Balancing Priorities

The lyrics of a Bob Marley song may be what best describes Dylan Parr: "Don't worry about a thing, 'cause every little thing, gonna be all right."

It seems that anyone can approach Parr and he'll make that person feel at ease. As well as being a star player on The Meadows School football team and playing baseball, Parr manages to keep good grades.

If Parr is dedicated in everything he does, he says it's because he has gotten through the worst storm imaginable.

In middle school Parr met a boy named Hayden and they became instant friends.

Parr and Hayden hung out all the time. They never thought anything could get in the way of their friendship until Hayden was diagnosed with leukemia a week before Parr's 14th birthday.

When Hayden was first diagnosed, everyone stayed positive and maintained the belief that he could beat the illness. Parr especially remained optimistic the entire time Hayden battled the disease.

"My most memorable experience in my life would have to be being able to shoot pool with Hayden two weeks before he went to Switzerland to be treated for his leukemia," Parr says.

This would be the last time Parr ever saw Hayden, but until the beginning of November of Parr's freshman year in high school, he kept his hopes up for his friend.

The experience of losing one of his best friends has made Parr the person he is today, he says, noting that he is able to cope with many things that the average teenager would make a big deal out of, just because he knows how precious life is.

Parr has seemingly always had two major passions: school and sports.

His dream of becoming an engineer helped him get through some difficult academic years at The Meadows School.

"I have always struggled balancing school and friends," Parr says. "In the past year alone I have changed my friend group several times."

Along with balancing school and friends, Parr also is busy with a rigorous sports schedule.

Ever since Parr was a child he has been obsessed with sports.

"I was 5 years old and we had just moved into our new house, and I discovered a bike my dad had been working on since before I was born," Parr says. "He then told me how he used to race, and I wanted to give it a try."

By the age of 10, Parr was not only a state champion, but a regional champion and a national finalist.

Just like any other first love, this love of racing eventually fizzled out around the fifth grade when Parr got his first drum set.

He took drumming lessons and played in the middle school band for three years. He even got the chance to play onstage at a Shania Twain concert.

Parr's passion for the drums remains strong today. His lessons continue every other Monday.

Also while he was in middle school, Parr had his first experience with team sports.

"I played football and that is where I made the friends that I am still friends with today," Parr says.

In eighth grade Parr played lacrosse, which he says is one of the quickest sports because you are constantly moving.

His passion for lacrosse died out, but his love of football has stuck with him throughout high school.

Parr was happy playing football and he never even considered playing another sport until a friend named Ralph came up to him one day at lunch during his freshman year and suggested that he should try playing baseball. Parr took his friend's suggestion and instantly fell in love with the sport.

Along with football Parr plays baseball, and he plays first base as well as being one of the three pitchers on the Meadows team.

This year, Parr helped take his school's football team to state for the first time since 2001.

Although Parr does not plan on playing football in college, he says the experience and the amount of trust that he has built up with his school team has been irreplaceable.