During his freshman year, junior Henry McNamara won the State Championship with his lacrosse team, and it remains one of his favorite high school memories—even years later.
“Winning the State Championship was great team-wise,” Henry said. “It got us all excited, and we were jumping all around and having the time of our lives.”
Henry found his passion for lacrosse at a young age and has been involved in sports ever since. He strives to continue playing lacrosse when he gets to college, and until then, he is doing his best to constantly improve and learn more.
From a young age, Henry has been motivated to steadily advance his skills; his older brother mentored him and taught him new skills and tricks. He taught Henry everything that he wished he had known when he was younger.
“I had a mentor, which was my brother,” Henry said, “who is four years older than me, and he always taught me new tricks and how to do things that he wished he knew when he was my age.
This time spent with his older brother stuck with him, and now that Henry is on the varsity team, he spends his weekends mentoring younger athletes involved with the FHC youth lacrosse program. He has done this for a considerable amount of time and plans to continue working with the young athletes until he graduates high school.
“I like to go back to what my brother taught me because he has experienced a lot more than me, so him teaching me what he learned over the years and being able to teach me was very nice,” Henry said. “I bring that down to the kids that I teach who are in fifth grade, first grade, and kindergarten [who] could be getting college information and skills.”
He wants the best for the kids he mentors and loves how excited and full of energy they are. For Henry, mentoring the younger athletes is a way to teach them what he wishes he had learned when he was younger, just like his brother did for him.
Sports have always been a part of Henry’s life and remain a steady focal point in his high school career. As a part of the varsity lacrosse and football teams, he has a lot to juggle on a daily basis. His family and friends are always there to help keep him accountable in all his academic and extracurricular endeavors. Despite this, Henry does his best to hold himself responsible and keep his life balanced amongst the chaos.
“After practices, you’re tired, you want to go to bed, lay down, and do nothing,” Henry said. “But I think that you need to hold yourself accountable and recognize that you have a lot of homework, and being able to do that helps me cope.”
Henry believes that time management is the key to maintaining his grades while keeping up with all of his sports and cultivating an active social life.
Henry wants to make the most of the limited time that high school has to offer. Whether that’s the sports that he participates in or spending quality time with his friends and family, he always ensures that he is doing all that he can to set himself up for the future while enjoying the present.
While being conscious that his time for this is limited, he does his best to build time into his busy schedule for his friends while still trying to keep his life balanced—despite how many moving pieces there are.
“[In my free time] I hang out with my friends because we’re only here for four years together,” Henry said, “and I think that spending as much time together as possible [is important] because after these four years, we probably won’t see each other as much.”
By keeping his life balanced, he has been able to find a community to surround himself with in his sports; Henry has found a camaraderie that he has built as he has shared victories and commiserated losses with his teammates.
“I love the community through sports and how it’s a brotherhood; we all share good moments with each other,” Henry said. “Most of my friends play the sports that I play, and I think that builds a good connection with them. I also get closer with a lot of my not-as-close friends which helps in games. It’s just a great time with all the guys together.”
