Cocalico High School
Madison Zepp
Senior
In her final year at Cocalico High School, Madison Zepp, daughter of Jon Zepp and Amanda Knaup, has filled her schedule with a demanding and equally fascinating course load. Over the past school year, Madison has taken Journalism II, AP European History, Honors Applied Calculus, Physics, AP Statistics, AP English Language and Composition, Advanced Ceramics, and has completed an internship in the marketing/ creating department for Garden Spot Communities.
Outside of her studies, Madison can be found running Cocalico Book Club meetings, participating in the Cocalico ASL Club, and writing articles for the Newspaper Club. Additionally, Madison is currently employed at Redner’s Markets.
Beyond school and her extracurriculars, Madison enjoys hanging out with her siblings, reading, writing, playing guitar, listening to music, and spending time outdoors. Her role models are her parents, who have worked hard to be where they are. One of her favorite quotes is, “If it’s meant to be, it’ll be,” by Ethel Cain.
Madison has been the Student Spotlight reporter for the Newspaper Club for the past two years, and she is proud to say that she has found fulfillment in highlighting people and their stories in such a unique and special way. Her favorite memory in all four years of participating in the club is when her first Student Spotlight article was published, which felt like her first true article, even though she had published other articles before.
This fall, Madison will be attending West Chester University for English Education, pursuing her goal of becoming a high school English teacher. Those who know Madison are lucky enough to experience her kindhearted nature, friendly disposition, and willingness to create a space where everyone is welcome. Madison has a bright future ahead of her, and Cocalico wishes her the best of luck in all of her endeavors!
Written by: Mayra González
Abigail Zimmerman
Senior
Abigail Zimmerman, daughter of Titus and Nicole Zimmerman, is an extremely hardworking senior at Cocalico High School. This year, Abigail has challenged herself by taking classes such as AP Calc AB and BC, British Literature, Spanish IV, and she is also enrolled in a psychology course through HACC. Outside of her classes, she is part of her church’s worship team, and she used to coach a girls middle school volleyball team. In addition to this, she is employed at The Brickerville House Restaurant.
Abigail is extremely proud of being accepted into Liberty University through early admission. She plans to take a gap year first though in hopes of saving up money to graduate without debt. Abigail is also proud of getting the grades she has gotten throughout school. In the future, Abigail’s dream job is to own a bed and breakfast in a coastal town. She also loves to travel and experience new cultures, and she hopes to take a trip to Spain at some point in her life.
In her free time, Abigail enjoys hunting, reading, playing sports, and spending time with her family. She also enjoys spending her time outside doing yard work and tending to her flower garden. Her parents are huge role models for her because “they are hardworking, loving, and raised me to walk with the Lord,” she explained. A quote that leads Abigail’s life is the Bible verse Philippians 4:13: “I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength.” Abigail is an extremely motivated and hardworking student, and we wish her the best of luck in her future!
Written by: Madison Zepp
Briella Wilson
Junior
This year, Briella Wilson, a Cocalico High School junior, has worked hard to stay involved inside and outside of school by challenging herself with classes such as Applied Calc, AP Biology, Physics, AP European History, AP Civics and Government, and AP Literature. In addition to these time-consuming classes, Briella uses her last class to volunteer at the Wellspan Hospital in Ephrata. Aside from school, she is involved in a multitude of extracurricular activities, including NHS, TRI-M Music Honor Society, Sending Sunshine, and Leo Club. She is also involved in different sports, including softball and soccer. Briella spends her free time as a waitress at Issac’s.
In her future, Briella aspires to have a career in neonatology. In order to pursue this, she will attend a college, her top choices being Duke University and University of Cincinnati. Briella loves to travel, and in the future, she hopes to travel to Switzerland to see the Swiss Alps. She also is visiting Hawaii this summer, completing her goal to visit all 50 states. In addition to almost visiting all 50 states, she has also visited 32 national parks. Briella also likes to ski for fun.
A big role model for her has been her parents, Chris and Stacy Wilson. She views them as extremely dedicated and hardworking due to their successful businesses. A quote that inspires Briella is, “The harder you try, the better the impression you set on the people around you” by Tom Holland. Briella is an extremely motivated and dedicated student, and we wish her the best in her future.
Written by: Madison Zepp
Riley Grace
Junior
Riley Grace, daughter of Kelli and Andrew Grace, is an extremely motivated and hard-working junior at Cocalico High School. This year, Riley has challenged herself by taking classes such as Psychology, Civics and Government, AP Literature, Yearbook, Spanish 4, AP Language and Composition, AP Statistics, as well as an online Sociology course. Outside of her classes, Riley is also involved in National Honor Society and Global Scholars. She is also one of the head editors of the yearbook.
In the future, Riley aspires to become a criminologist and work with forensic investigators. She explained, “I’m really interested in the ‘why’ people commit crimes.” In order to accomplish this, she plans to attend a 4-year college in the PA area, where she will major in Psychology. Additionally, in the future she would also like to travel to Vermont again. “The atmosphere is very calming and the scenery is beautiful…That was a really great sight to see,” she described.
In her limited free time, she loves to make things. She loves to draw and paint, as well as play video games that allow her to build and be creative. In addition, she also has her own Etsy store where she sells handmade jewelry. In the near future, she hopes to attend vendor events to sell her creations. She also really enjoys playing trivia with her family. Riley is extremely proud of the fact she won three Student of the Month awards back-to-back last semester. She has also received a student shout out for her performance in service learning. The advisor for this service learning said that the evaluation written by her mentor was one of the best he has ever received. Riley expressed, “That made me feel like I made the most of my time and it showed that my efforts paid off.” A quote that Riley really enjoys is, “Our greatest glory is not in never failing, but in rising every time we fall” by Confucius. Riley Grace is a creative and compassionate force at Cocalico. We wish her the best as she moves into her future.
Written by: Madison Zepp
Joseph McGowan
Senior
Joseph McGowan, son of Dennis and Jill McGowan, has had a packed senior year so far. This year, Joseph has chosen to take classes such as AP Language and Composition, AP Biology, AP Calculus AB and BC, German 4, AP Physics, and Anatomy. He also has an upcoming internship at Cocalico Biologicals. Outside of this already rigorous course load, he also has a full schedule of extracurriculars, such as Mock Trial, Model UN, Quiz Bowl, Student Government, Global Scholars, and National Honor Society. Moreover, he is the senior class president, Student Government vice president, and National Honor Society president. Over the summer, Joseph also works as a lifeguard at the Adamstown Pool.
In the future, Joseph hopes to pursue a career in the medical field. In order to pursue this, he has applied to colleges such as the University of Pittsburgh, Duquesne University, Juniata College, and Notre Dame University. If he could travel anywhere in the future, he would choose to travel to Europe because of all of the different sights and history there.
Outside of school, Joseph has many different hobbies, including pole vaulting, hanging out with friends, and playing sports. He is extremely proud of his two-year letterman in track. In addition, he also won Lions Club Student of the Month and he attended the Rotary Youth Leadership Awards Conference. Joseph also helps out at his church’s food bank. A fun fact about him is he can name all of the countries in the world. He credits his parents as a big role model for him due to their hard work. A quote that he admires is, “You miss 100% of the shots you don’t take” by Wayne Gretzky. Joseph is extremely involved and enthusiastic about everything he does, and Cocalico wishes him the best of luck as he makes his way through his senior year and into his future.
Written by: Madison Zepp
Hannah Tran
Senior
As she makes her way through her senior year, Hannah Tran, daughter of Kim and Thomas Tran, has a bright future ahead of her. This year, Hannah has chosen to take classes such as AP Language and Composition, Psychology, AP European History, Speech & Creative Writing, Spanish 4, Sociology, World Geography, and she will also partake in internships with Mr. Price, a social studies teacher, and Mr. Beiler, an English teacher at Cocalico. Hannah also partakes in many activities both inside and outside of school. She is treasurer of National Honor Society and the treasurer of the student body and the class of 2025 as a part of Student Government. Aside from her significant roles within the school, Hannah chooses to partake in Global Scholars, Cocalico Book Club, Model United Nations, Mock Trials, as well as the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. Along with this already packed schedule, she also works as a stocker at Weis Markets in Ephrata.
In the future, Hannah wishes to pursue a career as either an archaeologist or a lawyer. In order to pursue this, she plans to attend a four-year college, majoring in either history or archaeology. If she has the opportunity to, she also wishes to double major in legal studies.
If Hannah could travel anywhere in the world, she would choose to go to Guatemala. “I would go there because I love learning about ancient civilizations and the Mayan civilization has always fascinated me. This is what inspired me to pursue archaeology in a second education. I’d love to go see some of the ruins such as Tikal,” Hannah explained.
Aside from her already busy school schedule, Hannah also enjoys listening to music, dancing, creative writing, and shopping. Hannah has been dancing for 15 years, which she is extremely proud of. She is also proud of winning Cocalico English Department’s writing contest in September. A quote that Hannah enjoys is, “There’s nothing wrong with being a little dumb” by Wooyoung of ATEEZ. Cocalico wishes Hannah the best of luck in her future.
Written by: Madison Zepp
Luo Lin
Senior
As she begins her Senior year at Cocalico High School, Luo Lin, daughter of Yi Fu Lin and Feng Ping Liu, has heavily involved herself in and outside of school. This year, Luo has decided to take courses such as Physics, Accounting, British Literature, Anatomy, Applied Calculus, AP Biology, and AP Statistics. In addition to this already heavy course load, Lin also takes a Communication 101 course through dual enrollment. Outside of her classes, Lin is also involved in Student Government, Global Scholars, Spanish Club, and she plays Tennis.
Although she is still unsure of her future career, Lin hopes to pursue something either something math or science related. In order to further her education, she has applied to colleges such as Lebanon Valley College, Elizabethtown College, Penn State University, University of Pittsburgh, Franklin & Marshall College, and a few others. In the future, if she could travel anywhere, Lin would choose a place such as South Korea, Japan, Greece, or Thailand. She would like to spend time somewhere warm. Lin has already experienced much of the world though. In the past, she traveled to China, but she has also lived in other places in the U.S., including Seattle, New York, and California.
In her free time, Lin enjoys playing tennis, listening to music, and spending time with her nephews. A fun detail about Lin is that she is bilingual. She is proud of many accomplishments, including making her way through almost all four years of high school, playing tennis for three years, and her previous involvement with the Spanish Club. A quote that inspires her is, “There are so many great things in life; why dwell on the negativity?” by Zendaya. Luo Lin is an excellent student who goes above and beyond to involve herself in and out of school. Anybody who knows her can attest to her positivity and friendliness. Cocalico wishes her the best of luck as she completes the rest of her senior year and moves on into her future.
Written by: Madison Zepp
Sophia Gervase
Senior
While in her senior year at Cocalico High School, Sophia Gervase, daughter of Eric and Melissa Gervase, has a packed year ahead of her. This year Gervase has chosen to take Journalism, Thematic Interpretations, AP Statistics, AP Language and Composition, and AP Spanish. On top of these classes, she also takes Sociology through dual enrollment and participates in Cocalico’s internship program in which she works with Señora Stehr as an ESL aid at Adamstown Elementary. Outside of her already packed course load, Gervase participates in a number of extracurriculars. She participates in both cross country and track, as well as Model UN, Mock Trial, NHS, Spanish Honor Society, Cocalico Book Club, and Global Scholars. Gervase also works as a waitress in the Dutch-Way restaurant.
In the future, Gervase plans to become either a high school English teacher or an ESL teacher. In order to accomplish this, Gervase plans to attend schools such as Duquesne University, University of Vermont, or West Chester University. She would also like to study abroad for a semester in college. If she could travel anywhere in the world, she would choose either Ireland or Italy. She thinks Ireland has amazing scenery and she would like to be able to experience it in person. She would like to travel to Italy because of its incredible architecture and her family’s heritage.
Outside of school, Sophia enjoys many different hobbies, including reading, journaling, making collages, running, and hiking. In May of last year, she ran a half marathon, which she is extremely proud of. Some fun facts about Gervase are that she drives a stick shift car, and her favorite book series is The Raven Cycle by Maggie Steifvater. Sophia’s favorite quote is, “And deep in my heart, the answer, it was in me / And I made up my mind to define my own destiny” by Lauryn Hill. Cocalico wishes Gervase an exciting and uplifting senior year. It is evident to anyone that knows her that she will have a big future ahead of her.
Written by: Madison Zepp