HOSA Team Does Well

            Attendance at the 2013 State Leadership Conference April 11 to 13 demonstrated again that school size is meaningless; when it comes to brains GHS’s Health Occupations Students of America continue as a force to be reckoned with. Competing against all health programs, including a number of medical charter/magnet schools, our student’s ongoing pursuit of personal goals in health careers placed the Community Awareness team of Tia Conrad and Nikole Tsetsakis fourth in the state. The Health Occupations Professional Portfolios were recognized for Sonya Alania and Lindsay Nelson (fourth), Tia Conrad (5^th) and Nikole Tsetsakis (7^th). National recognition for their portfolios places Sonya, Lindsay, Tia, and Nikole among the top 10% of health career students nationwide. All are planning to attend the National Leadership conference in Nashville. Congratulations on a job well done, and a BIG thank you for keeping Gooding on the radar!

The DownUnder Sports Program has invited local volleyball player and cowgirl, Emelia Millican, to play volleyball in Australia this July. Emelia is currently concentrating on competing in District 5 rodeos. However, last fall she was nominated to the SCIC All-Conference Team as a high school junior. This recognition allowed her a nomination to the DownUnder Sports program. Emelia plays volleyball for the Gooding Senators during the high school season. She has previously played for the Club Canyon Volleyball club. Emelia played Varsity as a sophomore in the middle hitter position. As a junior, she played as an outside hitter for the Senators. Emelia is a versatile player with much potential. Gooding placed 3^rd at State Volleyball when Emelia was a sophomore. They played Division 2A Volleyball beating the number one team in the state at the time, Nampa Christian, in the first round, then losing to Butte County, and finally capitalizing over Ririe for 3^rd place. Presently Emelia is competing for Gooding in District 5 rodeos.

She competes in breakaway roping, goat tying, team roping, barrel racing, and pole bending. She is the Student Vice President for District 5 and the Student President for the Gooding Rodeo Club. Other school-related activities Emelia is involved in are FFA, Honor Society, and HOSA.      

  In Australia Emelia will play both beach volleyball and play 6-on-6 on regular volleyball courts. The DownUnder Sports Program was founded in February 1989 by George O’Scanlon. He saw the need for young athletes across the world to compete with each other in various sports. Originally the program was only for football players. The program has expanded to include football, track and field, cross country, wrestling, volleyball, and basketball. It is the mission of DownUnder Sports to promote the growth, development and self-esteem of the individual athlete through sport; to raise the level of awareness and competition to the benefit of both the host country and the participating athlete; to forge friendships that bridge the gaps of both distance and time, through mutual competition that promotes health and sportsmanship.

                Emelia is currently raising funds to participate on this trip to Australia. She has several options to raise money such as selling DownUnder t-shirts for $20 each, asking local businesses to sponsor her, and for donations she can offer a raffle ticket. The raffle ticket is for a drawing where the winner of the raffle can win a trip to Australia, or they can win a 5 day cruise. Emelia is grateful for this opportunity and can’t wait for this summer trip to play

     On Thursday, April 18, 2013, GHS Seniors were taken out to the Gooding County Fair Grounds  for a service project.  It was ISAT testing at the high school and since seniors have already banked their scores, an alternative activity was found for them that was meaningful and productive.  Students spent 2 hours working to prepare the grounds for its summer activities.  They picked up trash, cleaned and trimmed flower beds, and then painted a new pipe fence which was built to create an alley way for contestants coming out of the east entrance of the arena.  This service was enjoyed by the students, and reinforced the objective of building community strength.

 A GHS student is headed to Nashville in July to attend a Leadership Conference.  Kris Scott was elected as a State Officer for the 2013-2014 school year during the FCCLA State Leadership Conference held last week.  He is one of 9 throughout the state of Idaho that serve on the officer team.  He will participate in a Leadership Acadamy that is designed specifically for state officers while at the National FCCLA Conference held July 7-11, 2013, in Tennessee.    Justin Langley attended the  FCCLA State Leadership Conference as a voting delegate and was initiated into the busy world of FCCLA;he came away with the goal of being a future district and state leader! Gooding FCCLA Chapter also earned the distinction of Outstanding Chapter and won a $100 cash prize!