When you look at a small town you might think that most people who live in it are the same. In Hayesville it’s different, we have a diverse community. Phoebe Pietila is one of many students at Hayesville High School who come from a different background. Phoebe was adopted from Hanoi, Vietnam. “I was adopted from Hanoi, Vietnam when I was four months old. I don’t really know a lot about where I came from, but I want to go back and visit in the future. I do know that it is a beautiful country and I am excited to visit one day,” she says.
Phoebe Pietila is an ideal student at Hayesville High School with many people who look to her when they need someone to count on. She is involved within the community and at school in many extracurricular activities. She plays volleyball but is also included in the Beta Club and volunteers as a 5th-grade tutor.
Phoebe says that some of her most important memories at Hayesville come with her being involved in extracurriculars. “I have many memories of this school and some of my favorites are the ones that I have made in volleyball,” Phoebe says. “The bus rides to the away games are the most memorable times and the connections you make with your teammates.” She says that this has led to her being most passionate about volleyball. “I got started with volleyball when Coach Dills came to talk to our fourth-grade class about signing up. It was my idea to play and figured it would be fun,” Phoebe says remembering how she got started.
Living in the small town of Hayesville, many of the students here like to see what’s outside of the town. “Traveling around the country is definitely on my bucket list. We come from a small town and I would love to see what is outside of it,” Pietila remarks. Her biggest regret is not going out of her comfort zone and she would one day love to change that about herself. She says she would one day love to do this with her dad, “I am most thankful for my dad and would love to do more things with him.” She says that one day her dream life is to live somewhere with a lot of land, with pets, and have a career involving sports.
Not only is Phoebe greatly involved with the school, but she also has many friends who care extremely for her. One individual in particular is Maddie Graves. She assured me that Phoebe is a special person, “Phoebe is an important part of my life. She is kind, compassionate, caring, and selfless. She is always there when I need her no matter the situation.” Having connections with the people around her has made Phoebe have people say many lovely things about her. Phoebe is an amazing person through and through, and it is a wonderful thing that we can say that she is a Human of HHS.