JEFF FIELDER Editor
GORDON – Maddee Schmidt, a senior at Gordon-Rushville High School, is this week’s Nspire Today! Female Student of the Week, sponsored by First State Bank. Schmidt has a 4.0 GPA. She participates in volleyball, basketball, track & field, One Acts, Student Council, choir, spring play production, Mustangs Committed, Letterman’s Club, and National Honor Society. She’s also president of the Youth Turner Board. Outside of school, she volunteers for the Kiwanis youth basketball program, and she also volunteers at a nursing home in Gordon. She plans to attend Wayne State College and major in psychology. Her parents are Todd and Amy Schmidt.
Q: Talk about how your senior year of school has been going overall.
SCHMIDT: “It was going really good. I was really enjoying it with my friends and being in all of the activities.”
Q: How are things going for you right now, dealing with the coronavirus?
SCHMIDT: “It’s been disappointing because right now graduation is questionable. Also, I’m involved in the play production, and that was cancelled. I’m also involved in track, and that’s also been cancelled. … I’m just taking things one day at a time, and I’m trying to stay positive. I’m spending a lot of time with my family.”
Q: Which activity have you enjoyed participating in the most this school year?
SCHMIDT: “Probably volleyball. We had a very successful season.”
Q: What has been your favorite non-sports activity?
SCHMIDT: “One Acts. I really like our coaches – Candie Johnson and Ryan Lovell. They’re really supportive, and it’s been a really great experience. We went to state twice, and that was a lot of fun.”
Q: What’s another one or two activities that you also have enjoyed quite a bit?
SCHMIDT: “I really like choir, and I also enjoy student council.”
Q: Up to this point, what do you think is your biggest achievement in high school?
SCHMIDT: “I would say maintaining my 4.0 GPA and ranking first in my class.”
Q: Since you participate in so many activities, has it been quite a challenge to maintain a 4.0 GPA?
SCHMIDT: “Yes, it has been. But a lot of my friends are involved in the same activities, so we’ve helped each other out. And the teachers are really supportive of us doing activities, so they’ve been very helpful, too.”
Q: Going into high school, was it your goal to maintain a 4.0 GPA?
SCHMIDT: “Yes. Even in middle school, I worked hard to get good grades, and I wanted to maintain that throughout high school.”
Q: You’re one of four seniors at Gordon-Rushville High School who have a 4.0. It sounds like you’re part of a really strong senior class academically.
SCHMIDT: “Yes. It’s because we have great teachers at Gordon-Rushville. They motivate us to try to do our best all the time.”
Q: During your educational career, which teacher do you feel has made the biggest impact on you?
SCHMIDT: “There’s a lot of teachers who have made a big impact on me, but if I had to pick just one, I would say Candie Johnson. She’s my senior English teacher. She’s super supportive. She’s a great teacher. All of the students connect with her so well.”
Q: What’s been your favorite class this school year?
SCHMIDT: “I really like school publications with my volleyball coach [Kim Turnbull-Campbell]. We work on the yearbook. It’s really fun organizing those things. I think it’s enjoyable.”
Q: You’re planning to attend Wayne State. What is it that you like about Wayne State?
SCHMIDT: “I really like Chadron State, too – they’re about the same size – but I kind of wanted to get a little farther away and meet totally different people and just be in a totally different place. Also, I really like Wayne’s campus.”
Q: What led you to decide that you wanted to pursue psychology?
SCHMIDT: “In the first semester I took an intro to psychology class, and it was really interesting.”
Q: What would you like to do for a career?
SCHMIDT: “I want to further my education and become a psychiatrist.”
Q: Have you always lived in Gordon?
SCHMIDT: “No, I was actually born in Kansas, and I lived there for about three years. Then I moved to Montana, and then I moved to Oshkosh. After a year in Oshkosh, I moved here when I was going into fourth grade.”
Q: How much have you enjoyed living in the Gordon-Rushville area?
SCHMIDT: “The community is really, really close, and I’ve made some really great friends here. I really like it here.”
Q: Outside of your school activities, what do you like to do for fun?
SCHMIDT: “I like to play the piano. I’ve taken piano lessons for about 12 years.”
Q: Who do you think is one of the kindest students at Gordon-Rushville High School?
SCHMIDT: “Kassyl Swinney. She’s a senior. She’s really nice to everybody. She reaches out to people. She’s not afraid to say ‘hello’ to anyone. She’s just super kind.”
Q: What kind of music do you like to listen to?
SCHMIDT: “I like all kinds of music.”
Q: What is your favorite TV show?
SCHMIDT: “All American.”
Q: Name one person who you think is a big difference-maker in your community.
SCHMIDT: “Probably Chuck Hinn. He’s a really big part of our community. He owns a lot of businesses, and he’s really supportive of the school district. I think that’s really important.”
Q: What do you think is the coolest attraction in the WyoBraska region?
SCHMIDT: “Fort Robinson State Park. My family and I go up there sometimes. It’s just a really cool place to relax and do fun things that you maybe don’t get to do a lot.”
Q: What’s the most exciting place you’ve ever traveled to?
SCHMIDT: “Washington, D.C. I went there the summer going into my freshman year.”
Q: What are your three favorite apps on your cell phone?
SCHMIDT: “Snapchat, Netflix, and Disney+.”
Q: What is your favorite local restaurant?
SCHMIDT: “The Twisted Turtle in Rushville. They have really good pizza.”
Q: What advice would you give to people related to the COVID-19 outbreak?
SCHMIDT: “This should teach all of us a lesson that we shouldn’t take anything for granted. We should enjoy every second of everything we’re doing because it could end in an instant.”
Q: Do you think all of us will be social distancing for a long time, or do you think this will end soon?
SCHMIDT: “I’ve heard that if we go back to school in September, there might be a second wave of it. But I really hope that’s not true and that it all clears up soon – at least before next school year starts.”
Q: If you could give a shoutout to one business in the Gordon-Rushville area, which one would it be and why?
SCHMIDT: “True Value Hardware because the guy who owns it is my neighbor, and he’s super nice.”
Q: Do you have any siblings?
SCHMIDT: “Yes, I have a younger sister, Lillee. She’s an eighth-grader.”
If you would like to nominate someone for Nspire Today!’s Students of the Week, sponsored by First State Bank, you may do so by sending an email to jeff.fielder@nspiretoday.com or by mailing a letter to Nspire Today!, P.O. Box 454, Scottsbluff, NE 69363. Nominations may also be submitted by sending a text to 308-220-8865.
In addition to being recognized online, students of the week will also be recognized in Nspire Today! magazine. To sign up for a one-year subscription (12 issues) to the magazine, please send $15 to Nspire Today!, P.O. Box 454, Scottsbluff, NE 69363. To pay with a credit card, please call 308-220-8865.
First State Bank has been a community bank for more than 80 years with locations in Scottsbluff, Gering and Colorado Springs. First State Bank’s new mortgage center has the convenience of applying online without giving up the personalized customer service people have come to expect. Visit www.fsbcentral.com to find out why when First State Bank says, ‘We’re Big on You,’ they mean it. Find First State Bank on Facebook at firststatebank1935.
