The CHIEF March 2024

Upperclass Acts

Destiny Smith

NAME: Destiny Smith

FAVORITE MOVIE: Coraline

NICKNAMES: Des, Dez

MOST INSPIRATIONAL SONG: “W.A.Y.S.” by Jhené Aiko

ROLE MODEL(S): My mom Lisa Steffens, Dr. Soares, Mr. Johanson, Mr. Nollen

ACTIVITIES @ PTHS: During my years here at PTHS I have not participated in many activities which I deeply regret due to little free time; however, I did participate in art, tennis, and as a Guidance Office Aide. FONDEST MEMORY OF HIGH SCHOOL SO FAR: The bus rides home from Tennis matches during my Junior year specifically, but tennis overall was definitely my fondest moment of high school so far. I loved the bus rides, because it was the moments I felt that we players were really a team and not only that, best friends too. As a tennis player you are always a team, but you are also competing against each other for top rank. This often caused drama within the team and not everyone got along. However, during those bus rides home, or just us players goofing off in practice, we managed to set our differences aside and just enjoy the sport we love! I will always treasure my time as a tennis player at PTHS. PLANS AFTER HIGH SCHOOL: When I walk the stage as a graduated student from PTHS on graduation night and receive my very well-earned diploma, many opportunities life has to offer will open up to me and I intend to take on as many as I can. As of right now, I have decided on going to Illinois Wesleyan University as a Nursing student and walking across that stage as a Nursing graduate in 2028 with my Bachelor’s. From here I will either be a Pediatrics or Trauma Nurse. After 5 years I want to start travel Nursing. After 10-15+ years I would like to obtain my real estate license and begin flipping houses as a family business. Alongside me will be my brother, Chance, who is a construction worker now and is working on being able to do heating and cooling. My overall goal in life is to truly live my life happy and at peace. This of course includes financial security, but life is much more than money. When I imagine happiness I imagine being happy, surrounded by good people, having the ability to be gracious and giving, traveling, taking care of those I love, and just simply living the life I have imagined for myself. FAVORITE TEACHER/CLASS: Mr. Nollen’s Anatomy Class is my favorite teacher and class. Mr. Nollen is both a serious and silly person; he manages to take all the stress and memories in his life, incorporate them into his work, and make it humorous. There is not a day where I don’t have a good laugh in his class and learn something new. I always imagined Mr. Nollen as this mean, serious, and strict teacher up until my junior year when I took his AP Biology class. I struggled so much in that class, but he broke it down to me in a way I understood and could remember which taught me how to study. I carry the techniques of studying he has taught me and they have drastically changed my life academically. I only wish I had mastered studying my freshman year. Mr. Nollen may seem intimidating but he truly isn’t and he is one of the most astonishing teachers I have encountered here at PTHS. 3 MAJOR AREAS OF INTEREST: Nursing, Pharmacology, and Real Estate

FAVORITE AUTHOR/BOOK: Frozen Charlotte: A Ghost Story by Alex Bell

MOST POSITIVE MOMENT: Obtaining my Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA) license in May of 2023.

PET PEEVES: Talking/chewing loudly in a movie theater, walking on the wrong side of the hallway (EXCEPT when trying to get to your locker), cutting the lunch line, road rage, etc. WHAT MY FRIENDS WILL REMEMBER ABOUT ME: No matter how hard life gets I refuse to let it get it to me. If you think you're going to have a bad day or things can’t get worse it most certainly will. A friend once told me that “You have to feed the positive dog.” I took what he told me as a way of thinking. If I think positively and do good deeds I will be a much happier person. So far, it has worked for me. HOW WOULD YOU SPEND $1,000,000? I would give 25,000 to charity, pay my way through college, build my mother's dream house, buy some farm animals like an energetic baby goat or a highland cow, adopt homeless dogs, go on a nice week or two vacation and put the rest in a savings account for retirement or emergency. IF YOU WERE STRANDED ON A DESERT ISLAND, WHAT 3 ITEMS WOULD YOU WANT WITH YOU? A bag of tools to build a shelter, a fishing pole for entertainment, and a pot to boil water or cook food. LAST WORDS OF ADVICE: “Don’t go through life constantly worrying about the future. Stay in the present, stay true to yourself, don’t let the bad things get to you or hold you back, appreciate what you have, never limit yourself, become the best you, and above all love yourself and do what makes you happy.”