Fun in the Valley
Charlotte Optimist Club Awards
On March 2nd, Maple Valley students attended a recognition ceremony at the Charlotte Performing Arts Center, where they received the Charlotte Optimist Club Award. Teachers nominate students for this honor based on their character, leadership, and commitment to living out the values of the Optimist Creed.
Eighteen Maple Valley students were recognized for their outstanding attitudes and contributions to the school community. Those honored included: Eli Aulisio (sponsored by Aaron Saari), Loreli Bivens (Nora Mann), Jacob Blakely (Megan Roets), Kamren Bush (Aaron Saari), Hannah Campbell (Jeff Fisher), Hope D’Agostino (Maggie Catchick), Crystal Echkoff (Nathan Dennison), Dylan Elliston (Angel Christopher), Nolan Hoefler (Jaymie Rose), Lou Jones (Megan Roets), Lily Laughry (Angel Christopher), Landon Meade (Jeff Fisher), Hannah Primm (Aaron Saari), Liam Swift (Salina Eggers), Cooper Thomason (Nora Mann), Trapper Wawiernia (Nathan Dennison), Grady Wilkes (Maggie Catchick), and Clara Williams (Maggie Catchick).
In total, 18 Maple Valley students received the Charlotte Optimist Club Award. Congratulations to all of the students recognized for their positive impact and dedication to the Maple Valley community.
Sports
For sports schedules, please visit the Athletics Website: Upcoming Sporting Events
On March 2nd, the Varsity girls basketball team competed in the MHSAA District 76 First Round against Parchment. The Lions fell 39-64, bringing their season to a close.
On March 7th, Jackson Burpee represented Maple Valley at the MHSAA Wrestling Individual Finals in the Division 4 190-pound weight class. In the opening round, Burpee faced Drew Challender of St. Louis and was defeated by fall.
Burpee bounced back in the first consolation round with a strong 6-2 decision over Mitchell Corrigan of Bark River-Harris. His tournament run concluded in the second consolation round after a fall loss to Brody Marshall of Gobles. Jackson finished the season with an impressive 37-15 record and represented Maple Valley well on the state stage.
On March 7th, Andrew Phenix represented Maple Valley at the Powerlifting State Championships and had an impressive performance in the 242-pound weight class. Phenix recorded a 445-pound squat on his third attempt, setting a new personal record by 20 pounds. He followed that with a 285-pound bench press on his third attempt, adding another 15-pound personal record.
Phenix finished strong with a 505-pound deadlift on his third attempt, earning a 30-pound personal record in the lift. With three personal bests on the day, Andrew placed 10th overall in the 242-pound weight class at the state meet. Congratulations to Andrew on a great performance at States.
Activites/Clubs
98th Michigan FFA State Convention
Members of the Maple Valley FFA chapter recently attended the 98th Michigan FFA State Convention, held at Michigan State University from March 4th through the 6th, where students participated in sessions, leadership opportunities, and received several honors throughout the three-day event.
The first day of convention started early with Brooklyn Myers competing in the Greenhand Public Speaking contest. She delivered a strong speech and represented Maple Valley well, although she did not advance to the next round. After the contest, members headed to Akers Hall for lunch before attending the opening session of the convention. During Session Two, Kaitlyn Garlinger was recognized for her achievements by receiving a Gold Academic Excellence Award. Later that evening, members attended another session where Leannah Johnson performed with the Michigan FFA State Choir. During the same session, Kearson Keiffer, Kayla Raines, Leannah Johnson, Annabelle Staley, Mikayla Griffin, and Dakota Griffin were all honored with Outstanding Junior Awards. The busy day wrapped up with the State Convention dance before members returned to their hotel to rest for the next day.
Day two of convention included more sessions and special opportunities for Maple Valley’s delegates, who had the chance to tour the Michigan State Capitol. During one of the sessions, members heard from keynote speaker Fabian Ramirez, who spoke about the importance of hard work and perseverance, reminding students that success requires effort and determination. During this session, Kaitlyn Garlinger was also awarded her State FFA Degree.
On the final day of convention, Maple Valley’s delegates had the opportunity to listen to candidate speeches and participate in voting for the next year’s Michigan FFA State Officers. During the session that followed, Brooklyn Myers was recognized and received a trophy for advancing to the state level in her contest. The convention concluded with Kayla Raines performing on the saxophone as a member of the Michigan FFA State Band.
It was an exciting and successful convention for the Maple Valley FFA chapter. Congratulations to all the members who represented the chapter and received awards throughout the event.
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MSBOA District Festival
On March 3rd, the Maple Valley High School Concert Band competed in the MSBOA District Festival held at Lakewood High School. During the festival, bands perform three prepared pieces in front of a panel of three judges, who each assign a divisional rating from 1–5. After their stage performance, bands move to a sight-reading room where they are given five minutes to review a piece of music they have never seen before and then perform it for another judge, who also provides a rating.
The Maple Valley High School Band earned Division 1 ratings from all three judges for their prepared performances and received a Division 2 rating in sight-reading. With this strong performance, Mr. DeWitt will be taking the band to the State Festival at the end of April and into the beginning of May. Congratulations to the band, and good luck at States!
Senior Highlights
Merle Lotta Bradschetl
This week, we are highlighting exchange student Merle Bradschetl, from Germany. After high school, Merle plans to finish school in Germany and go to college. The staff member who has had the biggest impact on Merle is Mr. Carpenter, she says, “He always motivates me to do my best, and his positive energy made gym class super fun.” After graduating, she plans to spend time with family and friends again and enjoy the summer. Some advice she would like to give to Freshmen is, “Do not take everything too seriously. School days pass faster than you think, so take the opportunity to make as many memories as possible.” The highlight of her senior year so far has been the volleyball season, she says, “The spirit was great, the football season was at the same time, and we still felt like we had the whole year in front of us.” Merle is extremely grateful to her parents for making this experience possible and to her amazing host family for making her feel at home.
