Meet the lovely, Class of 2020 senior from Pekin Community High School, Jaden Janssen-Michael!  She would describe her personality as outgoing and fun. “I try my best to get along with everyone around me and everyone to have a good time. I tend to be shy at first but once I warm up to someone, I can be very fun and adventurous. Another personality trait I have is loyalty. I am loyal to my friends, boyfriend, and my family through anything and everything!

After high school, Jaden plans on attending ICC at first but then wants to go to transfer to a University to pursue being a veterinarian.   She has wanted to be a Vet since she was a little girl and has always had a soft spot for animals.  Jaden has had two favorite teachers.. the first favorite would be her third grade teacher, Mr. Wiegardt. “I may not remember much from my younger days but I an clearly remember how great he was.  He read stories to us in funny voices which made reading more interesting. I was his last year teaching at my school which made me sad but also happy at the same time because I was lucky enough to be in his last class at that school.  He made me and my classmates laugh and he gave away fun prizes to us!  My other favorite teacher was my speech teacher, Mr. Pyle from PCHS.  Even though speech class made me super nervous because I am not the best at public speaking, Mr. Pyle made it the best time for everyone!  He is amazing as a teacher and as a person in general. Listening to him tell stories is the best and he always knows how to make the class laugh and he has a great use of vocabulary. These two teachers have made a huge impact on me and I will never be able to forget them in the future. They were the best!!”

Something I am most proud of is making the cheer team and maintaining good grades throughout high school.

“My favorite school events to attend have to include football games, homecoming and prom. Football season is the best because cheering on the team with the fire pit is awesome! Nothing beats the fire pit during football season! I always have a good time, whether it’s home games or away. Homecoming and prom are amazing because I just love the feeling of dressing up and looking great. Dinner is another amazing part of these dances, I enjoy going out to dinner dressed up. The dance is fun as well even if the music isn’t so great!.  In school, I participate in cheerleading and outside of school, I tumble, take piano lessons, play softball, and work at Buffalo Wild Wings. I participate in lots of cheer practices after school and help with cheer camps.

Advice to incoming freshman: “Don’t worry about what other people think of you, their opinion of you does not matter. Do right, don’t change your values for anyone, you’ll learn a lot about yourself. There will be good times and bad but learn to enjoy all four years because they go by quickly.”

FOOD and FAMILY:

“The best thing about my mom is how much she cares for my family and I, as well as her dedication. She is a very dedicated person and she would do anything to care for her family and friends. She is also very dedicated in her job, she works for DCFS which is a very important organization that insures children’s safety. She has worked very hard for the career she has and I am very proud of her. The best thing about my dad is how much he cares about his family and friends. He is a very giving father and person in general, he is very selfless and caring. He would do anything for anyone and that amazes me. He can also find humor in any situation and constantly tries to make people laugh. I love them both so much, I couldn’t just chose one to talk about.”

“My favorite childhood memory is when my childhood dog was still alive and ate all of my families food they were in the room or not. Her name was Kaine and she would always eat everyone’s food, one time she ate my sisters hot dog out of her hand and it was the funniest thing ever. Another one of my favorite childhood memories was when I used to record myself anywhere I was, whether it was in McDonald’s play place or on the car ride to Tanner’s Apple Orchard. I found the old tape with all of the recordings of myself and I used to have the best times recording myself talking or singing.”

“My favorite holiday would probably be Christmas. I enjoy spending money, especially on gifts for my family. They are super hard to buy but I have a fun time looking at different stores for them. My favorite holiday tradition is eating cookies with my family on Christmas that my grandma makes. They are always the best and she even makes different batches because we all like a different kind. The cookies are fantastic and I love spending Christmas with my family and friends.”

My hero is my grandmother because she is a very strong and caring women. No matter what she will do anything for anyone she loves and that is amazing to me. She has a very strong love for her family and she does so much for everyone.

My favorite family recipe is my grandmothers chili recipe. She doesn’t always make homemade chili but when she does it is awesome! I love chili in general but hers is the best.

If I could eat only one meal for the rest of my life, it would be Osaka’s shrimp and rice. It’s soooo good!

The most unusual things I have eaten are Cactus and Sushi.   I am a very picky eater.

Three things on my bucket list are 1. Traveling 2. Finishing college and finding a good career 3. Staring a family in a nice home with a couple of dogs.

RANDOM:

My nicknames include Jail, J, JJ, or even sometimes JJM

Favorite singers include Selena Gomez and Khalid

If I could travel anywhere in the world it would either have to be California, Italy or Hawaii!! I have always thought that these areas are beautiful, I would love to visit the Hollywood sign, see the beautiful sight of Italy and go to the ocean in Hawaii. All of these places seem beautiful and I get so jealous seeing all of the amazing photos posted of these places!!

The most daring thing I have ever done is go on a sky coaster in Indiana. It was like a very dangerous version of ziplining. I was very high in the sky and I had to pull a string to drop and go straight down in the air, only connected to a rope.

My favorite sport to watch is volleyball. My personal favorite sport to play is cheerleading or softball.

When I was younger I used to take tumbling classes and that is actually the place I first met my boyfriend. I never knew that I would be dating him throughout my whole high school career.

Why did you choose Shelby Photography for your senior portraits photographer? I chose Shelby Photography for my senior photos because I have heard so many amazing things which turned out to be true!! The photos I have seen and continue to see are just amazing. I made a great choice and I wouldn’t change it. The photos I have seen from Cindy are just stunning. I love how she makes them perfect whether its the outfit, style, makeup, location and color! The colors pop and I just love how complete they always look.