Everyone says high school is the best four years of your life, but it seems as the years go by, it is hard to remember what people called the best years of your life were like. When the memories fade, the alumni look back on yearbooks to refresh their minds. The yearbook is so much more than photos on pages; it tells a story, and it starts with the cover.

The 2016 yearbook staff had the privilege this year to travel to Harrisburg to watch the graphic designer of the book design the cover right in front of their eyes. The staff requested what they envisioned for the cover, and the graphic designer delivered.

The staff was amazed by what they saw, and editor in-chief Rebecca Woods was pleased with the overall experience.

“It was so cool to actually see him make the cover right on the spot. He listened to what we had to say, and he did exactly what we wanted. It benefited the staff a lot to have our ideas turned into cover right in front of us. The staff definitely gained experience,” said Woods.

Staff member Chase Summers valued his time on the trip and took away a couple valuable memories.

“My favorite part of the trip was being able to get to know the other members of the yearbook better. Our purpose in

the yearbook is to capture the school’s atmosphere and experience, but we rarely get the chance to to learn more about the process of making the book and what goes into it,” said Summers.

Yearbook adviser Jessica Beste loved watching the staff engage themselves in designing the yearbook and expected a well rounded trip that would make an imprint on the staff.

“My expectations for the trip was to walk out of the conference meeting with a visual product of our cover idea. Having never attended this before, I was unsure of the set up, student involvement, and how the meeting would be run by Balfour. However, I was pleased to see my yearbook staff come together to effectively convey and describe our group’s vision and provide honest feedback in order to make the adjustments to create their ultimate vision. I think it is crucial for the students to be able to communicate their ideas with the graphic artist to really see our end goal begin to take shape,” said Beste.

Beste, unaware of what was to be expected for the final result, had nothing but a positive attitude towards the final cover and the staff.

“I was pleased with the cover session as I was hoping it inspired the attending staffers to continue to work so diligently toward creating a stellar product for our students, staff and community. I was excited to see the final result and believe the student body will see our theme evident through the cover’s graphic and underlying message,” said Beste.

After successfully designing the cover and completing the start of the yearbook, the staff ended the trip bonding over pancakes at IHOP.