A 7th grader once looked up to his middle school Student Body Officers (SBOs) with awe. As he looked around at them, and saw his older siblings participate and become SBOs, it then became clear that this was his calling.
Lords’ personality includes looking for service opportunities in National Honor Society, high-fiving peers in the hall, and capturing moments behind the camera. His journey as an SBO has been successful because he is now king of the school as SBO President, but it all started with a fire of passion for service in middle school.
Anthony Lords turned to his mom and asked if he should try this, and his mom encouraged him to go for it. Lords listened to his mom’s advice and ended up working with Jared Edwards, the SBO coordinator at Hillside middle school and loved his experiences there.
“Anthony always just gives 110% of his soul, not effort, his soul. He puts in everything he has,” Edwards said.
After working hard during his last year of middle school in SBO, he entered his freshmen year looking for more ways to become involved. He was checking out clubs and sports, but he knew he had found what he wanted to do when he saw the option for freshmen class president.
“I just remember seeing the option of running for SBO pop up in my first year and thought to myself, that could be fun! And as I talked to my mom about it, she encouraged me to go for it,” Lords said.
Lords had two older siblings as a freshman attending Highland with him – Joe, a senior at the time, and Georgia, a junior. Together they would all be at Highland and his older brother was already serving as an SBO. The idea of working with his senior brother was exhilarating.
Lords was successful with his first year as an SBO and had so much fun. He was able to make many new connections. The highlight of Lords’ SBO experience was all about these connections. Through the leadership opportunities he had, he created many friendships and met new people.
Some of Lords’ must treasured memories of his connections is watching the Seniors in his SBO class plan activities, work hard, and find ways to engage with the student body and staff.
As he looked around at all the people in his SBO class, he recognized the unique leadership positions that they each had. And as he pondered to himself how he wanted to spend the next few years at Highland, he decided it was going to be with these people trying to make a difference. Seeing this example encouraged him to do the same.
As the seniors began to engage in different school activities like yearbook, photo and other sports Lords decided to pick up a camera for the first time.
Lords started taking pictures his junior year and fell in love with it. You can find him not only modeling his famous long curly hair but also capturing special sport moments on the sidelines. This has been a different approach to the leadership position of SBO president and one way that Lords has found to leave his legacy.
As a sophomore, Lords started going to high school dances for the first time. He said that first homecoming experience was almost magical. Walking through the doors of Highland High and seeing all the decorations hung up, a photo wall, and a crazy fun DJ made him so proud in having a part of helping the dance come to life.
You will often find Lords in the middle of the dance circle or cheering on his peers as he brings a new hype to the mosh pit.
“Walking into my first dance was so cool! Seeing all the hard work we put into it and the effect of all the students having a good time, I just decided this is something I wanted to do and be a part of all of high school, it’s just awesome!” Lords said.
Each new year there would be seniors graduating and incoming freshmen. Some students walking through Highland’s halls for the last time, whereas others trying to navigate the creepy basement maze and finding their classes.
And in the middle of the chaos where students are sprinting from class to class, you will always be able to find Anthony helping people who are lost, handing out high-fives to people who he knows, and granting compliments to the people he walks by.
The school year always moved so fast and as Lords was entering his senior year, he asked himself a question: How can I leave my legacy? This became Lords motto as he ran for SBO president and won the election.
“Anthony is just the kindest and most genuine person ever. He was literally just born like that! He would honestly give anyone the shirt off his back. Anthony’s only interest is helping people and making sure people feel seen and heard and respected,” Nina Lords said.
It was challenging for him to run up against a close friend, Sam Meikle, and he was so grateful that at the end of this process they were able to maintain their friendship.
Lords has tried to create his legacy by always looking out for the underdog, becoming involved in not only SBO but also yearbook and clubs. Lords has given so much energy and time to Highland. He has worked so hard to make the high school experience the best it could be for all those around him.
So next time you see Lords, give him a high five or a smile, and make sure you shout his name loud and proud as we cheer on our SBO president with his last year at Highland.
