Katlyn Cadelina's Impact Beyond the Classroom
Senior Katlyn Cadelina will be graduating from Henry M. Jackson High School and also celebrating her 18th birthday in June. Yet while she awaits responses to her college applications (she plans to study chemistry or biochemistry), one thing is certain. “I love Mill Creek, as my parents moved here from Seattle for a more suburban lifestyle," she says. "But for college I am leaning toward out of state. There is so much I can learn as an individual that my parents cannot teach me, and going out of state will help make me a better person.”
Katlyn has already been developing her leadership skills as she was elected last year as President of the Key Club at Jackson High School. “To become president, you fill out your application and make a speech in front of the entire club, then 230 people,” she explains. "Next there is a vote and a series of interviews - mine were with advisors Mr. Cain and Mrs. Vaught, as well as the current leadership team. My most difficult question was to give my definition of being a leader. I answered that it is to guide others around you so that they achieve their goals along with your own.” Katlyn recognizes that she has become the great leader she is today with the help of her officer board: Clara Nacu, Anna Cory, Jasmine Ho, Samuel Nam, Victor Chung, Chloe Lewis, and Raine Trinh.
As President, Katlyn has increased Key Club membership from 230 to 330, and her leadership of the local branch of this student-led international organization has been a defining experience and expanded her horizons. “Like a lot of my friends I was quite an introvert, but since we joined the Key Club and had to put ourselves out there, we have become more extroverted,” she continues. “The club also means making a difference throughout the community and, further, branching out to other communities beyond our own. It builds character and develops networking skills. Every year the club selects a project, and this year ours is Help End Youth Homelessness."
The Key Club keeps Katlyn fully occupied in reaching out as well as connecting to the students and faculty at the school. As she explains, “We have general meetings every month, attended by about 200 students. We work with the Associate Student Body (ASB) to make posters and decorations for events like our Haunted Hallway at Halloween, a big attraction. Some of the most meaningful work is done by our Service Committee, which helps organizations like Housing Hope support poverty and homelessness in Everett. We make blankets, Valentine's Day cards, and Christmas ornaments for them. We volunteer at the Mill Creek Food Bank. We help at elementary and middle schools with their PTA events and dance, bingo, movie, and science reading nights.“ Representing the Key Club, Katlyn networks with any organizations that need help. She meets her Kiwanis advisors every other second Wednesday of the month and attends monthly President Conference Meetings of the Key Club to recap on the work at Jackson High.
Taekwondo is a passion for Katlyn, and participating has further developed her leadership skills. “I've been doing it since I was six years old,” she says, “and it’s a sport in which you progress as an individual with the help of your peers. I loved excelling both for myself and for others. It taught me how to be a good leader, to be organized, take responsibility, and practice self-discipline. I have progressed through the levels and today have my 4th degree black belt.” Katlyn plans to compete at the collegiate level and beyond and looks forward to meeting new people through the sport.
An only child, Katlyn loves spending the leisure time she has available with her friends, parents, and two French Bulldogs, Willow and Coco. Looking forward to college and career, she notes the influence of an internship she had last summer with the Providence Regional Medical Center in Everett. Providence has a mission of caring for the poor and vulnerable in the community, and Katlyn saw the many and varied aspects of its care: “I helped the nurses, cleaned beds, discharged patients, picked up tests at the labs, and helped in many departments including family maternity and the breast center. I learned about so many aspects of integrated medicine. I have always thought I would be a lawyer, and now I know I would like to become a medical lawyer.”
Reflecting on her time at high school, Katlyn is proud of what she has achieved in the community and with her fellow students, completing 400 hours of community service, so she will wear that honor cord at graduation. Congratulations Katlyn!
Katlyn has already been developing her leadership skills as she was elected last year as President of the Key Club at Jackson High School. “To become president, you fill out your application and make a speech in front of the entire club, then 230 people,” she explains. "Next there is a vote and a series of interviews - mine were with advisors Mr. Cain and Mrs. Vaught, as well as the current leadership team. My most difficult question was to give my definition of being a leader. I answered that it is to guide others around you so that they achieve their goals along with your own.” Katlyn recognizes that she has become the great leader she is today with the help of her officer board: Clara Nacu, Anna Cory, Jasmine Ho, Samuel Nam, Victor Chung, Chloe Lewis, and Raine Trinh.
As President, Katlyn has increased Key Club membership from 230 to 330, and her leadership of the local branch of this student-led international organization has been a defining experience and expanded her horizons. “Like a lot of my friends I was quite an introvert, but since we joined the Key Club and had to put ourselves out there, we have become more extroverted,” she continues. “The club also means making a difference throughout the community and, further, branching out to other communities beyond our own. It builds character and develops networking skills. Every year the club selects a project, and this year ours is Help End Youth Homelessness."
The Key Club keeps Katlyn fully occupied in reaching out as well as connecting to the students and faculty at the school. As she explains, “We have general meetings every month, attended by about 200 students. We work with the Associate Student Body (ASB) to make posters and decorations for events like our Haunted Hallway at Halloween, a big attraction. Some of the most meaningful work is done by our Service Committee, which helps organizations like Housing Hope support poverty and homelessness in Everett. We make blankets, Valentine's Day cards, and Christmas ornaments for them. We volunteer at the Mill Creek Food Bank. We help at elementary and middle schools with their PTA events and dance, bingo, movie, and science reading nights.“ Representing the Key Club, Katlyn networks with any organizations that need help. She meets her Kiwanis advisors every other second Wednesday of the month and attends monthly President Conference Meetings of the Key Club to recap on the work at Jackson High.
Taekwondo is a passion for Katlyn, and participating has further developed her leadership skills. “I've been doing it since I was six years old,” she says, “and it’s a sport in which you progress as an individual with the help of your peers. I loved excelling both for myself and for others. It taught me how to be a good leader, to be organized, take responsibility, and practice self-discipline. I have progressed through the levels and today have my 4th degree black belt.” Katlyn plans to compete at the collegiate level and beyond and looks forward to meeting new people through the sport.
An only child, Katlyn loves spending the leisure time she has available with her friends, parents, and two French Bulldogs, Willow and Coco. Looking forward to college and career, she notes the influence of an internship she had last summer with the Providence Regional Medical Center in Everett. Providence has a mission of caring for the poor and vulnerable in the community, and Katlyn saw the many and varied aspects of its care: “I helped the nurses, cleaned beds, discharged patients, picked up tests at the labs, and helped in many departments including family maternity and the breast center. I learned about so many aspects of integrated medicine. I have always thought I would be a lawyer, and now I know I would like to become a medical lawyer.”
Reflecting on her time at high school, Katlyn is proud of what she has achieved in the community and with her fellow students, completing 400 hours of community service, so she will wear that honor cord at graduation. Congratulations Katlyn!