Students and staff share their favorite moments

This year, I worked with senior Samuel Edwards to coordinate the annual USY Fall Convention, which connects Jewish teens across the area for a weekend. The  planning process took well over a month, and included brainstorming sessions, angry texts, and Zoom meetings that went past midnight, but from November 19th through the 21st, we saw our hard work pay off. It is safe to say that this was the g...

My best memory from this year were all the drama nights for House. It was really fun to  meet and talk to people that I usually don’t talk to, and to just get to hangout with friends. Ushering in drama is  so fun, it’s such an energetic environment and I love it!

I got better at photography. I just brought my camera with me as I walked in the woods. I’d usually have a song playing in my mind and try to capture scenery/ photos that felt like a living manifestation of said song.  

I saw my brother for the first time in a long time. My family has always been super close, especially my brother, sister, and I, so it was difficult not seeing each other. Although we facetimed a lot, it still didn’t feel the same, so when he came, it was so fun! I love it when he comes to visit us because it feels just like when we were younger and would spend so much time together.

I’m taking the weight lifting for women class this year and it’s full of chaos and fun times! I met some friends (we all have our birthdays in the same week so that’s cool)  and we formed the Sagittarius lifting group. The class is full of people supporting each other and we achieve goals we never thought we could accomplish-I was able to deadlift 225 pounds!

Over the summer I had the wonderful opportunity to work at the daycare across the street from me. Commute was awesome (barely a two minute walk) and I got paid pretty well. All the staff there were super nice and so were the parents. But the best part of it all was working with the kids. From changing diapers to teaching them to write, I got a chance to connect with them that I’ll never forget, it...

I got a Shih Tzu Yorkie and he’s very tiny-he just turned a year old a month ago. During the summer, I went on a roadtrip with him and he had so much fun! He had his bear with him and it was so cute! He couldn’t leave the bear alone.

I am proud that I placed first in the matching game on my Spanish teacher’s Quizlet. We were reviewing the present tense in Spanish. It took me around five tries (to win). Quizlet has been my steadfast supporter for as long as I can remember, through both my worst and my best, and it truly has made its mark on my heart. I love the beautiful blue logo, the graceful curve of the Q, and most of all,...

During the summer, my family and I went to Harper's Ferry, a little town on a peninsula. There were some cool historical buildings and I loved how nostalgic the shop signs looked, they were written like they were from the 19th century. The view from the top of the mountain was also pretty stunning since you could see the two rivers merging together (Potomac and Shenandoah) from afar and then the little...

Homecoming was definitely a night to remember! Although I was freezing and on the verge of becoming a snowman, I was fashionable. I was glad that I got to wear something so fancy to a school dance. Now everyone knows how stunning my style is.

I was invited to join the University of Maryland’s marching band and spent time with them for a day which included a  rehearsal, a parade, and playing at one of their football games for halftime and in the stands. Marching with their drumline, playing powerful music and meeting such skilled musicians felt amazing, even if my back almost gave out from the weight. 9 of our marching rockets joined...

This month  I had my main character moment in my seventh period class –Philosophy– and Mr. Thomas was trying to keep us from being dismissed on time and so I was like, no, it’s time, you have no minutes, and then everybody laughed so that actually was like my main character moment.

Practices for varsity tennis in May were my first real interactions in a long time with the RM community. Our season got cut short and we didn’t get to play our tournament,  but I had a great time catching up with the team and Coach Fahrner.

I went out for bubble tea and ice cream with some RM people before school started. I was incredibly nervous to meet them in real life but that really helped me make some friendships at the new school. There were a lot of laughs and it was great fun. Plus, the food was great, but meeting new people was the best part.

16th birthday party. If I could relive one day, it would be that day. My friend and I celebrated our birthday together at black hill (our birthdays are a day apart) with a group of friends. My mom and I basically planned out the whole thing and everything went extremely well -- We went kayaking and it was beautiful to be around nature and just.. listen and be present. We had some really nice food an...

I am proud of helping my two kids (4th and 6th grade) make a successful transition back to in person school. We also saw the Winter Lights festival in Gaithersburg, which is an Oakes family tradition!

I went to the Harry Styles concert in New York. I had anticipated and waited so long to finally be able to see his performance in person. I was so excited to finally be there and it was amazing getting to experience it with my family around me. It was so much fun to hear the music while being in the stadium. I also enjoyed sightseeing around New York!

I think my top highlight of the year would probably be homecoming and hoco hallway decorations. Homecoming was a blast-getting a chance to hang out with friends and just partying :), hoco hallways was also super fun because I know everyone who helped put in a lot of work and it really came together in the end! I’m really glad that I got the chance to see these 2 things come together so perfectly and ...

It was really hard during the pandemic not being able to see friends. So, in 2021, my favorite memories were the mundane moments that I got to spend with the people that I care about most that I had been kept apart from for so long. 

I got to meet so many new people at RM. It's been such a nice change of pace to finally be around people instead of being stuck at home. I love that I was able to meet such a great community here and that we all get to experience high school as normal as possible under these circumstances. Going to all the different games and events and joining some clubs has been a really enjoyable experience as ...

Going back to school gave my life a lot more structure, it wasn’t just me lounging at home all day, doing online school, and then doing homework. I also really like meeting new people and seeing new friends and joining new clubs since this is my first year in high school. 

When COVID restrictions were lifted, I was able to go out and visit deep creek lake with my family and some of our family friends. Before COVID, we used to go on picnics by the lake and go canoeing often. Being able to experience that again even with the masks was really refreshing and exhilarating after being stuck inside for so long with online school as well.

I traveled  to Seattle to visit my grandfather. I was finally able to see all my aunts, uncles, and cousins. It was great getting to catch up with my family after the pandemic. My uncle's cabin that I stayed at had a beautiful view of the water. It was super exciting to wake up so close to the water every morning, and I was super sad when I had to finally leave.

I went to Alaska with my man Jarry Doo and  it was a very unique experience seeing all kinds of animals and landscapes such as bears and glaciers. The trip really changed my views of nature and helped un-addict me from tech.

I accomplished being in a very high board position for BBYO (a youth group) and gained lots of leadership and communication skills. My favorite memory from 2021 was returning to sleep away camp and reuniting with tons of friends there. Sleep away camp was so much fun this year because the bunks were mixed up, so I got to become great friends with people who I’d never talked to before. ...

I traveled to Buffalo, New York for a [Naval] summer camp, just me and my brother for the first time during the pandemic. The second time I traveled, it was actually mid-August, right before school started. That was with my whole family, and I think traveling with my whole family was much better than traveling with just my brother.