According to Woody Allen, Eighty percent of success is showing up. But if you ask Ennis High School senior, Julie Schaufler, an 18 year-old Board member of the legendary Jack Creek Preserve Foundation and accomplished pianist, that percentage seems a little low. The only thing that really freaks Julie out, her mother, Jamie Schaufler, says, is missing school. It makes her CRAZY, even if its a Cheer Team obligation. If she has to miss class, shell get her homework a week in advance and knock it out. Shes emphatic about it: Mom, I am NOT coming back to all that work. Thats just her. No wonder shes near the top of her class. I feel guilty if I skip, Julie explained. Technically, you cant leave in the afternoon either, or its considered an absence. That said, I do plan to participate in the upcoming Senior Skip because no one else is going to be in class that day. But its just because everyone else is committed to it. Yeah, its fair to say that weve never had to nudge Julie to do her homework or practice the piano, her father Tony added. But shes more than driven. Julie has brains I personally was never blessed with. One of the more poignant examples of Julies hard work and inspiration came during the difficult days leading up to her maternal grandfathers death. My dad, Jamie said, was a dentist for over forty years in northern Indiana in a town called Middlebury about twenty miles away from Notre Dame in South Bend and was utterly loved by everyone. I took a leave of absence from Moonlight Basin and Julie and Emily with me to be with him down the stretch. Long story short, he loved music, so I had Julie practice the theme song from Man from Snowy River, the one that you hear when Jessica is working the horse. Well, Julie practiced and practiced and practiced some more. She was so relentless about it that I had to remind her to eat. After Dad passed, the moment finally came. There were over 400 people at his funeral, with people standing along the sides and at the back of the church, when Julie, who was 12 at the time, made her way to this big black baby grand piano at the front. Thing was, she was so short, no one even saw her walk up there, except maybe the front row. Same for when she got to the piano. Then suddenly, the room was filled with this heavenly music. People were looking around wondering where it was coming from, thats how well she played. I mean she ABSOLUTELY nailed it. By the time Jamie finished retelling the story, proud tears rolled from Tonys eyes. All these years later. Tears. Amazing. Two years later, Julies eighth grade year, the whole family moved to Middlebury. It was great, Julie said. There was this place, Das Esen Haus, which means in Dutch the Eating House, this bakery/gift shop/buffet that had a real hitching post outside for the horses and buggies, all this handmade furniture, family style dining, and the best fried chicken ever. The school was cool, too, even though my class had about 400 kids in it. It was funny, being that it was largely a Dutch Amish community, I walked in the first day and noticed that all the lockers were organized alphabetically, plus had all typical Dutch names...Miller, Miller, Miller...Schrock, Schrock, Schrock...Yoder, Yoder, Yoder...it was hilarious, such a different world. When I came back to Ennis the following year, that experience made high school here that much cooler. I was SO happy to see my friends again and to make new ones. Julie was extra grateful, too, for the access she had to her teachers, Miss Newman, Mrs. Legg, and Mr. Burgess, in particular. Oh, and Mr. Lingle, she added. That guy does so much. Everything from counselling to teaching Spanish to helping me with scholarships. As much as anything, though, she was happy and appreciative for the opportunities that might not have been afforded her elsewhere, like BPA and Cheer. I worked hard in high school, for sure, Julie said. But its the little things that Im going to miss most. Working as a group with the Cheer Team, riding the bus, practice, the lunchroom conversations with everyone. Its been a blast. Definitely fun and always interesting. After graduation, Julie plans to attend camp at the Jack Creek Preserve for her eighth consecutive year, where she intends to defend her archery title and mentor younger campers, then head off to Westminster College in Salt Lake City to study Business. After that, shes less sure. I either want to go into Marketing like my Aunt Kelsie or become a Princess. I mean, how cool would that be? To be a princess? Cmon! Itd be the best. From the look in her dads eyes, Im guessing at least to one person she already IS. From me (and a whole bunch of other loyal subjects) to you, Julie, congratulations again, not only for showing up but for all the SUCCESS!
Posted on: Sun, 30 Mar 2014 13:10:12 +0000