My Atchison

Bio

My name is Emma Lou and I am a freshman at Benedictine College in Atchison, Kansas. I am originally from Papillion, Nebraska. When I first came to Atchison, seeing all of the cornfields were comforting to me as they reminded me of home. Little did I know that after only one semester I would fall in love with this little town and call it home.

I am studying Business with a concentration in entrepreneurship. I was home schooled for high school and graduated a year early. During high school I participated in many things, some of which include horseback riding including western and english disciplines, jumping and barrel racing. I also volunteered much of my time at my home parish, planning things for the pro-life movement.

My Atchison

The picture to the left is of the Missouri river. I chose to write about the river because it is close to my heart being a Benedictine student. The "lookout" which overlooks the river, is frequented by students and guests for picnics, a place to go to clear your mind, romantic chats on the bench and the occasional proposal. The river is beautiful but also dangerous. A freshman named John Paul Forge who attended Benedictine College was killed this past semester after finals week. He fell off of the bridge after getting out of the vehicle to inspect damage after being in a car accident. An oncoming vehicle spun out of control and was going to hit him so he jumped out of the way and fell into the icy cold water of the Missouri. Without going into the full details of the accident, I will say that the river is obviously dangerous and the accident I described was not the only one of it's kind. Another thing that contributes to these accidents is the poor conditions of the bridges that accompany the river.

To the left is the local Amelia Earhardt bridge, which in my opinion is too narrow, in poor condition and a hazard to the local community. The bridge has been in poor repair for years and is in need of major repairs. My hope is that Benedictine students and the Atchison community can fix this hazard and eye sore as a community and team.

To the right is one of the prides of Atchison, it's beautiful historic homes that have been lovingly restored and kept. The house is on the national historical registry and, in my opinion is one of the things that makes Atchison a nice community to live in.