By: Anya Chabria
If you haven’t seen her, I can almost guarantee that you’ve heard her. The Wheatley Wildcat had the opportunity to feature one of our school’s most energetic and enthusiastic: my friend, Emily Yagoda. I promise, it’s not just a pun: Ya simply Gotta meet her.
Besides being kind, caring, and friendly, Emily is unapologetically loud: that’s just one aspect of her bold, boisterous personality. And even if you haven’t heard her, you’ve most certainly heard of her. Emily’s developed quite a reputation for herself. You might remember last year’s Academic Awards, when the teachers sounded like a broken record that just kept announcing her name. Or maybe you’ve heard her speak fluent French to Mr. Henley. Perhaps more recently, you saw her at the World Language Honor Society Induction, passionately recounting her experience with foreign languages.
Emily’s an official Scrabble player (no, seriously), the president of Mock Trial, and an active player in volleyball and jazz band. “She’s so inspiring,” commented her brother, Jace. “Even with her terrible singing abilities, I find it amazing how she can balance so many different activités while excelling at every one of them.”
Of course, no description of Emily would be complete without talking about French. Emily’s been the president of French Club for not one, not two, not even three, but four years. She runs the club tirelessly; you can always find her organizing bake sales, setting up field trips, and talking to Ms. Anderson about her many plans for the French program. It certainly helps that she’s skipped a year in French, attended two immersion programs, and taught herself Hatian Creole. She’s even used the language to give back, starting a charity for a school in Haiti. She lives, breathes, and (as verified by her brother) sings French.
Emily’s very giving, and constantly looking to help other people out, be it as the head of a charity, a peer tutor, a team player, or a friend, all with a smile on her face. She’s an all-around positive person, and I don’t think I’ve ever seen her upset for more than thirty seconds.
I seriously recommend you talk to Emily, if just for a few minutes. Her upbeat, confident personality is contagious. And who knows? You might leave singing French.