As my time at Loretto Academy and as the co-editor-in-chief of The Prax draws to an end, I would first like to thank the people who have supported me during my high school career and who have left their fingerprints all over the person I have become today.

Thank you to my parents for your love, support, and pride — especially my mom, who had The Prax bookmarked on her phone and would read every new edition as soon as it went live.

Thank you to my friends, both old and new, for sharing laughs and memories with me and allowing me to bug you for interviews.

Finally, thank you to all of my teachers, especially Mrs. Lockhart, not only because you guided and educated me, but also because of the friendship you extended to me and my peers while doing so.

Writing is a life-long passion of mine that has always been both deeply personal and deeply interactive.

In elementary school, I would write stories on sheets of folded-up printer paper with illustrations drawn by my friend, and I’d pass the stories around the class for other people to read.

In middle school, I wrote very bad but very wholehearted stories and published them on the internet, making friends within these online writing communities.

And in high school, I wrote and shared stories with my friends here at Loretto, and perhaps more importantly I became a member of The Prax.

The Prax taught me a completely new form of writing; in the past I had always written to entertain, but now I was writing to inform and to educate.

Writing for The Prax taught me the responsibility that journalists have in remaining unbiased and honest in their reporting, and also about the responsibility that we all share in being aware of what is happening in the world.

There is inherent power in the words that we say, but even more so, there can be danger in what is not said.

The Washington Post said it best with their famous tag line: democracy dies in darkness.

Journalists have the indispensable responsibility of shining light on the events that some would rather have been left unjustly in the darkness; journalists hold the people in power accountable while also holding themselves accountable.

Writing for The Prax taught me not only that but also the importance of being present in my own community.

The articles I wrote for The Prax and for our journalism class steered me to talk to people I never would have otherwise.

When I wrote the memorial piece for R.J., may he rest in peace, I grew closer to Mrs. Glover, Sister Buffy, and to all of our Loretto Angels who knew and loved him during his time with us.

When I wrote the articles for artist of the month, I grew closer to Ms. Jensen and the girls in National Art Honor Society — we all joked that I was practically an honorary member of NAHS.

Whenever it was applicable, I loved interviewing the teachers around the school for my articles because I have always believed that writing is only truly enjoyable when it’s something you can share with other people.

Stories are meant to be shared, regardless of whether or not they’re meant to entertain or to inform.

So with a heavy heart and plenty of great memories, I am saying farewell to The Prax and to all the members of our staff who worked together to produce this paper.

Thank you to everyone who followed along with our publications, and thank you to Loretto — I would not be the person I am today without the guidance of the wonderful people I met here.