ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Thursday, June 6, 1996 TAG: 9606060015
SECTION: NEIGHBORS PAGE: N-46 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: MICHAEL CROAN STAFF WRITER
Heather Vines was about 11 years old when her sister, Amber, was stung by a Portuguese man-of-war while vacationing at Myrtle Beach.
The incident piqued her interest in the jolting jellyfish, and as she studied the animal she found "there were a lot more strange and mysterious creatures in the sea."
Since then, the 18-year-old James River senior has known that she wanted to be a marine biologist.
With graduation Friday, Vines and a few of her classmates are now watching their lifelong dreams turn into reality.
Vines, who went snorkeling twice in the Virgin Islands, will attend the University of North Carolina at Wilmington and plans to major in biology.
"I'm afraid if I major in marine biology I won't have anything to go into afterwards," she said. "It's too narrow a field."
Still, the valedictorian in the class of 73 should get plenty of field research experience at UNCW.
The college has one of the nation's top 10 marine biology programs and is only 10 minutes from three beaches.
Vines' classmate, Shahan Burrell, hopes one of his dreams will be realized by the end of his college career, too.
Burrell will attend Virginia Tech this fall and plans to major in education. He hopes to teach school one day, and would like to make an impact on his students.
"A lot of people don't show respect for older people anymore," Burrell said. He said he wants to instill a sense of respect and discipline in his students, but added, "There's only so much teachers can do. It starts at home."
The 18-year-old graduating senior also plans to try out for the Hokie football team. "That's kind of one of my dreams," he said. At 6 feet and 210 pounds, he hopes to make the team as a linebacker.
"I just want to make a contribution ... . I don't want people to look in the obituaries, see my name and say, 'I wonder what happened to Shahan Burrell,'" he said.
Seventeen-year-old Stephanie Steele also said she wants to make a contribution, especially through her work.
Steele, who will attend Virginia Tech this fall, plans to major in bio-technology and genetic engineering.
"I had always really enjoyed science," she said. "I haven't really decided between the genetic engineering and the forensics."
Steele hopes to make her contribution by coming up with cures or helping to engineer cures for diseases like AIDS or cancer.
"You can ... manipulate the DNA of diseases so that you can cure them," she said. "I think pretty much the possibilities are endless."
A career in medicine interests James River senior Christy West, too.
West plans to become a physician's assistant after majoring in biology at Roanoke College. The position will take an additional two years of schooling, but West said that the starting pay of $50,000 is well worth the effort.
"I figure you can always do less, but you may as well set your goals high," she said.
West may have been echoing the attitude of her small, rural high school, which has instituted several new programs and classes to help prepare its students for life in the "real world."
"I think they have [prepared us for life] in a lot of ways we don't realize," Vines said.
James River's graduation ceremony will be on the school football field at 7:30 p.m. Friday.
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