In all honesty, I think I’ve been avoiding writing this letter for a while because I’m so horrible at saying goodbye. Goodbye feels so final and so somber sometimes, and I hate that I have to say goodbye to such a big part of my life. 

For most of my middle school and through my sophomore year, I was set on journalism being my major. Writing was my thing, that one skill I just had a niche for and felt like came naturally for me; because of this, I signed up for every journalism, publications and photography class that I could up until I was finally able to join The Green Pride my sophomore year. Even though I completely went rogue from the path I had set myself on and decided to pursue a degree in neuroscience (I know, completely random based off of my previous career choice), being on staff was one of the best experiences of my high school career. Grinding to meet deadlines, feeling the satisfaction of pulling off the awesome design for a page that had been sitting in my head for weeks, and (especially) the staff holiday parties are some of my favorite memories, and I’m going to miss them so much. Even though we sometimes had no idea what we were doing and felt the pressure of what it’s really like to be in journalism nowadays, I’m so proud of everything that we as a staff have accomplished, whether you’ve been on staff for one year or three. 

To my co-editors Hayley and Camryn, there is not enough gratitude in the world that I can express to you guys for being my rocks through leading this amazing staff. I’ve known both of you since Pre-K and I think that made us a pretty good team through all of the craziness that we endured this year. I sincerely could not have succeeded at this position without you guys. Camryn, I am so proud of the tenacity, drive, passion and selflessness that you display on a daily basis. You answered my endless questions without batting an eyelash, edited my pages, spent hours at work nights, edited stories relentlessly, supported everyone’s ideas and had my back inside and outside of the newsroom, and I could not be more thankful. Hayley, the amount of ferocity, fire and passion that you have inspires me on the daily. You are never afraid to speak your mind or stand up to give someone else a voice that desperately needs it, and I know that will be a quality that you never leave behind. Your fierceness is never-ending and never failing, and that is something I will always admire. 

To Chase, one of my best friends and my rock, I am so grateful that you put yourself out there and joined the staff for your senior year. It is just another example of the way you are never afraid to go out and try something new with no fears of failure. You continually challenge me to be better everyday and have picked me up countless times, whether it be with a story or a page design or my daily life. You never fail to inspire me, motivate me, challenge me or cheer me up, and I’m so grateful for all that you do for me day in and day out. 

To Erin and Lauren, I am so proud of all of the work and effort that you put into The Green Pride this year. Not only did you transform the page design and the standards of the issues that we put out, but you never failed to bring a positive perspective to everything that we did and I admire that so much. The light that you guys brought to the newsroom and to the staff are both contributions that I will never forget. You made my job so much easier and were always willing to offer helpful advice that I needed to succeed. I am so grateful for all that you have done for The Green Pride and can’t wait to see what you guys accomplish in life. 

To Abby and Lynlee, life would simply not be the same without both of you in it. You both always strived to turn in your best work and were never afraid to ask questions or get help and I admire that greatly. Asking questions means you want your work to be the best it can be, and that is one of my favorite things about both of you. Inside and outside the newsroom, you guys always held me together and encouraged me, and for that I am so thankful. I am so excited to see what you guys accomplish next year on staff. Never be afraid to pursue and always persevere. 

To Hunter, Natalie and Ella, I am so proud of everything that you pursued and accomplished this year on staff. You are all so talented, and I loved seeing every piece of work that you would turn in.  I can not express how much I appreciate how flexible, hardworking and creative you were throughout this entire year, and I know that you guys are going to make The Green Pride great next year as senior leaders. 

To Kyle and Spencer, I appreciate you guys so much for leading the media team and making amazing content to contribute to The Green Pride. The website and the staff would not be the same without you guys and all that you contributed. 

To Sam, Deleana and Abby, I am so proud of everything that you accomplished during your first year on staff and for all of the work that you put in. I appreciate how flexible and hardworking you guys were even when everything would get crazy and we’d have to adjust. You guys are awesome and I know you’ll do amazing work for the rest of your years on staff. 

To Jack and Ethan, I am so thankful for all of the humor and positive energy that you brought to the staff. Ethan, your writing is seriously some amazing stuff and I hope you keep pursuing it. Jack, I am still kind of depressed that we didn’t get to write your mukbang story, but I hope that you spend your senior year lunches trying everything from the Snack Shack. Thank you guys for all that you contributed to the staff this year. 

And finally, a thank you goes out to Mr. Sullivan. I know that I probably annoy you at least 85 percent of the time, but I actually do really appreciate all that I’ve learned from you and the skills you’ve given me that I’ll carry throughout my whole life. Your queso dip is actually the best I’ve ever had, no offense to Jose Peppers. Rock Chalk and go Star Wars, because I don’t know what the saying is for people who love Star Wars. I’m sorry my lunch box is still on your counter, I’ll claim it eventually. Thank you for all you did for the staff this year and for giving three childhood best friends the chance to lead it together. 

I guess my time to actually say goodbye has come, and I’ve been dreading it the entire time that I’ve been writing this (very, very sappy) letter. As Hannah Montana once said, it’s so hard to say goodbye, but I’ll always remember you. Thank you to The Green Pride and it’s amazing staff for everything.