Friday Faces – More Support Staff!

Happy Friday! Before we get to our Friday Faces introductions, we would like to wish our high schoolers a wonderful time tonight at their Homecoming Dance! Our high schoolers have been celebrating Homecoming Week all week with such creative Spirit Days and tonight they are concluding it with a dance inspired by the 90’s Arcade theme!  Let us know how it goes and we can’t wait to hear about it!

Now, back to our introductions…

If you’re just joining us, you’re going to want to go back to this post where we explained what Friday Faces is. We introduced this series last week and started it off with some of our Support Staff. Our first group were the folks you see often and interact with regularly. Today we continue with the rest of the team, most of whom do their best work behind-the-scenes. 

We have a different set of questions per team so make sure to scroll on below to read about this fine group. And next time you see them walking around campus, make sure to say hello!

1. What is your favorite family tradition?

• Lindsey: Taking the family to my parents’ house on the lake every labor day weekend. We squeeze every last bit out of summer that way!
• Kristina: Making chili, inviting friends over to carve pumpkins, and eating and drinking all things pumpkin.
• Shannon: My favorite family tradition is watching Elf on Christmas Eve every year! I could quote that whole movie!
• Jeannett:Family dance parties in the living room with the surround sound on window-rattling loud.  Bonus points for accompanied lip syncing.
• Mary: A favorite family tradition is visiting the Agin Christmas Tree Lot in Buellton, which is owned by our college friends, each year. We sit by the fire, roast marshmallows, visit with our friends and pick out the perfect tree.
• Debbie: Easter Egg hunting at Easter
• Miranda: Family BBQs
• Cheryl: Picking out our Christmas tree the day after Thanksgiving. It means we’re ushering in our most favorite family holiday…Christmas!!
• Valerie: Homemade Cinnamon Rolls on Christmas Morning
• Edie: Birthday person picks dinner and dessert (my pick is enchiladas for dinner, mud pie with coffee for dessert)
• Josh: My favorite family tradition is Christmas traveling and visiting.
• Sage: Probably all the activities surrounding Christmas.  Watching Elf on Thanksgiving to ring in the season, Handel’s Messiah all throughout the house, Christmas Eve candlelight service followed by dinner of a huge array of appetizers, watching White Christmas with my sister late on Christmas Eve then playing Clue in the morning while waiting for my parents to wake up, stockings, presents, then baked pasta and Christmas punch for dinner!
• Julie: On Christmas we eat whatever we want and don’t go anywhere.

2. What are you currently listening to on your podcast?

• Lindsey: The World and Everything In It
• Kristina: I tend to listen to music more than podcasts. On long drives, I’ll put on Radiolab or Coffee Break Spanish.
• Shannon: I am currently listening to “The Science of Happiness” which is very thought-provoking for me as a young person. It has given me unique perspectives on how to achieve greater personal development and how to live a happier, more productive life.
• Jeannett: I’ve tried to get on the podcast bandwagon, but find that I prefer quiet or reading.
• Mary: I am currently listening to Read-Aloud Revival.
• Debbie: Good / True / & Beautiful with Ashton Gustafson
• Miranda: KEXP runner’s podcast
• Cheryl: Last one I was really into was Crazy Love but I just started the Read Aloud Revival a couple of weeks ago.
• Valerie: Ben Shapiro Show, The World and Everything in It, and The Read Aloud Revival
• Edie: I don’t listen to pod casts (not that I have anything against them, I just haven’t got around to trying them) but I listen to audio books and lectures. Right now I am listening to ‘Waterloo: The History of 4 Days, 3 Armies, and 3 Battles’
• Josh: My favorite podcast right now is This American Life.
• Sage: This American Life is a favorite of mine.  I’ve also recently gotten into a podcast called Conspiracy Theories.  It sounds kind of wacky, but it’s written by curious non-conspiracy theorists and details how and why conspiracy theories begin.  The history and psychology behind it all is fascinating!
• Julie: I have never listened to a podcast.

3. Have you ever met anyone famous?

• Lindsey: Not that I can remember.
• Kristina: Not yet
• Shannon: I once met Ryan Sheckler and Tony Hawk at X-Games in Los Angeles. At the time everybody was obsessed with Ryan Sheckler so it was pretty cool to have gotten a picture with him! I also grew up playing Tony Hawk video games with my brothers so meeting him was surreal!
• Jeannett: Beyond a variety of musicians from my high school days, I haven’t met anyone famous.  More honestly, I could probably sit next to someone and not even realize who they were.  Partially on account of being ignorant, partially on account of being absorbed in myself.
• Mary: I don’t recall meeting anyone famous.
• Debbie: Yes! Sylvester Stallone, Brigitte Nielsen, Carl Weathers, Jenna Elfman, Danny Elfman, Brad Garrett, Tom Wilson (Biff from Back to the Future), and Yakov Smirnoff
• Miranda: I met Russell Wilson on a flight from Seattle to L.A.
• Cheryl: Horace Grant!
• Valerie: Does the guy that played Phantom in “Phantom of the Opera” count?
• Edie: In college, I worked at the Madonna Inn in the gift shops. An actor from Hill Street Blues came into the shop while I was working, but I do not remember his name.
• Josh: No, I have never met anyone famous.
• Sage: Nope!
• Julie: No.

4. If you could pick a new skill in an instant, what would it be?

• Lindsey: Singing on key
• Kristina: Is staying up late a skill?
• Shannon: I would love to be able to speak multiple languages! I feel like I would be able to experience other cultures much more in depth if I was able to speak the language.
• Jeannett: Dancing.  Like, actual true Britney Spears type of dancing.  It wouldn’t serve much purpose, but it would be fun.  Teleporting would be cool too.
• Mary: If I could pick a new skill to learn in an instant it would be to play the ukulele.
• Debbie: Ballroom Dancer
• Miranda: Piano
• Cheryl: Mixed martial arts!
• Valerie: To have a photographic memory…maybe that’s more of a gift than a skill. Olympic level volleyball skills!
• Edie: Speak Spanish (and Latin, French, German, Russian, Polish, Italian…..most all languages!)
• Josh: If I could pick a new skill right now, I would be instantly able to play saxophone.
• Sage: I have a few DIY projects I’m working on right now, so it would be nice to be instantaneously a great master builder.
• Julie: Surfing.

5. what was your favorite band 10 years ago?

• Lindsey: That’s a hard one! Jack Johnson probably.
• Kristina: Ben Harper
• Shannon: This is so embarrassing, but I was only 12 and I loved the Jonas Brothers!
• Jeannett: Tori Amos and Ani DiFranco.
• Mary: Hmm. No clue, but I do remember listening to Fire Truck!, sung by Ivan Ulz, on repeat each day with my two young boys.
• Debbie: Duran Duran
• Miranda: I can’t remember…maybe Coldplay.
• Cheryl: First off, how sad that I don’t remember what I was listening to 10 years ago and had to look this up! I would have to say, Maroon 5.
• Valerie: Likely what it still is today – a lot of blues and jazz. And JT’s first album when he was bringing sexy back.
• Edie: The Wailin’ Jennys
• Josh: 10 years ago I was 10 and didn’t really listen to music so I’ll just say Weird Al.
• Sage: Well, I was 11 so I mostly listened to my parents’ music.  Probably Switchfoot.
• Julie: None.

It’s always fun getting to know a little bit about our staff! Thank you for reading and stay tuned for more next week! Next up, our spectacular Safety Team members!