In 10 years, when someone asks me what was the most memorable part of my time here at Daniel Pearl Magnet High School, it will be the time I’ve spent sitting in the newsroom.

Now, Room 22 is more than just a classroom and Ms. Chavira is more than just my teacher. This room has become more than just a place where our paper is produced, but a place of personal growth and, often times, a home. Ms. Chavira is more than just a teacher, she is my mentor and advisor.

Many editors have used their final editorial to commend the staff on the various awards earned throughout the year but I want to use mine differently. I want to commend the staff on their other accomplishments.

We have aced tests, traveled across the country, printed eight editions of the The Pearl Post and survived the big projects and reports.

But winning 3rd place for our online website is nothing compared to the other things we, as a staff, as a team and as a family, have accomplished.

And a family is exactly what we have become. That, more than any award or plaque on the newsroom wall, is our greatest accomplishment. Merriam-Webster defines a family as a “a group of people united by certain convictions or a common affiliation.”

What the dictionary fails to mention is the journey we have to take. As a newspaper staff, we are a group, students specifically, united by journalism.

Yes, this is beyond cliché but just trust me for a moment. Four years ago, I walked into the newsroom as a scared freshman, unsure of our ability and potential. I made my mistakes, more than I’d like to admit, but Ms. Chavira nurtured me into the journalist I am today.

Then came Aug. 12, 2014, as I walked into the newsroom as a senior, aware of my abilities, ready to lead the staff in a productive year.

As always, we were awkward and unable to work together. We weren’t a family. There was an entirely new editorial board, an entirely new staff.

But, as always, we spent months bonding over weekly activities, accepting each other’s strengths and weaknesses and learning to be a family.

Fast forward to today. I am sitting with my family, my journalism family.

I’m remembering every moment we have spent together producing this paper and I am thankful to every one of you who made my senior year as Editor-in-Chief the best one yet.

-Natalie Moore