Senior Spotlight: Lilli De Jonghe

Prior to starting at Sage Ridge in 7th grade, Lilli and her family had moved several times. Her first Outdoor Education trip helped her settle into Sage Ridge and establish strong friendships. It also, apparently, provided her with lifelong memories about terrible meals, bread pudding and sriracha sauce, and cringy “truth circles.” 

Lilli loves English, and she looks back on Mrs. Kuehn’s English classes as a cornerstone of her middle school experience. She had always loved reading, but she felt like at Sage Ridge, her study of literature could become serious. Lilli fell in love with The Great Gatsby in 8th grade during her American authors project, and she loved revisiting the novel as a junior in Mr. Sloyan’s English class. Mr. Sloyan recalls how Lilli’s musical talent led her to compose an original song, “Ode to Daisy,” based on her interpretation of the reckless character from The Great Gatsby.  According to Mr. Sloyan, “Lilli is a deep thinker and a creative, hard-working student.” 

Lilli started participating in theatre in her first year at Sage Ridge. She’s been in The Miracle Worker, Little Shop of Horrors, Mamma Mia, Matilda, and I Hate Shakespeare. Earlier this year, Lilli’s solo musical theatre and contrasting monologue performance at the Northern Nevada Regional Thespian Festival earned her a space at the state competition. In her final show at Sage Ridge, Lilli is taking on the lead role as Dorothy in The Wizard of Oz. Looking back at her participation in theatre at Sage Ridge over the years, Lilli remembers looking up to the older kids in the productions, like Nicole Becker ‘18, who “was the coolest person ever to me and my friends.” Lilli finds it hard to imagine that the younger students see her the same way. Nonetheless, she loves how kids from so many different grades are working together to make the show the best it can be. 

Aside from leading the cast of The Wizard of Oz, Lilli is a dedicated scholar and a devoted visual artist and AP Studio Art student. She has played on the girls’ soccer team, and she competed with the mock trial team for three years.  When she was in 10th grade, Lilli earned the “Best Witness” award in the Northern Nevada mock trial competition. This year, Lilli led the student body as president of the student government. She’s proud of the spirit she was able to infuse into Crossbow with successful spirit weeks and dances. This year’s prom was a labor of love for Lilli, Sam Kenyherz, and Anne Thompson, and it felt like a real success to have a great prom after two years without one. 

Lilli’s college path has been interesting. Her older brother had forged a path through Sage Ridge and to a big-name college ahead of her, and Lilli felt some pressure to get into a similarly recognizable college. At the start of the process, however, she wasn’t feeling very interested or excited about college, but after visiting more schools, she found herself becoming open-minded to possibilities she hadn’t expected. “I don’t think you can prepare for the college process,” Lilli notes as she reflects on applying early decision to Barnard College of Columbia University, a school she hadn’t really heard much about prior to her visit. Now, she’s excited to study English in New York. 

When asked to share advice for younger Sage Ridge students, Lilli has a lot to say. “Even if you don’t realize it in the moment, there’s so much value to everything you do at Sage Ridge,” she begins. She reports that the seniors constantly talk about how lucky they are to have the teachers they’ve had. Lilli had considered transferring to other schools at various times throughout her six years at Sage Ridge, but she’s really grateful that she stayed and that she’ll be graduating with her class. “Collaboration is so important,” she notes, thinking about the support she’s given to and received from her classmates over the years. Sage Ridge is lucky that Lilli made the best out of her role in the class of 2022.