By — Mia Parada

This year has been quite a different experience for all students, but when challenged with making a yearbook, the Yearbook Crew at Tuscarora took this challenge in full swing. I caught up with Catey Goodrum, the Editor in Chief of Tuscrora’s yearbook crew, to give insight on the making and effort that has been put into the 2020-2021 Yearbook. 

“This year has been extremely frustrating to produce a yearbook. The challenges of not being in school and not being able to directly reach out to our peers for quotes, spreads, and in general the whole book was invigorating and though the whole staff worked extremely hard to reach out through social media coverage was still an obvious challenge. With that being said, I do believe that this year’s book is my favorite book I’ve ever produced. Since we lacked photographers, I was able to cover almost every sport- something I’ve never been able to do before. The group leaders such as Tilly Underhill, Lea Lesho and Kendall Stimart worked with their staffers to gain quotes and comments from those photographed. The collaboration on their end is the reason why this book was possible and they are the reason why we will be able to have a yearbook this year,” said the yearbook’s Editor in Chief, Catey Goodrum.

Goodrum and the rest of the Yearbook staff have worked harder than before to create the yearbook this year. Though even in the challenging times of Covid-19, there has been an upside. “Covid honestly did not affect the book that much coverage wise as the majority of activities occurred outside of school hours. The biggest change due to the pandemic was interaction between groups and staff members as it was exceedingly difficult to meet deadlines since there was less communication in person,” Goodrum said. 

Even amongst the new challenges Goodrum and her staff have created a yearbook that, with hard work being put in, has turned out to be one of the best yet. The Yearbook staff has not only faced challenges with communication but also with the community. But that is why the staff has made it a priority to communicate with the Tusky community on their instagram (@Tuskyyearbook). 

“This was not a one man job- everyone helped equally, no matter what they did to contribute. Without every staffer on hand this book would not be what it is today, and I would love for the Tuscarora student body to purchase a book and see for themselves the amazing job we’ve done.” The appreciation in Goodrum for her staff shows the dedication that they have all brought into the yearbook production and creation this year. 

It is not only vital to keep the pace in a yearbook creation, but also to keep the enthusiasm and transfer the year into the book. With that being said, Goodrum and her yearbook staff have worked hard to create a yearbook that is worth buying and supporting. They have also worked hard on one that captures our current school year during these hard times. 

The yearbook is not only a way to capture a year, but also to serve as a reminder on what the Tuscarora community has gone through. And not only the bad, but the good as well. The yearbook serves as a reminder of the resilience and the compassion that our community has for each other. This year has been a challenging one for all of us, but it serves as a sign that we will all be stronger out of it.