Senior Jaden Niemela is a student at Cascade High School who is described by teachers and friends as loving and fun to hang out with. Jaden is a hard worker who does not let anything stop him from achieving his goals. Jaden’s hobbies consist of sports and video games. Jaden has left his mark on Cascade by his involvement in football and basketball.
This semester of 2022, he is taking Weights and Conditioning with Paul Fraker. Fraker described Jaden as being “very helpful to other students without the same experience as him. Jaden is always willing to help and teach students who don’t have as much experience as him.” Jaden is passionate about sports and friendly and approachable to talk to.
Additionally, Jaden has been playing basketball for four years as a forward who played low on offense and defense. Coach Todd Fraker said, “Coaching Jaden on the Boys JV Basketball team last spring was really fun. He had a great attitude and worked really hard. His quickness and athleticism really fit the style of play that we focused on, which was intense defense and a fast-breaking offense. Jaden interacted very well with his teammates as they all worked together to be the best team that they could. Jaden has played basketball for all four years of his high school career. Jaden played what we would call a forward, who mostly played down low on offense and defense. Probably the best compliment I could give Jaden is that he progressed from being a two-year C-squad player to becoming the “Most Improved” player during his junior year. He became a starter for the varsity during his senior season this past year.”
“I first met [him] at middle school basketball. My first impression was he was a great asset to the team, and he was a good athletic individual,” explained Jaden’s friend, senior Colton Latimer.
Jaden is not only successful on the court, but in the classroom as well. Mrs. Willet, who Jaden TA’s for, said, “Jaden seems to have a great head on his shoulders. Not only for school but for how he presents himself to others. He knows what he wants to do in life and has taken the necessary steps to get that accomplished. I can't wait to see where the future takes him.”
Mr. Allen Jaden’s CWCW teacher has described him as “hardworking, but he’s quiet. He’s one of those kids that fly under the radar, because he doesn’t draw a lot of attention to himself. The work he does in his classes is quality work and does more than the requirement for his assignments. In one of his group projects, he has a 100 percent.”
When asked, Mr. Haberberger, Jaden’s Culinary 2 teacher how he would describe Jaden to a random stranger he said, “I’d say he can dunk a basketball, throw 90mph, run a 4.4 40, has straight A’s and girlfriends all over the state and he’d never tell you about it.”
Being a senior at Cascade High School he wants to be remembered as, “A hard worker and a fun person to be around. The reason I want to be known as this is because that's who I am, and I don't want to be known as a person who doesn't work hard and is uneasy to be around.” He also explained that by graduation he wants to achieve getting all A’s in his current classes to end on a high note for his senior graduation.
Throughout the years, Jaden and his friends have made great memories together. “We were at my friend's house, Jess Donoghue this winter and Jaden was dragging a sled tied to Jaden’s [pick-up] truck to drag the sled with our friend group [going] fast and crazy turns,” described senior Jackob Guzman.
Senior Hunter Rogers also shared a funny story about Jaden: “We were playing ‘Dare Basketball,’ where you say a dare and if you make the shot, you have to do it. I said, if I make the shot, Jaden had to try to buy insurance from State Farm, then I made the shot. Later that day he went to the State Farm building, he asked for insurance, but they turned him down because he was 17.”
He also works a part-time job at Safeway as a courtesy clerk where he bags groceries, cleans, and helps bring bags to the customer’s cars. Senior Ethan Magnahi, one of Jaden’s co-workers said, “Jaden is a great employee at Safeway because he gets his work done and does not complain whatsoever which is for sure a plus. I thought it was cool we were adding another one of my good friends to the staff.”
After graduation Jaden hopes to go into the Air Force to work on cyber security. He feels that he would do excellent with computers because it is something that he would enjoy. In five years, Jaden would like to live a happy life and have fun throughout anything that comes his way. He wants to have a secure job, hang with the people he loves, and eventually own a house to call his own.
What memories do you have of him? Let us know in the comment below.
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