O’Fallon High School student learns to make the most out of life
At an early age, Faye Swanson learned how to make lemonade out of lemons. A successful cross country runner, she had to find another outlet for her competitive spirit when injuries halted her athletic career.
Today, she is an accomplished singer who was selected for the all-state chorus music festival after district competition. A first soprano, she will perform at the Illinois Music Education Association Jan. 29-Feb. 1 in Peoria. The annual competition includes band, chorus, jazz and orchestra participants from around the state.
While running is a solitary pursuit, Swanson has thrived in a team environment, and credits her fellow students with keeping her sharp and focused.
“The school choir environment is so nice. Everybody is supportive of each other,” she said.
She credits Jodi Jones, the new director of the choirs, with transforming the program.
A senior at O’Fallon Township High School, Faye, 17, has been active in multiple extracurricular community activities, but anything to do with music gets her utmost attention.
The IMEA audition process began last August, with auditions in the fall, and then the district concert festival Nov. 2 in Macomb.
For the all-state festival, the choir sings about eight pieces, and some are more challenging than others, so rehearsals were scheduled over Christmas break.
The OTHS music students have several opportunities to perform — there are four different choirs, show choir, Madrigals and the spring musical. Faye will participate in the O’Town Showdown Invitational Feb. 15 hosted by the OTHS Show Choir and the school musical, “The Addams Family,” March 26-28. She was part of the ensemble in last year’s “The Hunchback of Notre Dame.”
The students perform in Madrigals in December. Some other opportunities have come their way, including singing at Powell Hall in the Holiday Festival Chorus last month.
“It was so neat to sing with the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra,” she said.
Swanson family no strangers to running
Faye started running after her dad, Scott, and sister, Lea (now Veile), were entered in a 5K race, and she thought she could do it too. A student at First Baptist Academy, Faye proved that she could.
“I began entering races just for fun,” she said.
Faye started winning in junior high races and kept up the momentum. In ninth grade, she started running at OTHS and earned recognition and titles.
“It was one of the best decisions I could have made, because of the people and the opportunities,” she said.
Then, at age 16, Faye broke both feet. Doctors discovered recurring sesamoiditis, which inflames tendons in the feet, and is common in athletes and dancers. She continued to have recurring injuries.
She had two casts on her feet, out 12 weeks, followed by physical therapy.
“It was just different because I had limits, and just wasn’t the same,” she said.
Music takes center stage sophomore year
So, sophomore year Faye signed up for chorus, which reignited a passion for music. She sang at church and loved doing that — and still does, especially every Sunday night in a youth group.
“I always had a passion for singing, loved to sing,” she said. “OTHS really encouraged me. They have taught me that if you love something, you should pursue it wholeheartedly.”
She now knows music is where she wants to professionally develop. She studies voice with Maggie Dorgan and began taking voice lessons with Richard Boyd when she was 6 years old.
Swanson hopes to combine vocal performance at college with her desire to major in social work.
“I want to be a therapist by day, an opera singer at night,” she said, smiling.
She also plays piano and the ukulele.
Helping others has been another pursuit, and Faye has worked with autistic children on their music skills, been on missionary trips to Guatemala, and other volunteer work. She has worked on music with many youths during Vacation Bible School and children with special needs at church.
She has always responded to people in need, her mother, Patty Swanson, said.
“You shouldn’t go through things alone,” Faye said. “It’s OK not to be OK. And that’s why it’s good to talk to people.”
Getting to know the Swanson family
Her parents, Scott and Patty Swanson, run a Christmas tree farm in Shiloh. The family business began in 1976 after her grandfather bought the property years earlier. He is a retired naval commander.
Faye helps take care of her grandfather, 92, who has Alzheimer’s Disease and lives with the family. Her grandmother, Eleanor, died last year at age 92.
Her father, Scott, was a director of the Belleville YMCA for many years, and the family has been swimming for fun and competition for years. Faye teaches swimming at the O’Fallon YMCA.
She is on the O’Fallon Breakers and the Trenton Torpedos swim teams.
Faye has three brothers, Brett, Tyler and Danny Schubert.
As she enjoys senior year, she knows another transition is on its way.
“I’ve made so many great friends,” she said. “We’re all getting ready to say our last goodbyes. The teachers really have helped me, taught me how to empower myself.”
When looking back at how she’s handled adversity, her mother said: “She’s never quit, never given up.”
Faye puts it this way: “We have to make the most of the time we have left. We always have to try our best. If things don’t go your way, don’t be sad, because you might find another opportunity, and you’ll get joy and fulfillment out of that. Don’t set your mind on one thing because it can change.”
While things change, one thing is a constant: Her faith.
“Every good and perfect gift is from above,” she said. “I have been blessed so abundantly, I want to give it back.”