First off I would like to apologize for the grammar and spelling in this article. Most of my articles are edited by the amazing Ms. Walsh who helps my wonderful ideas sound more wonderful. I did not let Ms. Walsh edit this final article in hopes of keeping it a surprise.

I had to wait to write this article until after I graduated. Otherwise I wouldn’t believe that is was true that I couldn’t come to this school anymore. At first I thought I would write a long thoughtful message where I would attempt to make everyone cry in the Newspaper class. But I will not be writing a long three page speech. Today I will be writing a short and sweet goodbye.

I will be writing a short and sweet goodbye to my high school years, to the high school I will miss, to the newspaper class that constantly made me laugh and to the teacher that helped develop my sense of self respect.

For many, their high school years are a rough time and they can’t wait to graduate. Although some parts of my high school years have been extremely rough I can honestly say that I enjoyed my high school years and that I wasn’t ready to graduate. It wasn’t because I didn’t feel prepared for the real world, although that is still debatable. It was that I wasn’t ready to say goodbye to my friends before they all head off to college, I wasn’t ready to say goodbye to the great teachers like Proctor, Holter and Ms. Walsh. I wasn’t ready to say goodbye to the five clubs I had created through the course of high school. I wasn’t ready to say goodbye to the Thespian Troupe that I had become president of my senior year and I wasn’t ready to say goodbye to newspaper.

I wasn’t ready to say goodbye to the class that has always been apart of my schedule since I first transferred to Helena High the summer between my freshman and sophomore year. I started in the journalism class seventh period my sophomore year. The class was only a semester and I had one of my articles published in the then physical papers. Mrs. Rice wanted me to join the class second semester since their staff was primarily seniors and she said I would have a great opportunity at getting an editor position my senior year. I wasn’t sure if I wanted to switch, it would mean having to leave Ms. Humphrey’s money management class third period for Newspaper. After some thought I decided to do it, and after a great semester with the Nugget staff I was promoted to Editor for the upcoming year with the wonderful Jaurdyn Johnson.

Then in the middle of the summer I got a phone call from my newspaper teacher Mrs. Rice who informed me that she would be moving and that a new teacher would be taking over the class. I was worried that the school wouldn’t find a proper teacher and that they would try to make the Nugget something it wasn’t. I was delighted to find out that I was wrong. For when I met Ms. Walsh the next year, I knew the Nugget was in safe hands.

I spent the next years as editor of the Nugget with Ms. Walsh as advisor. The Nugget would eventually turn to the online platform to save costs and I would end up building our new website. I would also try my hand at broadcast journalism and create the greatest show to ever have two published episodes.  I will always miss the Nugget classroom. From the friendships I made with Caio, Jaurdyn, Danielle, Kameron, Selena, Jada, Marcus, Melina, Becky, Connor, John (who I practically begged into the class), and Ms. Walsh. If I knew that I would make this many friends in my time at the Nugget I would not have made the max occupancy only ten peeps.

I would like to thank Ms. Walsh for giving me the chances to be able to spread my wings and give me the courage I needed to do it. Ms. Walsh, I will miss our long talks about politics, movies, Helena and family. I will miss the greatest teacher I have ever known. But Ms. Walsh has become more than just a teacher, she has become a teacher I can laugh with, a teacher I can confide in and a teacher that has taught me many life lessons that go past the lessons of journalism. Ms. Walsh has become a great friend.

So although I miss Helena High for many reasons, and I don’t think I am ready to move on, in the wise, hard to understand words of Helen Keller, “So long as the memory of certain beloved friends lives in my heart, I shall say that life is good.” So with these final words I say goodbye to the newspaper that helped me as I much I helped it, and I say goodbye to my good friend Megan and the newspaper class that she let me run.