QUOTATION: People often say that, in a democracy, decisions are made by a majority of the people. Of course, that is not true. Decisions are made by a majority of those who make themselves heard and who vote - a very different thing. - Walter H. Judd
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2004-09-06 - 3:32 p.m. The Gene PoolAs I wrote in my blog some time ago, I�m not now, nor have I ever been, the least bit athletic, so I always find it amazing that my progeny excel in all kinds of sports and games. They must have gotten it from the other side of the gene pool! Just this week my granddaughter Chelsea Reilly, a sophomore at Davis High School and a Buffalo Babe, started her second year of cross-country racing with a 6th place overall (out of 120 girls) and first from Davis at the Granite Bay/ACICS Invitational. She has for several years excelled at soccer, as well, but has decided this year to give it up to focus her efforts on running.In the Foot Locker picture below, she's the first one on the right in the first row.
Her brother Max, being one of the most physically competitive in the family, thinks he just may have found his sport in water polo, but can�t decide so is playing basketball and soccer this quarter, as well. He was part of an invitational Little League team that went to Japan to play against a team in Davis' Sister City this summer. A great experience as the team members each lived with a family for several days. Their mother, Marci Snodgrass, specialized in gymnastics in high school and college. After a couple of stress fractures, she switched to triathlons. She plans to compete in at least one more now that she�s moved into the 50 age bracket. Their father, Peter, has bike-packed up and down the coast, up into Canada, kayaks, hikes, and often bikes along as Chelsea does her running work-outs.
Although my daughter Laurie liked gymnastics, she switched to modern dance in her sophomore year of high school and continued through college, graduating from U.C. Berkeley and U.C.L.A.with a degree in Movement Therapy. She went on to get her Marriage and Family Counseling Certificate. She danced in New York and Los Angeles. She is an avid bike rider. Her son, 16-year-old Connor worked toward his black belt in karate,but then he sustained a minor injury, which sidelined him for awhile. He now finds his interest moving toward basketball and swimming. Mark, one of the tallest in his junior high classes, eschewed all overtures to play basketball, but played water polo in high school and switched to crew in college. An automobile accident several years ago sidelined him. His daughter, Kristina, is a triple threat � playing basketball, soccer, and tennis with great proficiency, thus finding it difficult to choose just one. Marci and 13-year-old daughter, Chelsea Snodgrass-Reilly, rode 120 mile Emigrant Trails Bike Trek in September of 2002 on a borrowed tandem bike. They raised pledges in excess of $1000 through personal contact and a pizza fundraiser at Lamppost Pizza in West Davis. In addition to the 120 miles, they rode an extra few miles for a Klondike bar! Aha! There's one grandchild that inherited some genes from my side!The Rotary Club of Greater Corvallis named Kerry-Edinger-Snodgrass, daughter of Mark Snodgrass and Pam Edinger, Westland Middle School's student of the month. She has been on the honor roll throughout middle school, maintaining a 3.98 cumulative grade-point average. She earned the Gold Presidential Service Award two years in a row and has more than 250 hours of service. She has participated in the Youth Volunteer Corps since the sixth grade. She has acted in local plays and is now in "Sacagawea, the Bird Woman," playing the part of William Clark. She is pursuing the Young Professional Actor credential through Oregon Children's Theatre and has participated in an acting academy in Portland. She has been a fifth-grade teacher's assistant at Adams Elementary School for 1� years. She is a member of the leadership class at Westland. She also enjoys music, playing guitar and swimming. Kerry hopes to be a director of plays for and with children. Sean, Val's son, spends much of his spare time riding the waves off Santa Cruz on his surf board...or snowboarding when he gets the chance. And Amy, Mark's youngest daughter, proudly said when we invited her to go swimming this spring. "I'm NOT athletic!" She's the writer and the artist in the family. That gene may not have been dominant, but it's there!
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