Brody and Nico Smith Brody and Bryce Scotts Valley High goal keeper Brody Affolter makes a leaping save during Wednesday’s 1-0 loss to Soledad High. (Dan Coyro — Santa Cruz Sentinel) Scotts Valley High’s Brody Affolter pitches against Lynbrook on Saturday. (Carlin Schelstraete – Contributed)
As we anticipate the class of 2020 concluding their high school adventure, we are celebrating Baymonte alumni and their accomplishments. Join us in prayer as they transition to the next chapter of their lives! Today’s senior spotlight is Brody Affolter. Here’s what he said about his time at Baymonte:
“What I loved about Baymonte was the spiritual guidance it equipped me with and the long-lasting, close relationships I developed not only with friends but also with teachers. My two older sisters also went through Baymonte, so I basically grew up on the campus. Most of the teachers knew me pretty early on because a little chubby boy running around the blacktop is fairly hard not to notice. My relationships with them continued to grow as I got older from grade to grade, and those relationships still remain to this day.
My main highlight from my time at Baymonte was the Spirit Week competitions in middle school. I loved going all out for themed dress-up days and it was always a time of year that I looked forward to. Our class bond increased throughout the week and it helped us develop collaborative skills while working as a team. Plus, performing the dances at the end of the week was a gratifying end to all the effort we put into it. (Another side highlight was hitting a half-court shot in a playoff game in 8th grade).
Something that prepared me for high school was the variety of electives to choose from because they covered a broad range of activities and topics. The lessons I learned from the public speaking elective and from Mr. Fujishin’s public speaking unit gave me super helpful pointers and advice on how to manage my fear of addressing a group of people. I’m now exponentially more comfortable giving presentations in class, which makes it so much easier to navigate through both education and life.
A few highlights from high school are being nominated to the homecoming court, maintaining an above 4.2 GPA, getting All League honors in both baseball and soccer, and being named to the 2020 All-State Senior Team for leadership in baseball. Next year I’ll be enrolled in the Cabrillo College Honors Program preparing to transfer to a 4-year university after two years at Cabrillo.”