Spectacular Kids of Athens County: Alane Suhr, 13
By Danaline McPhail Bryant
August 7, 2008
Alane Suhr is an artist and she plays the piano. This summer she has added two additional skill sets to her list of accomplishments.
Recently, she attended Pipe Organ Encounters, a music camp in North Carolina. Before arriving at camp, she’d had a little experience playing the organ, but not much.
“In the morning, we had lessons, and then we had time to practice,” she said. “In the afternoons, we went to concerts or to visit places that had pipe organs. In the evening, we would go out and eat and then go back to the dorms. Sometimes there were parties and gatherings.”
Now that she’s back, she hopes to play the organ at her church, Christ Lutheran Church in Athens.
Alane, who will be in the ninth grade this year at Athens High School, has been studying music for a long time.
“I’ve been playing the piano for eight years,” she said. “I take lessons from Carole Syracuse every other week. This summer I’m also taking lessons from her husband, Richard Syracuse. I did that to be ready for the organ camp, and now I’m learning more.”
Alane was nominated for Spectacular Kids of Athens County by Claudia Gonzalez Vallejo, an associate professor of psychology at Ohio University.
“She is an amazing artist, athlete and student. She plays the piano beautifully,” Vallejo said. “Her Spring Piano Recital was amazing, and this was not the first time she delighted her audience in this way. She also partakes of Final Fridays (in Nelsonville), selling her own art. She is a very accomplished young lady.”
Alane will be in the marching band this year, and she will participate in track. Last year, in middle school, she participated in cross-country and track, but this year she’ll have time only for one sport.
“I can’t do cross-country this year because I’m in the marching band… and there’s way too much stuff to do in marching band to be able to do cross country,” she said.
She plays the French horn in the band, but the piano is her favorite instrument.
“I like to play classical music,” she said.
After high school, she wants to be a veterinarian. For now, she cares for her pets – a dog named Niko, and two cats, Patches and Silver.
Oh, and what about that other new skill set? She’s a dog-trainer extraordinaire. She participated in her first show at a recent county fair.
“It went really well,” she said. “My dog got fifth place in obedience and first place in showmanship, and she got the High Point Shelter Dog. I tried to train her every day. We practiced the exercises we were judged on.”
Alane has big plans for Niko, a German shepherd mix.
“We plan to have her certified by Therapy Dogs International,” she said. “She’ll be tested to see if she can be a therapy dog. She’s a really, really sweet dog, and she loves people. If she is certified, I’ll take her to programs at the library and schools.”
Alane’s parents are Julie Suhr and John Laughlin, and she has a sister, Meredith Suhr, 8.
“I like having a little sister,” she said. “We hang out a lot.”
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