Wyatt Kinnebrew moved to Wenatchee in sixth grade after living in various places up until the age of 12. He formed friendships in the halls of Foothills Middle School that would last through all the ups and downs of high school.
“When I met Wyatt in middle school, he was pretty quiet but super kind and approachable,” said senior Mia Navarro, one of his closest friends.
The COVID year was especially difficult for Wyatt, but also caused some important realizations.
“Before the pandemic, I was pretty reserved and kind of kept to myself, but afterward I kind of came out of my shell and started to extend myself socially,” he said.
In his sophomore year of high school, he got involved in school activities like ASB. One of his major contributions to ASB was starting a weather segment titled “Weather with Wyatt,” which played in the weekly video announcements.
“Wyatt’s outgoing nature is very cool,” said Wyatt’s former teacher Daniel Deal. “I think him becoming the school’s weatherman kind of showcases who he is in a lot of ways and the growth that has been done.”
Wyatt found a lot of value in ASB.
“My involvement in ASB has made me more of a social person and has just been really fun.”
Jaxson Luinstra has also known Wyatt throughout high school.
“I’ve seen Wyatt grow a lot as a person during the time that I’ve known him, especially socially,” Jaxson said.
Wyatt’s younger brother Ezra also witnessed Wyatt becoming more outgoing and involved in the school’s community.
“I really look up to Wyatt and it’s cool to see him becoming more himself every year,” he said.
Back in February, Kinnebrew stepped up to co-host the annual Janice Franz talent show. This event pushed him into the spotlight, reading off jokes and keeping an entire audience entertained for almost two hours.
“MCing for the talent show was a moment where I kind of had to step out of my comfort zone and do something I wasn’t used to doing,” Wyatt said.
Another major event for Kinnebrew was being in Mr. Panther during the spring of his senior year. He was nominated by his peers and participated in a pageant alongside nine other candidates, including some of his close friends.
“We had to pick a talent for Mr. Panther and I picked cooking. It was kind of uncomfortable to just sit up onstage grilling a burger in front of a bunch of people for ten minutes straight, but I did it anyway,” Wyatt said.
Wyatt’s sizzling act left a strong impression on those in the audience, and he used his talent for the benefit of others.
“I’ll always remember when Wyatt cooked burgers for all of the top ten candidates after the show. That was really cool,” Jaxson said.
Many people have made Wyatt who he is today, notably his mother.
“My mom has always been there for me,” Wyatt said. “She’s really taught me to be resilient.” Wyatt tries to carry that strength with him and pass it on to others. In the fall, he will be attending Western Washington University to major in biochemistry. In the future, he hopes to become a molecular or cellular biologist or a college professor. His peers and teachers alike admire his inquisitive nature and insatiable desire to always learn more.
“Wyatt has been interested in space and science for the entirety of the time I’ve known him and he’s always strived to further his knowledge about it.” Deal said. “It’s been fun to watch his initial curiosity and drive for learning grow and I think it’s awesome that he is pursuing some form of that in college.”
Wyatt hopes to leave behind a legacy of connections and memories.
“I want people to remember me for the fun times we’ve had together,” he said.