Super Kid: Nick Forsythe, Marysville-Pilchuck High School

Published 3:55 pm Sunday, February 15, 2009

My buddy: As a volunteer with the Big Buddy Little Buddy program, Nick meets with a student at Marysville’s Marshall Elementary once or twice a week. He’s been meeting with the same student, who’s now in third grade, for three years. His buddy has Asperger’s syndrome, a higher-functioning form of autism. “It’s been amazing. He was really shy the first couple of days.”

Touchdown: Nick played quarterback for the Marysville-Pilchuck football team and is captain of the basketball team.

Fishing family: Nick lives with his parents, Jon and Kirsten Forsythe, and his sister, Chandler, a sophomore at Marysville-Pilchuck. Jon Forsythe is the captain of a crab-fishing boat and spends around six months a year working in Alaska. Fishing runs in the family. Nick’s grandfather worked on a fishing boat.

Sharing a boat: Nick and his family usually spend a month together on a fishing boat in Alaska each year. They’re not out crabbing on the dangerous sea but doing the comparatively safe job of ferrying things between the boats and the mainland. “It’s nice, peace and quiet.”

Planning prom: Nick is the special events coordinator for student government. He plans dances and other events. “It’s kind of cool to have a little more say.”

Speaking out: He and the other basketball team captain recently led a pep rally. “It was a different kind of rush, different than playing sports in front of people. We were a little nervous, but we got over it.”

Big on basketball: Nick is considering playing college basketball, but even if he doesn’t, he says he’ll shoot hoops in an intramural league. “I’ve grown up with it. My family’s a basketball family. My grandpa still shoots with me at the Everett YMCA. He’s been putting a ball in my hands since I was little.”

Good grades: Earning A’s is important to Nick, and he’s always been a top student. His favorite classes currently are calculus, advanced placement literature and physical education. “I like algebra, and I like solving puzzles.”

Moving on: Next year, Nick plans to begin studying at the University of Washington, Western Washington University, Seattle Pacific University or Pacific Lutheran University, possibly to become a children’s dentist. He said he’s been accepted to those schools. “My family is really close, and I don’t think I could have left them.”

Aloha, Nick: He’s looking forward to a family vacation to Hawaii this year. His dream trip would be to visit Norway and trace his family’s roots.

Potter fan: Nick enjoys reading all kinds of books. Last year he read some Ernest Hemingway and loved it, and he’s a huge Harry Potter fan.

Kaitlin Manry: 425-339-3292, kmanry@heraldnet.com.

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