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Posts Tagged ‘Happy birthday’

Cole Payne? he's kind of a big deal. (John Fisken and Shelli Trumbull photos)

Cole Payne? He’s kind of a big deal. (John Fisken and Shelli Trumbull photos)

He is more myth than man, more legend than reality.

Wherever he goes, whatever he does, the screams of his fans threaten to rip the roof off the building.

He is legend. He is Cole Payne.

As the Coupeville High School senior celebrates a birthday today, you need to stop and realize — we only get one more year of the awesomeness here in Cow Town before he’s off to spread the gospel of Cole world-wide.

Appreciate the talent. Bow to the coolness factor. Respect the game.

Baseball. Football. Basketball. And now, according to the buzz, tennis.

Payne can do it all and he can do it all well.

It’s not his fault. He was just born talented.

As he prepares for his final year at CHS, we just want to say a quick thank you to Mr. Payne, for the on-field thrills he’s delivered so far, and the highlight reel still to come this year.

Happy birthday, Cole. Stay legendary.

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Skyy Lippo

Skyy Lippo, talented ballerina and car enthusiast. (submitted photo)

Joey Lippo

   Joey Lippo is one of the few baseball players on the Island to have played for teams in Coupeville, Oak Harbor and South Whidbey. (John Fisken photo)

Rabbit rescuers, and the closest Joey will come to smiling for the camera ... ever. (Joe Lippo photo)

Rabbit rescuers, and maybe the closest Joey will come to smiling for the camera … ever. (Joe Lippo photo)

Is there any down time in Lippo Land?

I ask because it seems at times that twins Skyy and Joey Lippo, Coupeville High School sophomore sensations who celebrate a joint birthday Sunday, are always busy.

Joey is a three-sport athlete at CHS, one of the few to uphold the old tradition, and plays tennis, basketball and baseball for the Wolves.

His sister owns most of the family’s battle scars, however, competing in the much-more cutthroat world of dance.

A ballet star, Skyy was recently named as the youngest company captain in Whidbey Island Dance Theatre history, and has already performed in productions of The Nutcracker and Giselle.

Both have hit the road for their loves, with Joey attending national spring training for athletes in his age bracket, while Skyy went to Texas to study ballet.

And, both have a yen for projects out of the spotlight as well, with Joey doing time as an accomplished salmon fisher and Skyy having recently acquired a ’72 Charger that she and dad Joe will be working on.

Now, at this point we could go on and on with a very long list of their other accomplishments, but we do have to leave their proud papa with something to put on his Twitter.

From the outside looking in, my perspective on the Lippo twins is this — they’re good people.

Both Skyy and Joey are personable (though getting the Zen-like Joey to smile for the camera is lodged firmly on the list of hardest things for a professional photographer to accomplish) and excel in a quiet, do your job manner.

They accomplish a lot, but don’t spend much time boasting about their exploits or unnecessarily thumping themselves on the chests.

Runway ego doesn’t seem to be a problem for them, and the duo are happy to let others rant and rave about their awesomeness.

So, having elbowed their dad out of the way for a moment (it’s easy when he’s looking down at his fingers while tweeting), I’m here to do just that.

Take my word for it, the Lippo twins are among the brightest lights we have shining in Coupeville right now.

As they go forward and stack those accomplishments to the ceiling in the years to come, I look forward to writing much more about them.

Cause, first and foremost, unlike fellow Wolf twin terrors Jake and Josh Lord or Ana and Ivy Luvera, I can actually tell Skyy and Joey apart, which is HUGE for a somewhat lazy reporter.

But, most of all, it’s always so much easier to write about people you genuinely like.

And the Lippo twins? They’re killin’ it on the likability charts.

So, happy birthday, Skyy. Happy birthday, Joey.

Keep on keepin’ on, cause what you’re doin’? It’s working.

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Sydney Autio

Sydney Autio (John Fisken photos)

Autio shares a moment with former CHS cheer coach Sylvia Arnold.

Autio shares a moment with former CHS cheer coach Sylvia Arnold.

Sydney Autio has moxie.

Plus spunk, spirit, talent and a heart as big as all get out.

The Coupeville High School senior, who celebrates a birthday today, has been front and center in three sports for the Wolves during her time in the red and black.

Whether operating as a spiker, a netter or a cheerleader, Autio’s love of life shines through every time.

Sydney always seems to enjoy herself and her positive spirit shines through even when injury sidelines her, as it did for a bit last season.

As she charges into her final year at CHS, ready to help lead the Wolf volleyball squad in a bid to unseat the other squads in the 1A Olympic League, we want to wish her the best.

Happy birthday, Miss Autio.

May your day, your year, shine as brightly as you do.

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Uriel Liquidano

Uriel Liquidano, a man for all seasons. (John Fisken and Shelli Trumbull photos)

The town wasn’t the same without him.

A family move took Uriel Liquidano away from Coupeville High School for a bit last year and things almost fell all to pieces.

So, it’s a good thing he came back.

Once Oscar’s lil’ bro was back on the soccer pitch last spring, things went back to normal. To the way they were supposed to be.

Uriel is one of those indispensable guys, the glue that helps hold things together.

Calm and cool, especially under pressure, he excels on every field, whether it be the soccer pitch, the football gridiron or the basketball court.

He’s also at the forefront of school spirit, joining up with classmates Aiden Crimmins, Jonathan Thurston and Jimmy Myers to uphold the fine tradition of dressing up in costumes for volleyball matches.

As Uriel celebrates a birthday today, we just want to send him best wishes and let him know how much we enjoy having him back in these parts.

It wasn’t the same without you, man.

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Wynter Thorne: Many photos, one star.

Wynter Thorne: Many photos, one star.

Wynter is going.

The Coupeville High School girls’ basketball and tennis teams (and photographers everywhere) will have a huge hole to fill with the departure of Wynter Thorne.

The camera-friendly whiz kid, who celebrates a birthday today, is off to Western Washington University and new adventures.

She’ll leave an enduring legacy behind her, though.

Along with McKenzie Bailey, Wynter was one of just two Wolves to play for both the CHS varsity netters and hoops squad in 2014-2015, the year those programs shattered a 13-year school-wide cold streak by winning 1A Olympic League titles.

Miss Thorne was at the heart of both teams, a gritty, hard-charging whirlwind who never backed down in the middle of a brawl.

Not that she didn’t enjoy her down time, however, as she was one of the most reliable go-to Wolves when it came to pre-game and post-game photo shoots.

Smile beaming, generally in the direction of a teammate like Kacie Kiel or Julia Myers, Wynter was a young woman who seemed to enjoy every moment she had as a high school athlete.

Her fans, and they are a far larger crowd than she might realize, appreciated her, as a scrappy, can-do fighter and as a serene off-court presence.

But, you have to let them all go at some point, so from all of us out there, Happy birthday Wynter, thank you and may your journey just get better and better the farther you go.

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