On May 23, guests from the vast alumni network of Redwood High School were welcomed back to campus to share their valuable advice and takeaways from life after Redwood. Here are some of the highlights:
Paige Wiley Peterson – author and photojournalist
Graduating from Redwood in 1973, Paige Wiley Peterson began her career as an actress, working mainly on movies.
“I had done a lot of living. I had worked for a movie called ‘Crocodile Dundee, Working Girl and Mask,’” Peterson said.
However, shortly after she started to gain success, Peterson was diagnosed with a rare genetic disorder called Cowden’s Syndrome and had to receive surgery to remove a brain tumor, leaving her with no choice but to move on to another career path.
“I had nine operations in a ten-year period. And a lot of people thought I wouldn’t survive, but I never thought I wouldn’t,” Peterson said.
Despite the diagnosis, Peterson took on the challenge she faced and pivoted to a new career in writing and photojournalism.
“I’ve had three completely distinctive careers, and they’ve all been more interesting than the other, and I’m 70,” Peterson said.
Peterson always knew she would have to work hard to see success.
“There was no place for me. I had to make a living, and I had to take risks to do that, because there wasn’t a backup. There were no parents who were going to say ‘I’ll cushion your fall,’” Peterson said.
Without a doubt, one of the best takeaways Peterson had to give was to take on challenges and always be a good listener.
“Just say yes. Just say it. Don’t say no unless it’s something where your Spidey senses are tingling and your alarm bells are going off and you don’t think this is a good idea,” Peterson said.
To read more about Peterson, see this Bark article.
Buzz Bonneau – engineer and business owner
After graduating from Redwood in 1999, Redwood alumnus Buzz Bonneau launched his mechanical engineering career by starting a medical device company for kidney stone removal. After years of trial and error and an FDA-approval failure, Bonneau moved on to work with former Redwood peer and friend, Alex Salz. Bonneau and Salz started a wetsuit brand using high-end Japanese rubber to be extremely water resistant, light, warm, flexible and durable. Since then, their business has flourished, with no plans to expand or change their way of operating, solely a two-man team. Bonneau spends his days surfing and enjoying the community.
“I think what was most important, and you should remember this for your internships too, was just figuring out what you’re good at and what you like to do and what you don’t like to do and what you’re not good at,” Bonneau said. “When I did go surfing when it was crowded, I was like, ‘Oh my God,’ there are dozens of our wet seats out here. It’s crazy.”
To read more about Bonneau, read this Bark article.
Scott Evans – employee at NASA
A 1986 Redwood graduate, Scott Evans has focused his career on improving rockets and spacecraft navigation by working in the National Aeronautics and Space Administration’s (NASA) Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in California.
“Everything I learned about flying [a] spacecraft at JPL, I [also] learned at Redwood, which isn’t that far from the truth,” Evans said.
Evans’ job consists of interpreting navigational data and making calculations to guide how the spacecraft should move. He has been inspired by space since graduating from Redwood, and he has made strides in the spacecraft navigation world.
To read more about Evans, read this Bark article.
Maggy Kepler – MS Candidate in Genetic Counseling
After graduating from Redwood in 2016, Maggy Kepler, a master of science (MS) candidate in genetic counseling, went to Cal Poly San Luis Obispo for her undergraduate degree. She wasn’t sure what she wanted to pursue for her career until her fourth year at Cal Poly, but she always knew she loved science. While attending Cal Poly, she was introduced to genetics research, but it wasn’t until her final year in a career interview that she realized that genetic counseling was the perfect path for her.
“[There are a lot of things] we get to do on a daily basis. We’re not just scientists, we’re not just here talking about the details, but we’re really teachers. We’re working with patients that are coming in from all different areas of the world and from all different educational backgrounds,” Kepler said.
Kepler took the time to look into the career of genetic counseling before committing to pursuing her MS. She asked herself about the degree of continuity she wanted with her patients, if she wanted to be an ordering provider, the standardized tests she would be comfortable taking and many more questions. Kepler felt that Redwood prepared her very well for her life beyond high school and she had a great experience in her time here.
As the Redwood alumni network grows each year, more and more former students are accomplishing great things and achieving success in their fields. We can’t wait to see what the class of 2025 and beyond will accomplish as this year comes to a close.
