Archbishop Carroll High School gave me some of the most unforgettable memories that I’ll truly cherish for the rest of my life. The friendships made along the way, the hardships that were fought through, everything that occurred in these four years are what has made me who I am today. Coming into Carroll, knowing not many people, I was excited to make new friends and get involved in the community so that I wouldn’t just be going through the motions all through high school. 

I had always been playing basketball since the age of eight and being on the basketball team was one of my main focuses. Luckily, the basketball coach that year, Coach Paul Romanczuk, was able to come see me play the previous summer so we had already started to develop a relationship, leading me to get a spot on the JV team. Here, I was exposed to the intensity and the culture of high school sports and that is what drove me to continue to get better. This instilled valuable morals in me; it showed me that in order to play, you had to want to be better, you had to be self motivated, and to always do everything to your best ability. These are all values I began to keep with me throughout high school. I learned to be self motivated with schoolwork, out of school activities, exercise, and so many more things. 

My sophomore year was mostly a reiteration of all the things I was introduced to as a freshman, but junior and senior year were the culmination of everything I learned. Through things such as my senior basketball season, Kairos, and hybrid scheduling, I was somewhat guided to the path I feel is best for me. I was able to experience one last season of my favorite sport and showcase my talent while building relationships with the other seniors on the team and more of the younger players. Right after basketball season ended, Kairos was approaching and was a nice way to complement a long season. After having a great year on the court, I had decided not to play in college and felt stuck. Though when going on this retreat, I found that if you put faith in yourself and are motivated to succeed, there is nothing stopping you. 

Carroll’s truly brought me some best friends for life and I wouldn’t trade our experiences for anything.