Q: Class rank?
A: Co-Valedictorian.
Q: Parents’ names?
A: Todd and Amanda Hofheins.
Q: Future plans?
A: I'm attending RIT in the fall for bachelor’s and master’s degrees in mechanical engineering.
Q: Honors & Awards?
A: Over the past four years I have been on the honor roll, I have received the RIT Innovation and Creativity Award, the Triple “C” Award, perfect attendance and I was a recognized member in the National Society of Leadership and Success.
Q: Activities & Sports?
A: I’ve been involved in band where I've held the positions of secretary, treasurer, section leader, vice president, president and drum major. I have also been a part of Revival Club and math team for the past three years. Outside of school I have been involved in 4-H for the past 10 years as well as the Alexander Fireman's Band, Youth Group and The National Society of Leadership and Success.
Q: What’s the most important lesson you learned in high school?
A: Learn to go with the flow. There are always going to be challenges and stressful moments; handle them with grace and maturity. If you make a mistake, learn from it and let it go; don't dwell on it. Spending energy worrying about and dwelling on things you simply can’t control is not worth it. You can only control yourself: how you handle the situation, how much effort you put in, and how you live your life.
Q: What do you hope your life looks like in 10 years?
A: We have been preparing and paving the way for our futures all throughout our lives. Over the years, we’ve come to realize that we can make all these plans, but that doesn’t mean they’re going to happen. Ten years ago, we were eight-year-olds running around on the playground, painting with finger-paints in art class, and playing around the world in math. Ten years later, we’re taking AP exams, writing papers, graduating from high school, and moving onto the next chapter of our lives. So much has happened in just those ten years, so what is our life going to look like in another ten?
In ten years, I see myself loving, laughing, and living life to its fullest. I see myself creating my career as an engineer. I see myself living on a farm, up on a hill, where I can watch all the sunsets with my future family. I see myself chasing after my dreams and living the life God has for me.
Q: If you could tell your eighth grade self one thing, what would it be?
A: Life isn’t always going to be filled with sunshine, but you can be the light in the darkness. Your friend groups will change, and your goals will change, but you will always be you. You must always be yourself and stop worrying about the things you can’t control. You can only control yourself; only you can determine what your life is going to look like. Always do your best and know that every challenge and all the adversity will be worth it because you did it!
Q: What do you want people to know about what it’s like to be you, to be your age, at this moment in time?
A: Your teenage years are a rollercoaster, where we all have a lot of growing up to do and a whole new chapter to write in front of us. These are the most crucial, yet toughest, times of our lives. By the age of eighteen, we’re expected to know what we want to do with our lives and where we want to go, and then we’re off. Overnight, our lives change. It’s scary.
Failure can seem intimidating, but our greatest success comes from failure. This is the time of our lives when we’re going to make mistakes. These mistakes don’t define us; they simply add to our story. Go travel the world, start your own business, and chase after your dreams. It may seem scary, but if your dreams don’t scare you, they’re not big enough.
Q: What would the title of your autobiography be?
A: The title of my autobiography would be “A Life in Progress” or “Always Look on the Bright Side.” Our lives are a journey; in our journeys, we keep pushing forward; that’s the only direction we can go—not backward, but simply forward. With every step we take and every decision we make, we’re making progress. Sometimes, with the progress we make along the journey, we face a challenge. Instead of following the ways of the world, you must always see the good and look on the bright side.
Q: What’s your most-listened to song?
A: My most-listened-to song is “Finally Friday,” by George Jones. Growing up, my dad would always play this song on Fridays, making this song nostalgic for me. Jones’ song is about a procrastinator who’s excited to be free from the work week; for me, this song is a memory but also a celebration to start off the weekend.
Q: What gives you hope about the future?
A: “For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.” —Jeremiah 29:11. No matter the success or hardships that lie ahead, we have a prosperous future, knowing that God is never going to give us a challenge that we can’t handle.
Q: Define the word “senioritis” and describe how it’s impacted your life this school year.
A: The phantom disease Seniors are warned of: Senioritis. Once a senior catches senioritis, the joy we once found in school and our classes is gone. We lose motivation and are simply moving through the motions of our lives. Although this has affected some of my classmates, it has yet to fully affect me. Although preparing for finals, writing papers, and giving presentations has taken a toll, I’ve realized that I am never going to get this time of my life back. Instead of simply going through the motions and letting this chapter go by, I want to live in the moment and make the most of the time I have left in high school.