To say senior Liana Carney has a full plate is an understatement.
Along with finishing her school sports career and keeping her grades up to remain the valedictorian, Carney also needs to put the finishing touches on her senior project.
She tackled the brunt of her project before her final high school year even started, helping organize and put on the Bearfest 2021 Marathon last August.
"I work for Alaska Vistas and they kind of run the whole Bearfest thing," Carney said. "The whole week of Bearfest, all the hours we put in are volunteer. (Sylvia Ettefagh) came into our class and said, 'Hey, if you guys are looking for a senior project, you can help me with Bearfest.'"
Although she was familiar with the event and the work that went into it, organizing and prepping for the annual race was still an undertaking.
"We had a website made with sign-up stuff for (the runners); we had a T-shirt designed; we had medals cut out and made," Carney said. "We had to drive the loop to mark all the mile markers for the turnaround points."
The night before the race, Carney and other volunteers had to drive the racecourse to set out the mile markers and set up the aid stations. A pasta dinner for runners was also held that night, which called on volunteers to provide the food and setup. Wrangling the volunteers was perhaps the hardest part, she said.
"Getting the volunteers together was difficult, making sure we had enough and to make sure they knew what they had to do," she said. "We had volunteers that stood with arrows (to guide runners), but at certain points they had to switch where their arrow was pointing or move across the street."
Despite the challenges and long hours, Carney "felt it ran really smoothly."
Ettefagh agreed.
"Let me put it this way: For the first time since we've put on the marathon (in 2010), I didn't have to do anything," she said. Carney's efforts stood out to Ettefagh, who said Carney's personality and abilities are a rare mix.
"She's fearless, but she's also a little guarded in that she's not reckless," Ettefagh said. "That's an interesting combination to have. It's a very rare combination. Being responsible, fearless, not reckless and being willing to try, and she's sensitive to what other people go through."
The goal of the senior project, said assistant principal Bob Davis, is for students to give back to their community. "If you graduate from Wrangell High School, you have benefited from the tremendous support this community gives its students. This project is (a student's) chance to give back to the community and to show appreciation for their support."
Projects will also help seniors to showcase their "skills, knowledge and habits" gained while attending Wrangell schools. It's also meant to help students serve as examples to fellow students and adults in the community, while teaching themselves something about themselves.
"I definitely think it taught me how to be organized and how to communicate with people a lot better," Carney said. Before getting involved with the marathon prep, she said she would put off things like answering texts or small tasks. With the planning, she began to keep a checklist of things to accomplish while keeping other people involved apprised of what was done or needing doing.
Though Carney completed the actual project, she still has work left to do. A report and visual presentation are due mid-March - tasks that aren't at the forefront of her mind at the moment.
"Right now, it's the middle of basketball seasons, so it's really crazy with traveling," she said. "It's just trying to finish basketball season, getting this boat done (a welding class project) is going to be a big push because it's a lot of stuff to do in the next semester, and then keeping my grades up."
Carney, a three-time state champion in wrestling, has received a wrestling scholarship to attend University of Jamestown in North Dakota. She will be pursuing a degree in nursing, and from there she will either return to Wrangell or move to Boise, Idaho. Graduating comes with mixed feelings for her.
"It's definitely bittersweet, but I'm definitely ready to move on to the next thing," she said. "Senioritis is a real thing, I've realized."
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