SALEM TOWNSHIP — A bad knee led to a good decision for Emily Pillsbury.

The Mount Abram High School senior injured her knee playing soccer. She went to see a radiologist to talk about her injury.

“She kind of filled me in on what her job was, and I found it to be really interesting,” Pillsbury said of the woman taking her X-ray.

“I had been back and forth between a lot of professions,” she said. “I knew I wanted to be in health care, and I was able to arrange a job shadow. I was able to spend a day in the hospital to see what a radiologist does on a day-to-day basis.”

At the end of the day, I was like, ‘I think that is something I would like to do.'”

Pillsbury, a top 10 student in the Mount Abram Class of 2023, will attend Kennebec Valley Community College this fall to study radiology.

“I know that I am in the top 10, but I have no idea of my ranking,” Pillsbury said.

Mount Abram keeps the list a secret until just before graduation, Principal Tim Richards said.

Pillsbury will be the first member of her immediate family to attend college. “They are really, really proud of me,” Pillsbury said of her parents.

Pillsbury grew up in Strong, a small town north of Farmington that at one time was called the “toothpick capital of the world” because Forster Manufacturing made toothpicks there.

“You walk into a store in town, and you know who everyone is,” she said. “It’s a close-knit community.”

She said Mount Abram High School is similar to the small town she grew up in. “You know everyone.” The school serves the towns of Kingfield, Avon, Phillips and Strong, and Salem, Freeman and Madrid townships in western Maine.

“The kids have a really strong bond here,” said chemistry teacher Brandy Tanner-Pierce. The school graduates between 40 and 50 seniors each year and that small population makes a tight-knit school.

“It’s a very special place,” Tanner-Pierce said. “I have never seen anything like it. Friends are like family here.”

She said Pillsbury “is going to do amazing working in health care. Emily is a kind and caring person. She has a lot of empathy.”

Pillsbury agreed. “I’m a big people person,” she said. “I love people.”

She has taken senior pictures for a number of her classmates and has one of her classmates memorialized on her arm.

“Too Beautiful for Earth” and three birds are tattooed on Pillsbury’s arm. The tattoo was an 18th birthday present from her mom.

One of the birds is in memory of Michaela Morgan, Pillsbury’s classmate who was killed in a car crash her sophomore year. “We all called her Mickey,” Pillsbury said.

“I wanted my first tattoo to be really meaningful, something I would not regret.” Pillsbury is hoping an empty chair can be set out for Mickey during graduation June 9.

“Emily and Michaela were very close friends,” Tannner-Pierce said. “Between the accident and COVID, it’s amazing that she has kept so positive.”

Pillsbury’s advice to any student who would like to make the top 10 of their graduating class is to enjoy, ask questions and don’t over-stress.

“In my personal experience, a lot of people say high school is hard, but I feel if you just do your work and have fun with it, you will be fine,” she said. “Don’t limit yourself. If you want to join a club, join a club. If you want to play sports, do it.”

Pillsbury played soccer and softball for Mount Abram.

“College, on the other hand, is going to be completely different,” she said.

“I am going on to bigger and better things in life. I will be moving forward. I’m going into the real world and have to be an adult, and that’s scary sometimes.”

Tanner-Pierce is not worried.

“Emily definitely comes from a rural population that has to work a little harder,” the teacher said. “That does not stop them. They have grit and they work hard.”

“We just love (Emily). That smile lights up a room,” Tanner-Pierce said.

This is the ninth article in a series featuring high school seniors as graduation season nears. In the series, the Sun Journal will profile a randomly chosen top 10 student or the equivalent from 16 high schools in central and western Maine.

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