MENDOTA - The Elks have announced Anna Bokus and Sean Fitzpatrick as their October Teens of the Month for the Mendota area.

Anna, a senior at Mendota High School, is the daughter of Michael and Kaela Bokus. She is an Illinois State Scholar, has been on the honor roll and in Student Council since freshman year. She has been in National Honor Society and Spanish National Honor Society since junior year.

Anna has been active in basketball, volleyball and softball all four years and was co-captain sophomore year. In volleyball, she was co-captain sophomore and senior years, and as a sophomore and junior she was co-captain for her softball teams. In basketball, she was co-captain.

While taking art and drawing classes her first two years at MHS, she was BNC All-Conference Art Show 1^st place sophomore year. She was also in the Art Club junior year. She has been on Math Team all four years and was co-captain senior year. She placed from 2^nd to 6^th place in every event in which she competed. She was also selected to be on Academic Challenge (WYSE) freshman through junior years. She has been taking college level biology, chemistry, physics, math, English and computer graphics tests. She was on the Scholastic Bowl team junior year, was a member of Interact Club sophomore and junior years, and was in Spanish Club freshman and sophomore years.

This year, Anna is president of her senior class and was selected as a senior to be a Girls’ State attendee for a weeklong leadership camp at Eastern Illinois University. She was chosen to be on the Homecoming court as an attendant freshman and junior years and this year was selected to be Homecoming Queen.

Anna has volunteered to help at Red Cross Blood Drives and this year, she goes to Blackstone School to help tutor kindergarten students. She has helped clean up ditches in the local area as part of the InterAct Club and she raised over $7,500 while participating in St. Jude’s Run since sophomore year. All through high school, she has volunteered at the Mendota Sweet Corn Festival handing out free sweet corn and helping the Optimist Club bag and sell sweet corn.

Anna enjoys spending time with her family and friends. She likes to travel to new places to explore. Drawing and painting are other favorite pastimes along with playing sports, working out, and reading. She has been a lifeguard at the Mendota Swimming Pool since junior year and she did some babysitting her first three years of high school.

Anna plans to go to continue her education majoring in biology or biochemistry but is undecided on a college. She would also like to study abroad. After earning a Bachelor’s degree, she hopes to attend medical school to study some type of pediatric medicine, most likely to become a pediatric oncologist. Her goal is to be able to work at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. 

Sean Fitzpatrick, pictured above with Lisa Fultz, is the son of Rachael and Paul Fitzpatrick. A junior at Ohio High School, he is currently first in his class and has been on the honor roll every semester. He played football freshman, sophomore and junior years, and was on the basketball and track team freshman and sophomore years. He was All-Conference Academic for basketball as a sophomore and was honored as the Most Valuable Sprinter in track sophomore year.

He has been in Science Club freshman through junior years and was on the FFA Trap Shoot Team, FFA Soil Judging Team and the FFA Live Stock Judging since freshman year. Sean went to the FFA State Convention and was in the FFA State Science Fair Competition freshman and sophomore years and attended the HOBY leadership conference sophomore year. He was in the Variety Show freshman and sophomore years. He was president of his class as a sophomore and treasurer freshman and junior years. Sean was treasurer for the Student Council as a junior and was FFA treasurer as a sophomore and president junior year. 

Sean has been an altar server at St. Mary’s Church since freshman year, and helped at Jake’s Day since freshman year, at the Ohio Booster Club’s fish fry freshman year, at the Ohio Lion’s Club Pancake breakfast as a freshman, at the Walnut Rotary Club Breakfast as a freshman and sophomore. Since his freshman year, he has helped the FFA park cars at Geneseo, been part of Pheasants Forever and their banquet, been a member of the National Turkey Foundation and helped with the Bureau County Farm for a Day.

He enjoys hunting, fishing and spending time with his family as well as working on vehicles, playing guitar, and playing and watching sports.

Sean plans to attend Sauk Valley Community College for at least one year to study something agriculture-related. He then plans to attend Iowa State University to obtain a Bachelor’s degree.