Four years ago when I walked into Jerry Kersey Gym for the first time as a Cyclone I truly had no clue what I was in for. I knew that I was a part of something big, and I was right. Since freshman year I’ve become part of the best high school in not only Pueblo, but in my opinion, the entire state of Colorado. In my four years, PWHS has rocketed to the top of academics as well as athletics. It is the pride that makes me a Cyclone, however. I can’t imagine myself spending high school anywhere else. Nobody else has a bigger student section at a basketball game, they don’t have the classes that truly prepare you for the next step, and they don’t have the unity a Cyclone feels.
I’ve spent many football and basketball games on the sidelines snapping photos and being able to witness what it feels like to be beating South. The energy our athletes carry is like nothing I’ve ever experienced. On the same sidelines I’ve seen just how energetic our students are in the fourth quarter when it’s a close game; it’s amazing. Those are moments where I’ve observed, from a distance, just how big we are as a school; we don’t settle for anything less than the best whether we are scoring a field goal or cheering on the players from the stands.
The papers know Pueblo West High for the usually dominated scoreboard. I know the school for its intellectuals. Speech and Debate, FBLA, and of course Newspaper have defined my journey. Transitioning from middle school, I wasn’t sure there would really be a place for me. I’m not about fitting in, wearing Hollister, having a “group”, or partying on Friday nights. Thankfully, there are a lot of people that share the same outlook. High school seemed so cookie cutter before I embraced it. It took a little while before I knew it was okay to spend more time memorizing statistics on Iran’s funding of Hezbollah than trying to figure out which people I should be seen with. People who hate high school are the people who try too hard to conform (or not to conform). I just wanted to do what I liked, turned out that looking back now, those were what made the journey all worth while.
I leave Pueblo West High School having learned a lot academically and a lot about myself. I walked in as a Cyclone and I leave as a Cyclone. The experiences I’ve had at Pueblo West High have made me who I am. I move on as a Kansas State Wildcat, but the base of who I become will always be rooted at 661 Capistrano Avenue.
