On top of a full school day, plus extracurriculars after school, multiple Rangers have chosen to work a job. Three of these Rangers include Morgan Bradford, ’23, Andrew Zachary, ’22, and Nichole Rodriquez, ’22.
Bradford has been working at Best Ag in Traver, an agriculture company, for almost a year. This is her first time working.
Bradford says that she works in order to “make money, to pay for [her] gas, and to make [her] car payment every month.”
When asked how working makes her feel, Bradford says, “It makes [her] feel good. It’s nice to know that you have your own money and are financially independent on yourself and you are kind of becoming your own individual in a sense.”
Jobs require a sense of responsibility and time management. Bradford admits that she has to schedule her days accordingly between work, school, and softball. She believes that she has learned to balance it all well.
Finally, Bradford comments on the work environment. She is one of the youngest employees at the Best Ag, and many of her employees are middle-aged. Despite the age difference, Bradford says it is a fun environment, and also very professional at times.
Andrew Zachary, ‘22 has been working at Sierra Bike Works downtown for about four months.
Zachary expresses that he enjoys working, so he is “able to pay for [his] future.” He says it is his goal to earn money for himself.
Like his other peers, Zachary takes pride in being able to financially support himself with the money he makes from his job.
Zachary also enjoys being productive, and work allows him to do that. He works a total of four hours a day along with school, and he has learned to manage his time wisely.
Lastly, Zachary says that the work environment is “pretty chill, a lot of the people [he] work[s] with are cool.” Therefore, making his job more enjoyable.
Nichole Rodriquez, ‘22 has been working at Subway for almost a year now making sandwiches.
She says that she has “worked at [her] ranch a lot helping cater weddings, but this is [her] first real job.”
Like other students, Rodriquez works to pay for her own things, including her ranch fees and a truck. She feels it is her responsibility to chip in because she is getting older, and her parents have helped her out throughout her life.
Adding on to this idea, Rodriquez says, “[working] definitely gives [her] more responsibility and it makes [her] feel more mature… it does get hard at times but because [she] still [is] a kid. [Her] parents do very well at helping [her] grow and learn how to do things and multitask.”
Katelyn Weddle
Katelyn Weddle '23 is a third year journalism student. She enjoys designing the Redwood Gigantea newspaper. Outside of writing, she is a Chief Editor for Redwood yearbook. You can reach her at katel.we3140@vusd.us
Tags: andrew zachary, clubs & lifestyles, morgan bradford, nichole rodriquez, redwood gigantea, redwood high school, redwood journalism, redwood rangers, studentlife, working students
