Whiz Kid's Name: Demi Straulino
Age: 14
School: Eighth grader at
Church –
Accomplishments:
- She has been an honor roll student since the sixth grade.
- Demi enjoys sports and has won the Presidential Physical Fitness Award the last four years. As part of the Holy Family School track and field team, Demi holds the school-record for the long jump (4′ 6″).
- Last year, she wrote a poem that was published in the Anthology of Poetry by Young Americans.
- Recently, Demi won second place in the 2061 Advertisement Multimedia Contest held by the Allentown Diocese.
- Demi has been involved in four Drama Club productions at her school. Two years ago, she was the Scarecrow in “The Wizard of Oz,” and this year, she will be Thunder, a thief in “Pippi Longstocking.”
- She is a member of the Helping Hands group, which gathers items to send to troops in Afghanistan.
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Key to Awesomeness (what made him/her successful?):
“I’m really outgoing,” Demi said.
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Born in Rome, Italy, Demi moved to the United States with her parents when she was a baby. She has lived in Forks Township for most of her life.
Demi loves to play soccer and currently plays mid-field for the Forks Township Soccer Club. She is also on the track and field team for Holy Family School – her other favorite sport.
When she isn’t studying or playing sports, Demi is writing.
“I love writing – and drawing too,” Demi said. “It’s all you, all your imagination. You can make anything happen and no one can tell you how it should turn out. If you really love doing it, it just flows from you.”
When her poem was published in the Anthology of Poetry by Young Americans, she said it made her feel really good to see it in print.
“The fact that it was in a book that everyone else could read was exciting,” she said.
In the 2061 Advertisement Multimedia Contest, Demi explained, the Allentown Diocese wanted students to describe a Catholic school classroom in the year 2061. Some of Demi’s ideas included iPad or Kindle devices that replaced books, and the ability for students – sick and stuck at home – to watch their teacher via software like Skype.
Editor's Note: Know a great kid who made Eagle Scout? How about a teen who helped a friend or elderly neighbor? Do you know a student who has come up with an amazing school project? They could be our next Patch Whiz Kid honoree. Click to find out how to nominate them.