Student spotlights: Those who make a difference

Erica Legaspi: Responsible student with a 'good spirit'

•Age: 18

•Grade: 12

•School: Timberline High School

•Hometown: Lacey native, born and raised

•Parent: Roselia Legaspi

•Best personal achievement: Maintaining a 4.0 GPA while having a social life, playing varsity sports, supposedly being a leader, and playing rugby for the Budd Bay Steelheads!

•How I spend my time: Baking beautiful birthday cakes for my friends, playing sports, MySpace and good old-fashioned fun frolicking under the sun with my friends, well, whenever the sun decides to come out.

•Favorite subjects: Lunch. Just kidding. I like all of my classes except for when my teachers give pop quizzes.

•Favorite movie: "High School Musical" (the first one, not the second one)

•Favorite book: "The Catcher in the Rye" by J.D. Salinger

•Dream job: Family practice doctor

•Someone I respect: My mother. She works hard so that she can help finance all of my ridiculous sports and activities.

•College I'd like to attend: Ithaca College, but the University of Washington will suffice.

•Someone famous I'd like to meet: Despite all of the uber-negative media attention he's gotten, Michael Jackson. He would be able to show me some crazy-cool moves for the dance floor.

•Someday, looking back on my life I'd like to be able to say: "Chicka chicka yeah! That was ME!"

•Biggest challenge facing teenagers today: The pressure to look perfect by society's standards in conjunction with the pressure to be perfect by parental standards.

•One thing in the world I would change if I could: Hatred; why can't we be friends?

•Where do you see yourself in 10 years: Hopefully out of college, finished with my residency, and finishing the foundation for the start of a prosperous and successful career as a doctor.

•Teacher comment: "Erica Legaspi is one of the most responsible Advanced Placement students I have encountered in my teaching career. She always has her work done and done well. You will most often see her with a smile on her face and a bounce to her step. Her good spirit coupled with her interest in learning makes her a pleasure to teach." — Jennifer Brotherton, language arts teacher