From kindergartners at BRE to seniors at RCHS
RCHS seniors from BRE’s first kindergarten class in 1997 are back hanging out at the BRE playground. Back row from left to right: Kipling Grey, Kelsey Krueger,Erik Wetzel; Middle row from left to right: Amanda Davanzo, Brooke Skinner, Erin Oehm; Front row from left to right: Matthew Porter, Tanner Krietemeier, and Austin Enterline.
Castle Pines kids all grown up
Article and photo by Kathy Dunker
Buffalo Ridge Elementary (BRE) opened with its first kindergarten class back in 1997. Now, 13 years later, those same kindies are ready to graduate from Rock Canyon High School (RCHS) as the first group of kids to make it all the way through from Castle Pine North’s own BRE to RCHS for the full 13 years.
The list of these students is as follows: Kristina Cummings, Amanda Davanzo, Dustin David, Vance DiPasquale, Austin Enterline, Joel Goers, Kipling Grey, Thomas Hernandez, Ben Hilzer, Melanie Koceski, Sean Kovacs, Kelsey Krueger, Tanner Krietemeier, Anne McCarthy, Erin Oehm, Jessica Owsley, Matthew Porter, Thomas Rosenkrans, Melinda Rotunda, Drew Schneider, Evan Schneider, Caroline Sievers, Brooke Skinner, Cory Thelen, Andy West, and Erik Wetzel.
With an impressive list of college commitments, Tanner Krietemeier will be playing baseball for the University of Nebraska, Matt Porter will be playing golf at CSU Pueblo, Kelsey Krueger will attend CSU Fort Collins, and Brooke Skinner, graduating fourth in her class, will attend Duke University majoring in Biomedical Engineering. Liz Porter, Matthew Porter’s mom, said, “We had an awesome experience with the Douglas County school system. From kindergarten through high school, we had brand new buildings with state of the art technology staffed with experienced and enthusiastic educators. CPN was an awesome place to raise a family. We were surrounded by other families that had the same values as us.”
Chuck Skinner, Brooke Skinner’s dad, stated, “Most of Brooke’s friends are going to outstanding colleges and universities, in no small part due to the education and status of Rock Canyon High School. I would venture to say Brooke had a better chance of going to a great university from Rock Canyon than she did from most private high schools, in part due to the rigorous academics and extra-curricular activities there.”
Congratulations and best wishes to these soon-to-be graduates as they set out to make their marks in the world! And as Beth Schneider, Drew Schneider’s mom, commented, “It seems like just yesterday they were starting kindergarten!”
