Sarah Brown
Kailey James and Treyson Smith are this year’s Sweet Home High School Freshmen of the Year.
Kailey, 15, daughter of Cara and Gregg James, will spend her summer hanging out with friends, but she also plans to visit her father in Chicago, go on a road trip to the Grand Canyon with her mother, and attend space camp for a week.
During her freshman year, Kailey joined the Key Club, Youth Advisory Council and Leadership class, and then founded a new club, the Student Ambassadors Club. These ambassadors help new students fit in, and it worked well with the school, which was already trying to find a way to help new kids adjust, she said.
Kailey also participated in Peer Court through the city, and played soccer and track, receiving awards for “best attitude” and “most inspirational.” She had to stop track mid-season, however, due to a spinal injury.
Math and Spanish were her favorite classes, she said.
“I like math because it challenged me a lot, and (Melissa Klumph) was a really strong teacher. She had a lot of intelligence, and also carried herself really well.”
Heidi Thorstad, her Spanish teacher, made class fun, but also didn’t take attitude from the students, Kailey said.
“She was really fun, and she knew how to make kids learn.”
Kailey also looked up to Sarah McNellis, an English teacher, because “she has a really good heart.”
Kailey is thinking of pursuing a career as a civil rights lawyer or chief legal officer.
“All my goals are pretty big and seem a little scary, but I want to get into Harvard because of their law program.”
When her older sister wanted to be a lawyer, Kailey began to also develop an interest in the career.
“When I looked into it, I found out about the chief legal officer position, which is basically hot shot lawyers for big companies.”
So her idea is either civil rights lawyer because it’s important, or hot shot lawyer because it could be fun. Either way, it’s a big goal she believes she can attain.
“It would be a lot of hard work, but I think everything good takes hard work.”
If Harvard doesn’t pan out, Kailey might try for Stanford or the University of Chicago, and maybe pursue a medical career, she said.
Kailey attributes a lot of her strength to her parents, and admires the examples they’ve provided.
“My mom is probably one of the strongest women I’ve ever met. She’s really driven and she has a huge heart. She has a lot of patience, and is really giving and caring.”
Cara James, a registered nurse at Samaritan Regional Medical Center in Corvallis, works hard both physically and mentally, and yet finds more energy to pour into her eight children, Kailey said.
“Even after she has an exhausting job, she’ll come home and always find time for us and care for us. I think that’s really important, and she always manages to do that.”
Even her dad, a teacher in Chicago who can’t always be in Oregon with family, stays connected by calling and emailing on a regular basis, she said. When he visits, he finds activities that all family members can appreciate together.
“They’re just really strong people,” she said about both parents. “I don’t think I’d be who I am, even a little bit, without them.”
Treyson, son of Kayla Davis and Micah Smith, said his summer is pretty busy with sports for the upcoming school year, but he did have a little time to go camping and to visit Hawaii with his family.
The 15-year-old is starting up cross country this summer, and will continue baseball and wrestling next year, as well. Although he’d done Mat Club a little bit, it was Coach Steve Thorpe who pinned him down and talked him into joining the team.
“He pulled me out of class one day and asked me to wrestle the Thursday before practice. I had three days to think about it.”
He’s glad he joined. Treyson got second at the Linn County Championships tournament, and also received Rookie of the Year.
“That was really cool. I wasn’t expecting that.”
Math has always been Treyson’s favorite class, and he “does alright with it,” he said.
“I can’t write and articulate my thoughts very well, but with math there’s only one answer you can get, and it’s nice to get that.”
This probably helps explain why Dan Tow was his favorite teacher this past school year.
“He really helped me out this year because I missed a lot school for sports, and he taught (math) really well, the way he did it.”
Treyson is thinking about attending Oregon State University or MIT to study engineering after he graduates high school.
“I’ve always liked to build things and create things. Architects do that, too, but engineering is more on the technical side of it.”
He doesn’t have any specific ideas of what he might like to build some day, but his goal is clear enough.
“Anything that makes life easier for people,” he said.
Treyson looks up to his family, who provide an example of how to handle life’s challenges with grace and dignity.
His grandpa, Verdin Davis, is a Vietnam veteran who’s been through a lot in his life, Treyson said.
“He built all of our houses (where we live) and he knows everyone in Sweet Home. It’s cool to see.”
Treyson’s dad, Micah Smith, of Albany, is a Linn County sheriff.
“My dad handles a lot at his job. I’ve been with him a few times at work and he’s got a lot on his plate, and he handles it really well.”
His mom, Kayla Davis, does billing for Corvallis Radiology. Treyson has watched how she deals with various people and handles different situations.
“She’s very diplomatic about it; she keeps people happy.”