When you enter the library at Floyd Central High School, Ava Schickel, the media aide, is there to greet you. She is very passionate about her kids, her family, her volunteer work at her church, and her relationships with others.  She also shows passion at her job in the FC Library Media Center.  She had gone on two missionary trips so far as part of her church volunteer work. 

Schickel was inspired to work in the FC Media Center by her interest in the library growing up. “When I saw there was a library position open, I thought that’d be pretty cool to do,” she said. Her favorite thing about FC she said is “the people I work with and the students I get to meet.” Schickel would not say that it is easy or hard, but somewhere in between. There are many difficulties associated with working in the library, but they are balanced out by other activities she engages in. “It’s kind of mid, but we do have times that are very busy, that only Mr. Romig and I know how to do the things that need to be done,” said Schickel.

When she’s not working at school, one of the most important parts of Schickel’s life is her volunteer work for her church. Schickel volunteers at her church very often, and is very passionate about it. She is a youth group leader for sophomore girls at her church, and has been on two mission trips to Guatemala. “So Northside Christian Church partners with Casas por Cristo. So Houses for Christ, there is an organization that works with the community in Guatemala to build homes for families that need them,” she said.

 Schickel has also learned a lot during her trips to Guatemala. “A little bit of carpentry, but definitely just a lot of seeing God throughout the world and in different places and settings,” she said. “And just like in the families and things that we’re helping because they have so little and they’re so happy, a lot more happier than we are with everything that we have.”

Schickel was very nervous during her first trip, as she had never left the United States before, but still had a lot of fun in the end. Schickel said she learned about “remembering the Holy Spirit in the little moments, and to that, God works in ways that we don’t even understand yet.” Her favorite of the two trips was the second one.

Tim Romig, the media specialist of Floyd Central High School, has a very high opinion of  Schickel. “She does everything I could possibly ask of her, and more, and we also have a good time while we’re doing it. So it’s pretty fun,” Romig said. “She’s a trip, she’s fun. She’s easygoing, she’s outgoing, she’s very caring about people.”

Romig’s favorite memories with  Schickel are when they’ve laughed a lot together, and thinks that Ms. Schickel’s best qualities are that she does things right when he asks her to do them, concentrates on them, and also cares a lot about students. She also has loved her mission trips, according to Romig. “She absolutely loved them,” he said. “She loved the people. She loved the work. And if she could live there, she would.”

According to Romig, Shickel also seems to have become “more of a people person, more outgoing”.

Senior Jennifer Osborne is involved with Schickel’s church and went on one of her mission trips to Guatemala. Osborn said, “We had a lot of fun, and we got to help a lot of people and goof around.” She also said, “My favorite memory with Ms. Ava on the trip was when I hid in a bush in my camo and she recorded me.”

Osborn and Schickel learned to trust each other on the trip. Osborn said that Ms. Schickel “was like a mom to everyone” and helped with a lot of things.

According to Romig, Schickel is passionate about “her kids, students, other people, how they’re doing and their well-being. She’s passionate about the library and making it what we’ve made it into.” He also said that she has a great relationship with students, really cares about them, and is also passionate about her family and her church.

Despite the positive impact she’s had on FC, or perhaps because of it, the 2024-25 school year will be Schickel’s last as a Highlander. Schickel accepted a new residency position with Northside Christian Church’s Global Outreach.

“This ‘job’ quickly became more than that. It wasn’t always easy, but the people I now call my best friends made it easy to get through. I know this isn’t goodbye forever, but just a ‘see ya soon.’ I want to say thank you to every single person who helped make these last four school years some of the best ones yet,” said Schickel in a farewell post on Facebook.