What we are looking for in our award recipients

This foundation is based off a person that was a genuinely kind, good, and warm-hearted person that lived a very short life, but a very full life. This award that is to go to a senior student of the staff and students choosing at Richmond High School. This award is meant for a person who showed a lot of the same qualities as James Christopher Lashley.

  Here is a little insight into who James was as a person. He was a person with one of the biggest hearts. He had a way of always making people smile no matter where he went. He was what we like to call a good ol boy. Always willing to give you the shirt off his back to help anyone out especially his family and friends. He made friends very easily and cared about people. Hard work was in his blood, he would not quit until a job was done. Anyone who has thrown haybales in the summer knows the back-breaking work that was involved, James often helped local farmers get their hay in without hesitation or need for recognition…maybe just food.

This award represents all these qualities and then some; a hard worker, dedicated and all around one of the nicest people you will ever meet with a kind heart, and a gentle soul. The type of person that people are always happy to be around. Always willing to help a person in need.  Not necessarily the prom king or queen or honor roll member. Some things in this life are measured by the depth of a person rather than a statistic.  

The reason this award is happening here at this school is because there is one thing James Lashley enjoyed more than anything and that was being number 72 on the football field as a Richmond Blue Devil. He started playing football in Flagstaff Arizona and continued at Richmond High School. Never missing a practice and always ready to put in the work that needed to be done. He loved working with the younger players during football camp, helping them learn the game.  

James served his country in the US Army and was stationed at Arlington Cemetery as a member of the Old Guard. After that he joined his family in Phoenix, he went to work as a driver hauling equipment while attending a trade school to become a welder. He loved Richmond, the family farm and being a part of this community. His dream was to return to Richmond and take up the family farm.

 So now that you have a little bit of background for the James-type person we would like to award, can you think of someone who deserves to be recognized as a superior citizen. Remember this person may not have the best grades, we are not looking to reward based on grades or athletics rather citizenship. Think about this and tell us in 500 words or less about the greatest citizen you know in the senior class. 

 We look forward to reading about all the awesome citizens at Richmond High School.  

Thank you The Family and Friends of James Lashley