By: Keira Bixler
Keira Griffiths ‘23 is an active member of the Redwood community and known by many through her involvement. She is the Vice President of ASB, a Redwood Varsity Cheerleader, President of the Give Back Group, and a member International Dance.
Griffiths says, “My favorite part about Redwood is how it doesn’t feel like just a school but it feels like a family and community. I never come to Redwood and feel upset to be at school or feel like it is a job. That is how a lot of kids feel going to other schools but Redwood has always felt like a second home and it is just so much fun here. It is so much more than a school.”
She is equally as busy off-campus. She says, “I work at Adventure Park as a Party Hostess, and I am also a member of a Rotary Club where we do community service as junior members. My focus outside of school is mainly community service based.”
Photo Courtesy of Griffiths
While reflecting on her past years at Redwood, she says, “I was always very unsure of myself like any freshman would be. I was nervous to go to a big campus after a small middle school. I have always been in ASB and I have always played Volleyball so I thought that would be my entire life on campus. A lot has changed since then.”
Considering she is currently a senior, she says, “I found a love for cheer that is greater than I thought it could have been. At Redwood, I have prospered into this different person who loves school and ASB and cheer; that is not something I ever expected.”
Griffiths says she is so involved because she has “…high hopes and very high expectations for myself. I think keeping myself on track and focusing on what my life could be like keeps me going everyday.”
She says , “I grew up with two overachieving, crazy involved parents and I think that has helped me create who I am. I always want to do the most and I want to do it the best. My parents were both star athletes and I wanted to be that too. I always wanted to be the best at what I could do. I also grew up having grandparents who are the nicest people on Earth and I want to make people feel the way I know they make others feel.”
Griffiths says that making Varsity Cheer has been her greatest accomplishment. She says, “I had not cheered since I was very little and trying out for cheer was something totally unexpected. It was all so exciting and cheer was one of the best experiences of high school.”
She says, “You can do anything you put your mind to. Even if it seems totally out of reach, I say go for it. Some of my best experiences have been out on a whim and something I would have never expected. So, I think going for it is the best option.”
When it comes to challenges, Griffiths says, “Most of my challenges are mental so I have to remember that everything I am going through is a mental block. So, I just need to be bigger than my emotions and do bigger than my emotions.”
As Griffiths experiences her last months at Redwood, she says, “It is a lot more sad to leave Redwood than I expected it to be.”
This bittersweet reflection has Griffiths saying that she has “…had a lot of lasts that I didn’t realize were lasts and now I am kind of regretting not enjoying the moment more. I definitely overwork and over-stress myself. I find that to be good and bad because I have enjoyed everything that I have done here but there is always more that I wish I could have done.”
After Redwood, Griffiths plans to go to a 4-year college. She is looking into Fresno State or CalPoly and wants to study biochemistry.
Griffiths says, “I want to leave a legacy of being a hard worker and a huge lover of Redwood. Redwood is an amazing place. Everyone should love it and feel appreciative for being here because there are so many other kids who wish they could go to this school while we are living it.”
She says, “Redwood culture has made me a much more spirited person. I have always done ASB and Leadership which are fun, but Redwood is just a different level of spirit and community. I always want to make people feel welcome and supported because that is how Redwood makes me feel.”
“I really like the quote ‘You can be anything.’ I think it is from Barbie. That is something that I have always written in my notebooks and it was painted on my wall when I was little because my parents always wanted me to do whatever made me happy.”
-Griffiths ’23
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