HARLINGEN – Noah Peters was about to run in a track meet when the news came: “We have to get home.”
The pandemic had just struck, and UIL cancelled everything effective immediately. He didn’t even get to finish the meet. Life as he and so many others knew it had changed forever.
But it didn’t slow him down.
“It taught me a lot about responsibility,” said Noah, 17, a senior at Harlingen High School South who was recently named Student of the Month for his campus.
“I knew I had to keep myself in check and take better care of myself,” said Noah. “Whenever you’re in school, there are teachers telling you, ‘This is due this day.’ But online it was basically on me. I’d show up to class for 45 minutes and I’d have to learn some of the material myself and make sure I did all my work.”
Noah appears hardwired for not only surviving difficult circumstances but excelling in response to them. He volunteers as much as he can with the Teamwalkerpete Foundation, a nonprofit organization his family established after his older brother Nick Peters died of cancer in 2016.
Noah and his family supported Nick’s fight against cancer for years before he died, and they formed the organization to help others in the same situation.
So Noah’s learned not only how to survive but also triumph over anything that life throws at him. He’s been active in track and field since seventh grade, competing in the 400-meter run, the 1600-meter relay, the long jump and the triple jump.
So many activities obviously requires a strong commitment.
“We run three times a week,” he said. “We lift two times a week. We’re getting ready for the season in February.”
So what has made him keep at it since seventh grade?
“I love that, everywhere you go, no matter what you do, there’s always going to be someone next to you that’s pushing you to work harder. The coaches are always trying to make you do better.”
Perseverance and stamina are crucial.
“You just have to always, not matter what, even when it hurts, you just have to keep going,” he said. “And even you’re tired, you just have to do more.”
He’s managed to do a lot more.
Parallel with his rigorous athletic schedule, he’s also active at First United Methodist Church, which he attends with his family.
He’s in his school’s National Honor Society, student council and PTSA. Last year he was number 12 in his class, and he believes he’s now in the top 10.
“I keep a list of things I know I need to do and then just throughout my day I try to get a little piece done,” he said. “As long as I’m doing something that helps me complete my list, I know I’m doing good.”
After high school, he hopes to major in business at either the University of Texas at Austin or Texas A&M University at College Station.
