams,” Savalza said. “I bought a red turtleneck nightgown at a thrift store and made myself a lampshade hat.”
“I came to a time in my life when I knew I still had one thing I wanted to do – to reach out to mothers with young children,” said Kristin Lasher, founder of Mother Mentors.
“I had a rough time myself when I had young children, so my heart goes out to them,” she said. “I know how alone a mom can feel.”
Whidbey Island’s only storefront medical-marijuana cooperative opened five months ago, and business has been steadily increasing.
Now serving about 400 patients, the founder of this nonprofit cooperative says it provides socially responsible and legal access to medicinal cannabis for patients suffering from terminal or debilitating medical conditions.
“I just love walking into the Uncommon Threads event on the first day,” said weaver Linda LaMay of Clinton.
“Uncommon Threads” is Whidbey Weavers Guild annual event that will be held Friday and Saturday, Nov. 2-3 at Greenbank Farm’s big red barn.
