When I stepped through that door so many months ago, I didn’t know what to expect. I didn’t know that by the end of the year I would have found my second family. As we began the year, all new to journalism, I didn’t even begin to imagine the bond that would form between these special ladies and me. Being on the news team taught me a lot, not only in the journalism aspect but also about life, and friendships, and family. This News Journalism team taught me the importance of family, and not the blood kind.

At the beginning of the year if you would have told me that I would be great friends with each and every person in this room, the band kids, the popular girls, the girls I haven’t talked to since middle school, the choir kids, I would have told you that you are crazy. But now looking back over the many months we’ve had together and the many memories we’ve made, I wouldn’t change it for anything.

Being in the news room taught me the importance of relying on each other, the importance of trusting each other. Without trust there is quite literally nothing. We have to trust each other to get our stories done, to do our assigned jobs, to pick up the slack when someone needs our help. A lot of trust went into this year, a lot of trust went into me.

These ladies have made such an impact on my life, Allison and Annelise taught me that it is okay to laugh in class and be goofy, Delaney showed me the importance of having friends that you can rely on no matter what, Addi showed me that I can trust others when working together on a project, Alexa showed me that sometimes you dont always know what’s happening in others lives, Kate taught me that it is okay to ask your friends for something without feeling guilty, Chloe taught me to always uniquely be myself, Kelsey taught me that it is okay to be quiet sometimes and that it’s not a bad thing, Kaylin taught me many facts that I never would’ve known, and finally Mrs. Basinger taught me the importance of being a journalist.

These girls have undoubtedly suppoted me in everything, they have boosted my confidence, they have gotten me to come out of my shell. If it weren’t for them I would still be the friendless quiet kid that no one really knew. I never would have known so many months ago that I would have found a home at school, a home in this room. These girls have made this room my home and I will never forget it. I will never forget Tracey, or the smarties, reserving boys, Jorja news, hating math, voluptuous booties, girl bossing too close to the sun, eating hand sanatizer, loving hot cows, having swollen lymph nodes, or Dufoe Dog’s press conferences. We have created so many memories and they all live within this room, within us. I will forever carry these memories with me, cherishing each and every moment.

This year has taught me that family isn’t always blood related. It has taught me that family can be crazy, and exciting, and loving, but it can also be sad, and angry. Don’t get me wrong we have had many amazing moments together, but we also haven’t always seen eye to eye. I mean let’s be real were all girls in here, the estrogen levels are through the roof. Even though we didn’t always get along, we still supported and encouraged one another.

I am not related to a single girl on this team, but each and everyone of them is my family. As our group chat says, we are “Basinger’s Additional Children.”