Meet McRae, a senior at Broughton High School in Raleigh. She’s a natural beauty and is always seen smiling. This gal is more than a pretty face, though. She’s also smart. And driven. She likes to stay busy and rarely has any down-time.

She’s a natural leader, as is evidenced by her school and church activities. She is active in student government at Broughton and served as class president during her freshman, sophomore and junior years. (I’m guessing she’s pretty popular, too.) And, she has served on the class council all four years. She’s also been active in the youth group and is on the youth leadership team at Edenton Street Methodist Church, where she and her family are members.

McRae’s talented, too. She is passionate about the arts, and loves to dance and paint. She has danced since she was a toddler, and still takes ballet and jazz classes at NCDI. She’s also a member of Broughton’s dance team and modern dance company.

As if these activities aren’t enough, she also finds time to help others who may be less fortunate. She’s been on mission trips with her church, has worked as a summer counselor at Camp Shalom, and raised $3,500 for the Methodist Home for Children.

So what does she plan to do after high school? She’s not sure what she’s going to major in, but she definitely hopes to follow in her father’s and older sister’s footsteps and become a Mountaineer at Appalachian State.  I don’t think there’s any doubt that she’ll achieve that goal and that we’ll soon see her sporting black and gold!

I like to get to know my seniors a bit before I photograph them, and am always curious about their likes and dislikes. It will be interesting to see how many of these “favorites” change over the course of the next few years, but for now, here are a few of McRae’s favorite things:

• 3 things she can’t live without – dance, music and her friends/family
• Favorite color – teal
• Favorite TV show – Friends
• Favorite Food –pasta
• Favorite singer/band – Mumford and Sons
• Favorite book – Harry Potter
• Words she used to describe herself: conservative, artistic, preppy, quirky, funny and traditional

Now that you know a little more about McRae, I hope you’ll see some of these things reflected in her images. Enjoy!