![At the bottom of the third inning, the Lions are still scoreless. Rowe stands at home plate, preparing to bat, while Vandenbrink stands off to the side as the next batter up. Despite having the bases loaded, the team was unable to score any runs. “It’s just the beginning of the season. We’re just going to be playing out best by June, [and] that’s where champions are,” Rowe said.](https://wlhsnow.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/IMG_3077-1200x900.jpg)
![All smiles. The group poses for a photo with last year’s book, “This is Our House,” along with their award for third Best in Show. Meikle, who was an Editor-in-Chief for the yearbook last year as well, holds both and stands at the center of the group. “That was an amazing feeling, going and grabbing the third place award,” Meikle said. “All of it paid off. I cried so much over that book, being able to receive [the award] was one of the highlights of my high school career, it was like the coolest thing ever.”](https://wlhsnow.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/8bookpose_philly-1200x800.jpg)
A Summer In The Rain
Andres Chaves, senior, spent his summer in the cold, rain and snow- a stark difference from the tropical beaches of Costa Rica. The 16 year-old found out about a program in which 25 students from Costa Rica travel to Oregon during their summer and vice versa.
Chaves stayed in Oregon for two months, the entirety of his summer. However, his summer correlates with Oregon’s winter. He said that West Linn is different in many ways from his home town, Barva, but the worst part is the weather.
“I miss the weather more than my mom,” he said. But the weather wasn’t all bad according to Chaves and he was excited to see snow for the first time.
Chaves enjoyed many interesting experiences during his time in West Linn. Besides seeing snow, he also loved meeting new people. His host family, the Rosses, made the trip possible. Ellery Ross, sophomore, played a big part in his transition to school, helping to show him around. After school, Chaves rode the bus home with Ross.
“It’s like having a cousin stay with us,” Ross said. Ross explained she learned Spanish from Andres and that he was super helpful with her Spanish homework. She said that he fit in really well with her family.
In the fall, Ross heard about a foreign exchange student program from her Spanish teacher Mary Klick. She was directed to a website where her family began the process of participating.
Chaves fit in with the school easily, despite the differences. For instance, Chaves pointed out that in Barva he takes 16 different classes per week compared to six that are taken in West Linn. He has also made many friends including Zac Woodworth, sophomore. Woodworth said that he was around Chaves a lot.
“He is really nice and easy to talk to,” both Ross and Woodworth plan on staying in touch via texting and Snapchat. Ross is also planning on going to Costa Rica this summer.
“You have better chances of going if you host someone,” Ross said, referring to the hosting program.
Chaves spent a wild summer in rainy Oregon. Even though the weather wasn’t his favorite, he said he wants to come back. He thinks he would like to live in California.
“I would love to come back and visit my new friends, some day,” Chaves said.
Your donation will support the student journalists of West Linn High School. Your contribution will allow us to continue to produce quality content by purchasing equipment, software, and continuing to host our website on School Newspapers Online (SNO).
While most of West Linn High School spent their summers sleeping in until noon, Connor Whitbey, junior, was awake at 5a.m. every morning for his job. Working...
When she's not capturing touchdowns on the football field, or catching fly balls on the diamond, Brittany Park, senior can be found solving the latest...
