[ot-caption title=”Sophomore Huey O’Neil is saving dogs in Atlanta, Georgia. (via Huey O’Neil, Sophomore)” url=”https://pcpawprint.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/IMG_1699-e1418047828606.jpg”]

Despite a rigorous schedule, many students at Pine Crest still pursue their passions. Many students are experts at balancing, managing time, and multitasking, daring to take difficult courses while simultaneously pursuing their passions outside of the classroom.

The passions followed by students here at Pine Crest range anywhere from food to fashion, or from planes to surfing. A junior, Alana Udwin runs a teenage lifestyle blog in her free time.  It is unique how she can balance her studies along with creating updates and reviews for her blog, JOLLERGIRL.com.  The hardworking teen does a great job of maintaining everything on her plate. Udwin says that it is important for students to step away from school work and focus on something they love. She says that blogging allows her “to display my passion for writing and document notable memories throughout my teenage years.”  Udwin has found the perfect balance in her life, a balance that has allowed her to perfect the art of multitasking. This junior works hard to put time aside to study in advance and complete upcoming assignments in order to create sufficient time for writing a perfect blog post.

From spending the day behind the desk to flying in the sky, Huey O’Neil, a sophomore, does it all. O’Neil spends his free time flying planes and rescuing dogs. Confused? O’Neil is the youngest pilot for Pilots N Paws, an organization that rescues dogs and assists in the transport of newly adopted pups. This sophomore says that “balancing flying with school can be challenging at times, however, school always comes first”. O’Neil understands his academic priorities and will cancel pleasure flights if necessary. However, Huey says that the hardest decisions are between “getting an A on a test or losing the lives of four or five dogs.” In these situations, he says “I usually end up doing both leaving me up until 3 AM studying.”  Despite these extreme cases, this dedicated Pine Crest student does not neglect his duties in school and continues to excel in the classroom. O’Neil says that his experience rescuing dogs has been a beneficial learning process. His mistakes and successes prepare him for decisions he will need to make in the future.

The only thing sweeter than college acceptance is one of Brooke Bernstein’s baked sweets! The junior takes away the stress of a long school day by working in the kitchen making savory snacks. Brooke runs a business called Baked by Brooke in which this PC student dedicates her time to baking cookies, cakes, pies and other treats. Brooke has two to four orders a week and caters to birthday parties and small events. “It does get hard”, dishes the PC student and year round swimmer, “I try to get all my schoolwork done during the day and in my free periods. I need time at home to focus on my baking.” Although at times it gets tough, Brooke says that she has created a good work ethic from balancing the trifecta of studying, swimming, and baking. She is thankful for being able to experience a rigorous workload and believes that learning to balance her passion will benefit her in the future.

A busy schedule can be managed with proper preparation and diligence.  These are three stunning examples of students who follow their passions while following a path toward academic success. It is important for people to reward themselves in life, like doing something they love. For some, life is viewed as a tunnel…sometimes people should break away from that singular goal and experience all the things life has to offer! The balance learned will be a priceless experience.