Once again, Windham High School will be well-represented at the American Legion Buckeye Boys Program as juniors Ethan Thornton and Matthew Kolaczek have each been selected to attend as the school’s delegates.
“They are exactly everything Windham stands for,” Windham junior high history teacher Stephanie Parish-Smith told The Weekly Villager on April 10. “Individually, I know whatever classroom I go into, they are working, I know that they are focused. They are representing themselves and also teaching younger students. I know that my students look up to them.”
For the second straight year, the Windham delegates’ trip to Buckeye Boys State will be paid for by the Windham American Legion Post 674. The Bombers’ duo will attend the week-long hands-on government educational program from June 8-June 15 at Miami University in Oxford.
Thornton and Kolaczek were each nominated by Parish-Smith and underwent an interview process with the Windham American Legion. Parish-Smith said that she was very familiar with both students because she had previously taught them at the junior high level.
According to her, each student is a natural fit for this experience because of the prominent role that they have in the community. Outside of school, they are heavily involved in athletics and other volunteer opportunities.
“They are respectful to their peers and the staff, and they do all that we ask them to, whether it is going over to the elementary school for reading or different community projects throughout the town or giving tours to the incoming fifth graders.” She added.
Both Thornton and Kolaczek, are leaving the Windham bubble and experiencing independence when they make the trip outside the local lines of Windham Township.
“Since Windham is so small, it will give me a chance to show people what Windham is really about; we will let them see all of the positive things going on here,” Thornton noted.
Thornton said that studying government and politics has been an interest of his for a while, especially because of all of the elections he has witnessed in his early life.
“I like seeing the campaigning, how the people really come together during the voting process and how the people get a voice,” he said.
Thornton’s essay topic was on Americanism and what it meant to be an American. For the Windham junior, being an American is all about being actively involved in the community and having a finger on the pulse of his surroundings.
“It means a lot to me because you get to know everybody. Because it so small, so you get to know a lot of people in the community and it helps you build connections,” he noted.
Thornton said that one of his aspirations involves pursuing a career as a lawyer and the Buckeye Boys State will serve as an excellent sneak peek into what that path may look like.
For Kolaczek, he earned his selection from the Windham American Legion by writing an essay on the value of leadership and what it truly means to be a leader.
“Being a leader, to me, is that people are always watching me. I am always representing myself and my town and my parents and everybody here I am trying to represent them in a good way, that’s leadership,” he said.
Kolaczek said that his interest in government and politics stems from wanting to see the citizens of any community have a voice. He has already experienced that form of government by living in the smallest township in Portage County, where the residents’ voices are always heard.
The Bombers’ junior added that he has also gained an understanding of politics from watching his mother, Windham Township’s Fiscal Officer and Garrettsville-Hiram Rotary Club President Casey Timmons, in action.
“It has piqued my interest by watching my Mom do stuff,” Kolaczek noted. “I am very proud of my Mom, and it is cool to watch her do all of these things and have a voice and it shows that anybody can do this stuff.”
He also cited his interest in pursuing a career in government or politics.
In addition to being delegates from Windham, it is another opportunity for the Bomber juniors to work as teammates. They have years of experience working with each other playing on the Windham basketball team.
“We are together in this instance, and it is another thing that we have to have to work together and be great teammates and great friends,” Kolaczek said “We will be there for each other.”
