Pine Creek High School senior focuses on seeking connections with

Colorado Springs Business Journal, Jan 14, 2005 by Jennifer Knight

Amber Williams has too much faith to be a people-pleaser, though she undoubtedly delights everyone who has the good fortune to work with her.

Williams, who enjoys a myriad of extracurricular activities from student council to Bible studies, is an open book.

Is there anything that people may not know about her? Not really.

A lot of people see me as I am, I think. What you see is kind of what you get with me.

The Pine Creek senior plans to attend Concordia University, a Lutheran school of about 1,700 students in Irvine, Calif., to major in Christian education.

Concordia is one of the only schools that has the degree that I need. I could do anything, really; it's a pretty flexible degree, said Williams. I could be a teacher at a parochial school, or I could be in charge of Bible studies at a church. But what I'm planning on being is director of a church's preschool.

She is undoubtedly a gem at Pine Creek, a suburban high school in District 20: a genuinely sweet, sincere young woman whose intelligence and integrity will carry her far.

Williams has been taking a full load-advanced accounting, mythology, western philosophy, honors English, Advanced Placement psychology and French V.

She is an active member of the French National Honor Society, a group that promotes French culture and activities.

Williams chose the language as a freshman when she lived in the New Orleans area. Nearly half a million Cajuns-a corruption of the French word acadien from their ancestral region in Nova Scotia-live in Louisiana.

Down by New Orleans, there is a lot of Cajun culture and French influence; I thought it would be beneficial to learn French. I can't really apply it here, but I think the language sounds very pretty.

JoAnn Egolf, the foreign language department chairwoman at Pine Creek, has taught Williams for two and a half years.

On a scale of 1 to 10, she's a 10-plus. She's an excellent student, and an outstanding leader in the school. The other thing she is, is a fine Christian, said Egolf. One thing I think she brings with her-she comes from the South-she has these manners you don't see in a lot of teenagers these days. Yes ma'am, no ma'am. She leads by example; she's a role model for her peers.

Her participation in National Honor Society and its French counterpart requires a 3.5 cumulative grade point average. Not a problem, since Williams carries a 3.8.

She came to my class in French III, and now she's in French V. Not many kids go to that level, Egolf said. She's a shining star, I guess you would say. I've never seen her have a down day; I wish all my students were like her.

Williams, in addition to maintaining an enviable GPA, also manages the boy's cross country team, and goes to weekly Bible studies and youth group meetings at Holy Cross Lutheran Church.

On Monday nights, she attends a youth ministry geared toward high school seniors.

It helps make sure we're grounded in our beliefs, because college can be a trying time for your faith, from what I've heard.

Her voice, though delicate, carries an eternal conviction.

Williams is involved with Fellowship of Christian Athletes, though she admits she's not especially sports-oriented.

I'm not very athletic, to be honest, but I enjoy cheering on my classmates, she said. I think it's a good bonding experience to get to know other Christians at your school and have that connection with them.

Williams also seeks connections with all her fellow students through active participation in student council.

As Student Body secretary, and committee chairwoman of Student Morale, she helps plan and delegates duties for upcoming events. The biggest was Homecoming Week, though a number of smaller, casual dances throughout the year are on the agenda, including a Sadie Hawkins Day dance.

Then there's Acoustic Cafe, for which students sign up to demonstrate their songwriting or musical abilities. And Rock Your Socks Off, a showcase for student heavy metal bands, which was a charity event.

We sent money to the Make a Wish Foundation this year, from ticket sales from Rock Your Socks. I think we raised $500.

Springs Youth Challenge-a group that teaches leadership skills, community service and civic involvement to exceptional students nominated by their teachers-was another of her duties, which seem to be synonymous with fun.

Every month we had a specific challenge we had to do. Whether it was going to listen to a city council meeting, or a community service event, or listening to a notable speaker on leadership.

Springs Youth Challenge culminated in a final challenge for the students selected for the yearlong program.

Fliers and advertisements were printed for Stranger Danger, a safety seminar created through a partnership with the Colorado Springs Police Department. Children visited various stations set up by the students, and parents were given an informative talk by police officers at Pine Creek High School.

It happened after that girl in Florida was kidnapped while walking home from school, Williams said. We felt it was important for kids to know strangers can be very dangerous, and we paired up with the police department to help make it a little more informative for the parents. It ended up going off really nicely, and it was fun to do.