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Whiz Kid Carla Hoge Has a Love for Theater, Animals and Helping Others

She feels at home on stage, maintains high honors and is happy to do for others through mission trips and school projects.

In theater and in music, Carla Hoge has experienced the best of both worlds.

A sophomore at , she has been a member of Thespian Troupe 185 and has appeared in productions of "" this year, and is cast as a townsperson in the upcoming production of "The Crucible."

In the recent production of "," she contributed her musical talents to the pit orchestra, where she played the French horn. She is a member of the symphonic orchestra and concert band at PTHS, and has stayed active in school and community projects while consistently maintaining a grade average that has kept her on the high honor roll.

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Her academic achievement has earned her a place in the National Honor Society, and she is also a member of the Students Preparing, Educating, Advocating and Reflecting service and the Honor World Cultures class, which organized a Sadie Hawkins dance to benefit women’s rights through the Mahatma Project.

The daughter of Morgan and Pamela Hoge, Carla and her sister, Maria, and brother, Wesley, have been lifelong residents. When not busy with school activities, she has kept up an active schedule in theater in the Abbey Players, who performed "Letters To…," and "Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat," where she was student director. She is also part of the cast in the upcoming "Godspell."

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Hoge has performed service projects on mission trips with Bethany Lutheran Church to Koinonia, NY, and has served as a lector, acolyte and member of the church choir. After previously acting as a volunteer, she now works tending to dogs at the .

Hoge took the time to talk about her many activities with us.

Patch: Theater is such a big part of your life. How did it all begin?

Hoge: I started as an actor back in the eighth grade. One of my good friends was involved in theater and said it was a lot of fun. My first show was "Fiddler on the Roof" with the middle school, and then continued at the high school. My first show in high school was "Our Town," and I just enjoyed getting to know all of the other cast members. Mr. (Barry) Wood was our director at the time and he taught me so much about acting. It was a lot of fun and so I continued it.

Patch: It must have been a different experience for you being in the orchestra for "West Side Story" rather than on stage.

Hoge: It was so different. A lot of it was like being in concert band. I had a lot of fun and I really enjoyed it so much. But I think I really enjoy being on stage more.

Patch: The Mahatma Project, which you worked with in school, seems intriguing.

Hoge: Our focus was to find an international need and to educate about that need to your school or community. My partner and I chose to learn and educate about Saudi Arabian women’s rights, and we put together brochures to educate. The Sadie Hawkins dance we did was a celebration of women’s rights in America.

At the dance we gave a presentation and Skyped with the individual who helps with women’s rights in Saudi Arabia. It was so incredibly different learning about Saudi Arabian women’s rights being an American woman, and realizing that we have so many more rights than they do because our culture is so different. Their big issue is that they don’t have any political status and any legal protection. It was difficult educating everyone about that because their perceptions about Saudi Arabian women are so incorrect.

Patch: Your recent mission trip must have been interesting.

Hoge: We helped three small rural churches, which are located in a small community about two hours northwest of New York City. These churches probably have a membership of about 12 people, and our group did a lot of service projects to help them paint, clean and do maintenance. It taught me so much about service to others. It taught me that what you give to people is so much more than what you would think.

Patch: You must have a love for animals by working at a kennel.

Hoge: I love animals so much. I’ve wanted to be a veterinarian since I was six. I worked there as a volunteer and now as an employee. It fits my schedule very nicely. When I do work I absolutely love it there, taking dogs in and out, cleaning their cages and feeding them. It’s given me some good leadership opportunities as well.  

We congratulate Hoge and wish her the best of luck. Do you know of an amazing child or teen? Read how to submit your Whiz Kid nomination .

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