Michele Sundwall:
CLASS OF 1989
Renton High SchoolClass of 1989
Renton, WA
Michele's Story
Life
Wow, where to start. (More details on Myspace, keywords--Michele, Yuma, Az) My life is nothing like it use to be, nor am I, in most ways, at least. I moved to Arizona when I was 19 and have been here since. My life is very full and as balanced as it can be considering how busy we are. I have been married for 6 years to a wonderful man. We are raising two sons (15 & 17) and our 6 year old daughter Raven Nicole.
We spend most of our time outdoors, riding motocross, playing paintball, riding quads and camping in the toy hauler, and other misc. sports. My husband and I both ride motorcycles, both motocross, quads and street bikes. I have a new Harley Softail, but my favorite bike is my sportbike. I just purchased one of my dreams, a year ago, which is a restored, mint condition 1968 Camaro SS. The car I have wanted since I was 5yrs. old.
During the summer (which is 8 months out of the year here!), it is very hot, so we spend most of our time in the pool or at the lake. All in all, it seems we are always outdoors doing something or another, and most of the time we are surrounded by very good friends.
On a personal note, I still possess alot of the same interests I have always had. I love to paint, sculpt, draw, photography (black and white) and write poetry. Some of my poetry has been published on Poetry.Com under the name of Michele Raven, which is what I had changed my lastname to after my mother passed away when I was 22. I kept that name until I got married, then it became my daughters first name. Other interests I still maintain are my love for motorcycles, primarily sportbikes and customs, but most of all motocross. I am not interested too much in watching sports, unless it is motorcross, but never miss Superbowl (mainly for the commercials though) :)
Other than hobbies and interests, I think many other things about me are the same as well. I still cherish friendships and pride myself in being an extremely loyal person, with both friendships and my husband. There is nothing worse than a person who lacks integrity. And luckily, I have the best friends anyone could ever ask for.
While I have not attended any reunions, I do think about high school from time to time. I will make it to the 20 year reunion though, that has already been decided. There are several people that stand out in my mind and meant a great deal to me, whether they realize it or not, most probably dont. I think it would just be interesting to reunite with people and see who they are today. I am not interested in how much money someone has or how much prestige they have, but more interested in who they have become as a person. There are some that I would doubt have even changed since high school, and others that had so much potential it wasnt even funny.
Well, that is my 'general' story, for the most part at least. Its pretty hard to write about your life for the past 19 years. All in all, I hope everyone is having a good life and doing well. See you next year at the 20!! (OMG, we all got old!)
School
School.....wow, it seems like forever ago....perhaps it was. Funny how time passes so quickly. We are all told how fast it goes by when we are growing up, but never really realize just how fast until one day we look back and all those years have passed. Whats worse, is now hearing myself tell my own kids the very same thing.
There are so may things in high school I would forget. The little childish clicks, the gossip, the loss of true friends over meaningless things or untruths. Ah, the way we treated each other during those years. I an honestly say, that next to Jr High, they were some of the hardest years I have ever experienced. Looking back however, I still find it interesting how since high school, we have all moved on and met so many other people, yet will always hold those whom we knew in high school as close memories. There are several people who stand out in my mind, several friendships, 'crushes', and I suppose teachers who had the most influence. Periodic...Expand for more
ally, I catch myself wondering whatever happened to everyone, which I suppose is my reason for coming to Classmates to begin with. Suprised however, at the little amount that people write. Perhaps it all goes back to feeling like we are going to be judged by how we turned out. Personally, I dont mind who judges me for who I am or what I have done with my life, except for my family. All I care about is having an honest living, one that I enjoy, and taking care of my family. What else really matters? Anyway, about school, I am sure that those people that I think back on, know who they are. Some I had been friends with long before high school, and others I met there.
Workplace
For almost 10 years now, I have worked for the Arizona Department of Corrections. Originally, I started with the Dept. for the K-9 position, then worked as an Officer for 2.5 years before promoting to Sergeant. After 2+ years as a Sgt., I promoted to being a Counselor. The Complex that I work at consists of 3 prisons, all male inmates, custody levels from low to max. I have worked at all units, but the max for over 9 years now. The first couple years as an Officer, I was also a Firefighter until the Complex Fire Dept. closed due to budgeting constraints. Currently I have several positions with the Dept, to include Staff Firearms Instructor for 9 years, First Aid and Life Support Instructor for 8 years, and a Critical Incident Team Leader for 7 years. 3 years ago, I attended the FBI Academy and became a certified Hostage Negotiator, and have been a Negotiator for the Dept. since. These duties are all in addition to my position as a counselor, in which I maintain a caseload of inmates and instruct Substance Abuse Classes and Anger Managements Classes. The job gets a little crazy from time to time, especially at this custody level, but at least it is never 'the same ole' thing'. My husband also works for the Dept., starting when he was 19. With our 20yr. Law Enforcement Retirement, he can retire anytime and then onto another career for another retirement as soon as something comes along.
The environment is very interesting and ever-changing. Initially, it was my intention to get the certification as a K-9 Officer with the Dept, then move onto a Police Department. Once I was here for awhile, I discovered all the opportunities available within the Dept. and I decided to stay. With just over 10 years to retire, I am glad I did. The majority of my friends work here as well, and those that dont, are still in the same line of work in one way or another. It is difficult to make friendships outside of law enforcement, probably because you become very distrusting of people. Plus, it doesnt help that the things you see everyday and get numb to, are enough to turn other peoples stomachs and make them cringe. So sharing stories while hanging out with friends makes it hard for others to understand and relate to if not in the same line of work. Overall, I would do it all over again. The only downside that I see, besides the growing lack of trust in stangers and knowing the sick, twisted things that people are capable of, is probably the limitations we put on our kids. We tend to be more strict with our kids because we see first hand the types of people in our society and know that only a fraction of those people are in custody. I remember being 15 and hanging out down at the 'Renton Loop' on Friday and Sat. nights and thinking nothing of it. Now, as a parent, there is no way I would let my kids, even the 16yr old, wonder around town. I am sure it sucks for them, but I would rather have them safe. They get a longer leash as they get older, but we still hear all the time how "all their other friends get to...blah blah blah..." So because of that, I would say that could be a downside, but moreso for the kids than for my husband and I.
Anyway, that is what I do and will do for almost 11 more years. After that, who knows......kind of anxious to see what life has in store for me by that time. :)
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