Gender
Gender Variant/Non-conforming
Ethnicity
Black/African, Caucasian
Hobbies and interests
Music
Music Composition
Music Production
Singing
Writing
Songwriting
Screenwriting
Playwriting
Drawing And Illustration
Acting And Theater
Voice Acting
Game Design and Development
Dungeons And Dragons
Theater
Minecraft
Art
Harp
Gaming
Dance
Reading
Action
Adventure
Art
Business
Crafts
Design
Drama
Contemporary
Fantasy
How-To
Magical Realism
Music
Realistic Fiction
Science Fiction
Young Adult
I read books multiple times per month
Garrett Thornton
1,675
Bold Points1x
Nominee1x
FinalistGarrett Thornton
1,675
Bold Points1x
Nominee1x
FinalistBio
I am currently pursuing music education with the goal of being a choir director. My grandfather, Laird Thornton, was also a choir director, and he is my reason for wanting to pursue teaching music. I want to be able to inspire, encourage, and support all my students the same way he did for his. I hope to be a person that they can come to with anything, whether to celebrate the highest of highs or mourn the lowest of lows or anything between.
I am very passionate about the arts, currently my passions in the arts include music (composing, singing, the list goes on), writing, drawing/paint, and acting. Recently I've also picked up computer science interests. Such as web development and making my own games. I have been pursuing learning web development since May 2022, planning to learn how to be a game developer afterwards. Long term with these passions is to make games, whether bringing my own games to reality or collaborating with others to make games as a team.
When I'm not teaching or programming, I plan to be acting either behind a mic and voicing characters in shows and games or behind a camera and acting for screens.
I'm taking steps towards these passions by taking classes on acting, writing, music composition, programming. As well as practicing on my own to better hone my skills.
Education
Western Washington University
Bachelor's degree programMajors:
- Music
- Education, Other
Minors:
- Audiovisual Communications Technologies/Technicians
Miscellaneous
Desired degree level:
Bachelor's degree program
Graduate schools of interest:
Transfer schools of interest:
Majors of interest:
- Music
- Education, Other
Career
Dream career field:
Performing Arts
Dream career goals:
Actor & Singer
Paraeducator
Federal Way Public Schools2023 – 20241 yearProgram Manager
Right At School2024 – 2024Customer Service, Social Media (PR), various other roles
Dimension XR2022 – 20231 year
Finances
Loans
The Federal Government
Borrowed: September 25, 20246,424
Principal borrowed6,424
Principal remaining
Interest rate:
5%Debt collection agency:
Aidvantage
The Federal Government
Borrowed: September 23, 20226,500
Principal borrowed6,601
Principal remaining
Interest rate:
5%Debt collection agency:
Aidvantage
The Federal Government
Borrowed: September 22, 20215,500
Principal borrowed5,500
Principal remaining
Interest rate:
5%Debt collection agency:
Aidvantage
Sports
Tennis
Junior Varsity2017 – 20192 years
Awards
- No
Arts
Kentridge High School
ActingBe More Chill2019 – 2019Western Washington University
ActingStreet Scene2022 – 2023Renton Civic Theatre
ActingInto the Woods2019 – 2019
Public services
Volunteering
Grace Lutheran Church — Singer, performer2017 – 2020
Future Interests
Advocacy
Politics
Volunteering
Philanthropy
Entrepreneurship
Barbie Dream House Scholarship
My Barbie Dream House would be in a forest, on a cliff next to the ocean. I love exploration, so the middle of the woods would be an amazing place for me. As well as being able to sit on a deck and watch the ocean as my mind wanders, creating many ideas for my creative projects. I'd also have a secret hidden building in the forest, just for me to know about and go to.
For the exterior and build of the house, I would have cement walls so I'd have good insulation. I'd probably have thin drywall for the insides, that way I could paint and not have a cement pattern for paints. But for the outside, I'd do brick, that way I could have a pattern with some color on the outside and not just one straight gray color. Because of both cement and brick, windows would likely have a lot of room, so I'd make use of the excess space and make little crooks for seating or shelving for plants. The house would have 2 floors and a basement.
Starting from the basement, it would mainly have entertainment rooms, like a theater room with surround sound and either a movie projector or a massive screen. In that room, there'd also be a microwave for popcorn and various popcorn seasonings so if I have any guests, they can season their popcorn however they'd like (I would try the ones I've never had before). The other entertainment room would be a video game room that has controllable lights that can match the screen or just be room lights. For games, I'd mainly have all Nintendo consoles, but it would also have all the current consoles. There'd be a wall of games that I enjoy or know my friends enjoy so we'd have plenty of games to play. Also having surround sound, my friends and I would get to live within the game environments... Or surround ourselves with the sounds of our success and failure in Smash Bros. Outside of the two would be a lobby-like room that would have a bowling lane and also have various table games like pool, table tennis, and so on. There'd also be Bluetooth speakers so whoever is down there can have great music while they enjoy the various lobby entertainment options.
The first floor would have a little section for shoes and jackets by the door so people can transition inside and have their things by the door. To the left would be one guest room, and to the right, are stairs going up and two guest rooms. These would take up just less than half of the first floor, the rest of the space is for a living room, dining room, and kitchen. With a bathroom, stairs going down, and an elevator between the guest room and living room. Connected to the kitchen would be a small room that has a washer and dryer and is connected to a two-car garage.
The second floor would have a recreational/craft room, an office that faces the water, so I can enjoy the sight while I write or work on projects, and of course, my bedroom, with a fully walk-in closet that has secret entrances to secret rooms. One of which would have a high-end computer for gaming and streaming. The other would be where I could hide gifts for people or always win hide and seek.
My bedroom would also face the water, that way I can wake up to the lovely sight of the ocean.
Grant Woolard Memorial Scholarship
Through teaching and creating, I want to change other's lives with music the way it has changed mine. I aim to be a choir teacher, teaching at the middle and high school level. Creating music for my own choirs as well as for video games, whether my own or teaming up with others. I hope that the music I perform and make connects to people. Bringing the world music that brings some to tears or bring great smiles to their faces.
Music has practically been another family member in my life. Both my grandfathers were music teachers, my entire family sings and had performed in church choir for some time (some still performing today), many in my family also performing in musical theatre, including myself. My own musical career has been joining choir as soon as I could in 4th grade, joining orchestra 6th, being in both orchestra and jazz choir in middle school, participating in various musicals at my middle and high school, as well as local theatre, going all four years in high school in choir, and jazz choir as soon as it was an option.
Ways I've been positively impacted by music would be that it's become a comfort to me, something I can turn to when I am overwhelmed, stressed, or just needing a break. It's also been eye opening, hearing various genres of music, from EDM to classical to K-Pop to video game music. It broadens my horizons and shows me what can be done. I really enjoy listening to other people's music because it can (and often does) expose me to new types of music and I get to experience new styles that can inspire me for my own music. Another way it impacts me is it makes me feel things, people often feel like emotions are bad, but I accept them with open arms. I'll listen to music and hear the sorrow, the dread, the excitement, the anger in it. Just last year I had a song and as I was practicing, I started thinking how to relate this song with my own life and broke down in tears. I will admit it sucked to have my eyes sting, but it was nice being able to get my tears out from music after my Boompa's (my grandfather on dad's side) passing. I feel as though my connection to that song is now deeper and greater than the other songs I had.
Thank you for letting me be vulnerable and share my hopes, passions, and emotions with you. Thank you for also spending time to read my essay. I hope you have a wonderful day.
Terry Crews "Creative Courage" Scholarship
To me art is storytelling. Telling stories of quests with dragons and magic, stories of one's own emotions, and even capturing a beautiful memory. Every piece of art has a different story to tell and each medium is a way of telling those stories.
I've always loved stories, from creating them to telling them. Storytelling has been a central focus in my life, from attempting to write novels in elementary, to acting in theatre in middle and high school, to wanting to make my own music. Since that covers 3 art forms already, it makes sense to me that telling stories is a core part for all art forms.
My goals for the future would be to publish and share all my stories. Books, webcomics, the list goes on. I also want to start performing for people through screens, whether it be movies, TV shows, or games.
Patricia Lea Olson Creative Writing Scholarship
I want to study creative writing so I can better understand how to craft good stories, like construct diverse and well rounded characters, or a elaborate and coherent lore that people want to dive into and understand. As well as being able to write for whatever medium I think would best fit the story, TV, stage, comic, or book. As some stories need to be on a stage, or would be better fit for a comic, and I want to be able to present a story as best as I can, and to me, that means being able to present it with whatever would best show off the story.
I love telling stories. That's the reason I participate in theater and acting. My goals are to just share as many stories as I can. For my hopes, I hope that people enjoy my stories. I hope that they recommend them to their friends, who recommend it to their friends, so on so forth. Honestly, I think it would be funny if it circles around and a friend recommends it to me, but I digress. My dreams are for people to be inspired by my stories and create their own things. I will know I have succeeded in life when someone says I was their inspiration for their project.
When it comes to how I want to affect others, I want to inspire them. I want to inspire them to create. Whether it be art, writing, or music. I would love to see people creating content about their favorite characters, I would even love to see people make content about what they'd do or be in that world. And as I said earlier, making their own stories.
I value art and think it's an important thing. People put little value on it, but in reality, it has a ton of value. By pursuing writing and music, I plan to create content and share all the stories that I can in my life. As to me, nothing is more important than pursuing what you love.