To view Rahwa's video click here
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UXBbW-cfnX4
Q: Tell me about your name and where it comes from.
________________________________
A: "I'm Eritrean, which is East African. It's right next to Ethiopia. The
two countries are like brother and sister. I'm East African, and the name
is kind of hard to translate into English, but it means something like
'good happening.' People say, 'I hope you have Rahwa in your life.' It
means something positive happening, like your wish is coming true. I guess
I have a pretty positive name."
http://www.heraldnet.com/article/20140324/NEWS01/140329539/Speaking-up-and-singing
Published: Monday, March 24, 2014, 12:01 a.m.
Super Kid: Rahwa Beyan, Edmonds-Woodway senior
By *Rikki King*, Herald Writer
EDMONDS -- Rahwa Beyan, 17, is a senior at Edmonds-Woodway High School. She
is a singer and spoken-word performer who takes the stage every month or
so. In January and February, she performed at church and community events
for Martin Luther King Jr. Day and for Black History Month. She is
part of ACT-SO
Snohomish County, a part of the NAACP. ACT-SO stands for Afro-Academic,
Cultural, Technological and Scientific Olympics.
________________________________
Question: How did you become a performer?
Answer: "I just always was good at it so I was always doing it anyway. I
think I was 10 when I decided I might want to take it seriously."
________________________________
Q: You moved here from Georgia in tenth grade. Tell me about where you grew
up.
________________________________
A: "Most of my childhood was spent in Georgia, and I think that's where I
got a lot of my characteristics. ... Over time, I realized (moving) was a
good thing. ... In ninth grade, I had a choir class, and that's when I
really started singing. There was a lot more to it, and everyone has a
different style and voice. I just kept self-teaching and then I moved up
here and now I'm in ACT-SO."
________________________________
Q: Your piece from Black History Month: Why spoken word?
________________________________
A: "The piece that I'm doing is a tribute to Trayvon Martin. ... It talks
about the stand-your-ground law and the general culture around business and
crime and the black community. I think I go toward this more because it's
what I'm grounded in. From my perspective, in black youth, the stories I
hear, Trayvon Martin, that easily could have been someone I knew. ... I'm
just glad that I'm able to find a community that welcomes that and was
eager to have youth come and create the platform for our voice."
Q: You're performing publicly about once or twice a month now?
________________________________
A: "Whether it's an NAACP event or sometimes a school event out in the
community, once a month, there's usually something going on."
________________________________
Q: What are your plans after high school?
________________________________
A: "I've been applying to some colleges. Hopefully, if everything works in
my favor, I'll get accepted to Georgia State University. If not, I'll
probably stay within Washington and end up going to Western."
________________________________
Q: Do you have an after-school job?
________________________________
A: "I work at Family Fun Center. I work there two days a week. I'm an
attendant so I'm either helping people on or off the rides and starting up
rides or working at the prize center."
________________________________
Q: What classes are you taking?
________________________________
A: "I do IB, International Baccalaureate. It's sort of like (Advanced
Placement), but it's a full program. All my classes are IB plus an extra
class that I take before school. (That class) is over now, because it was
first semester, and you also have to do 150 hours of community service and
a 4,000-word extended essay.
________________________________
Q: You mentioned you're in the Black Student Union. Are you in any other
clubs?
________________________________
A: "I've been a member of BSU since sophomore year, and this year I am
president of BSU. I'm also vice president and cofounder of Verbal
Expressions. It's kind of like a performance club, any sort of art."
________________________________
Q: What are you interested in majoring in, in college, and what careers
interest you?
________________________________
A: "I want to get a degree in public relations. I'm really into planning
and coordinating and all of that. It's kind of why I ended up in BSU. We
put on a lot of events. I think it's because all of the clubs I'm involved
in, that's why I like coordinating so much."
________________________________
Q: Tell me about your name and where it comes from.
________________________________
A: "I'm Eritrean, which is East African. It's right next to Ethiopia. The
two countries are like brother and sister. I'm East African, and the name
is kind of hard to translate into English, but it means something like
'good happening.' People say, 'I hope you have Rahwa in your life.' It
means something positive happening, like your wish is coming true. I guess
I have a pretty positive name."
________________________________
Q: What are some of your interests outside of school and the performing
arts?
________________________________
A: "I like swimming. I was on swim team in the fall. I really just enjoy
sunlight. Everyone who knows me knows I have an obsession with sunlight. I
just love lying in the sun. I think singing and swimming and hanging out
with family and friends, I like hanging out with friends and hanging out by
the pool and reading."
________________________________
Rikki King: 425-339-3449; rking_at_heraldnet.com.
Received on Tue Mar 25 2014 - 18:43:38 EDT