THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, June 25, 1995 TAG: 9506240123
SECTION: VIRGINIA BEACH BEACON PAGE: 15 EDITION: FINAL
LENGTH: Medium: 60 lines
Graphic
Name: Mark Shepherd Dixon
Age: 18
Parents: Margaret and Sam Holland
GPA: 4.20
Extracurricular activities: Co-captain of g1vbsalem varsity
soccer, Mayor's Youth Council delegate, student government past
president, citywide SCA representative, National Honor Society
piper, German Honor Society president, Eastern Virginia Medical
School and DePaul Hospital Explorers Program.
College plans: To attend Princeton University.
Career plans: To attend medical school; to be financially
independent enough to give Mom that Florida sun room she's always
wanted; to attend a World Cup soccer match; to order strudel at
Oktoberfest in Bavaria, not Busch Gardens; and to have True Love
crash into me and one day be somebody's dad.
Secret to academic success: Have something you can use as a
positive outlet for stress (mine was soccer) and sit in the front
row. I had a wonderful group of friends (just call us the
Musketeers) who kept me from transforming into a bookworm, and I
took many snack breaks when studying.
Worst habit: Can't I just think about it for a while and then
tell you? (In other words, procrastination.)
Favorite book: ``The Old Man and the Sea'' by Ernest Hemingway
and ``The Native Son'' by Richard Wright.
Favorite TV show: Soccer matches and college basketball,
especially U.Va. games.
High school memoir: The heated lunch-table discussions that never
got personal (ha!), the soccer team spaghetti dinners, Shirley (my
favorite lunch lady who never complained about giving me two
vegetables instead of fries), the daily trips to Ms. Middleton's
office (my counselor) and the beautiful girl whose last name is the
same as my first name.
Most embarrassing moment: One day when it snowed my classmates
dared me to sneak out of class and make snow angels outside below
the second floor window of my classroom. Well, I didn't let them
down, but on the way back in, as I was brushing the snow off of my
back, a teacher caught me and almost referred me to the principal.
Advice for junior class I am leaving behind: Find your niche. Get
involved in some aspect of your school or community that isn't
required. Read yourself to sleep, especially with books that aren't
assigned by your teacher. Always eat breakfast. Take pride in your
school.
Person I admire most: I will always have the highest respect for
our former principal, Ramona B. Stenzhorn. She gave so much of
herself to her school. She treated each member of the Salem ``team''
as her child, and we were her loving family.
by CNB