Santa Teresa High School - Compendium Yearbook (San Jose, CA)

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There are many ways to defend yourself. Buy guns; hire bodyguards. Nikki Ellis took things into her own hands and made Tae Kwon Do ... ikki Ellis has been taking Tae Kwon Do for a year and a half, and has earned a green belt. She decided to join Tae Kwon Do after being hassled by five girls at Great America. The girls were punkers who did not like the way Nikki looked at them so they pushed her around, Nikki did not know what to do so she told security. She felt Tae Kwon Do would be a good way to take care of herself with- out needing anybody else to defend her. Self-defense is not the only benefit she gains from learning Tae Kwon Do. Confidence and discipline are two important factors that helped her not only in her study of Tae Kwon Do, but also in everyday life. Confidence helps her feel good about herself and the things she has accomplished. Discipline keeps her from doing things which can cause problems and also helps her finish things which are important such as home- work. She also has learned to respect her elders and classmates who have a higher belt than she. Fitness is an added benefit of Tae Kwon Do. It is much better than aerobics. I bounce around for an hour and it is useful,” commented Nikki. Tae Kwon Do is not without its problems, and the biggest one that Nikki has found is trying to keep with the guys in her class. She has to try harder than the guys just to accom- plish the same things they do. If the guys do push ups on their knuckles, I do them on my knuckles. replied Nikki. She has been improving steadily. Her form, kicks, and hand move- ments have been increasingly better and more accurate. Nikki has be- come more serious, and Tae Kwon Do has become more personal to her, stated John Walker, a class- mate of Nikki's. By Sean Grace. High Kicking. Nikki practices her swing kicks against a classmate at Choi's Tae Kwon Do Studio. The swing kick is one of the many arsenals that a Tae Kwon Do student has. She has gained more control with her kicks, that is she is not as clumsy as when she first started. stated Nikki's mother. Photo by Sean Grace. S i203

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Guy Wartena Timothy Wenzel Shelley West Scott Wheelor Jessica White Deanna Williams Eric Williams Gretchcn Williams Jessica Willoughby Brian Wilson Grant Winchester Jacqueline Witcher Lindsay Wood Melissa Wood Nicole Yanda Deanna Ybarra Eileen Yoshida Jason Zigelhofer Dawn Zimmer Lara Zirak Jonell Zogg Michael Zwisstcr Ken Dills FRESHMEN Darryl Addington Bill Aduddell Ana Afonso Dwight Alexander Amy Allman Cecilia Almaguer Tara Anderson Manssa Anguay Amanda Antonucci Celia Araneta Michelle Armenta Ashish Arya Nima Asghamia Nathan Ashford Michael Aspen Mamie Bailey Gregory Baliton Mathew Ball Jodi Barber Kim Barnes Shellie Bates Thomas Bauer Todd Baumgartner Scarlett Beniamin Robert Bertalan Jon Bessant Abaneatha Bisbeo Debra Blandford Aimee Blinder Lisa Bonelli Scott Boor Erik Boat David Boudreau Jason Brach Kevin Brand Brtdgette Briggs People 202 ,

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Most kids don't start driving, and speed- ing, until they are sixteen. Travis Pointer started at the age of eleven. hen Travis Pointer was eleven years old. he used to speed around the Santa Teresa High School parking lot in the Herbie Jr. Herbie was shaped just like a VW bug which is one oi Trav's favorite cars. When Travis was about thir- teen, he began to grow out of his go- cart. Travis then went two years without some kind of car. Then, on his fif- teenth birthday, his mother and fa- ther bought him a blue baja bug. 1 was so surprised, I didn't even sus- pect a car at all. It's such a killer car. Ever since that time, Travis has Perfection. On an early Sunday morning. Travis Pointer adjusts his Baja's carbu- retor. Trav's bug is a '79 and was a gift for his 15th birthday. 1 adjust the carb so the engine will perform as good as possible. — Travis Pointer, photo by Lance Pardue practically devoted his life to his bug. The only time he's not working on it is during football practice, or when he goes out with the girls. Travis is out there until ten o'clock at night sometimes. That stupid bug is his whole life now, states Travis' broth- er, Darin. Travis also has plans in the future with his bug. He wants to race in de- sert or four-wheel drive races. In my spare time, I want to race my baja in desert races. I think that I could do well, and plus, it would be a lot of fun. When he first got the bug, it didn't even have an engine in it. Travis and his dad re-built an engine with the use of a diagram book. There are shops that specialize in parts for bugs like Bugs Only and Bugfor- mance. These are the places he and his dad went to get the parts for the car. Every weekend we used to get parts that we needed, and now it has an almost perfect chrome engine, states Travis with a large grin. Travis also has a subscription to Hot VW magazine, and he picks- up a lot of ideas for his car from them. He eventually wants to install a turbo into his VW and enter it into shows. His friend, Paul McClendon already think that his bug is the best in the school, and it is probably one of the best bajas in San Jose. Travis' parents support him in ev- erything he does. If he wants to go into racing, they think he could do well. But, more importantly, he knows that he can do it. Travis is going to turn his future dream into reality, no matter how hard it is for him. by Lance Pardue