By Iman Bakhit
Staff Writer
Mira Costa held its fifth-annual Hall Of Fame assembly featuring six alumni on Sept. 30 in the auditorium.
According to Deborah Hofreiter, the purpose of the Hall of Fame assembly is to recognize Costa graduates. During the assembly the alumni share their experiences at Costa and their present-day accomplishments as well providing student and teachers helpful advice.
“I believe this is one of the best assemblies we have all year,” Costa Vice Principal Deborah Hofreiter said. “Its purpose is to be inspirational towards the students and especially fun for the alumni.”
This year’s assembly featured a US Ambassador Noah Mamet, co-founder of The Color Run Heidi Ghent Snyder, Costa girls cross-country coach Renee Williams-Smith, the founder and CEO of Management Plus Enterprises Leonard Armato, the actress best known for her show Crazy Ex-Girlfriend Rachel Bloom and the CEO of Rip Curl USA and president of Surf Industry Manufacturers Kelly Gibson.
The Color Run official website.
“The advice that I would give everyone is to believe, as cheesy as that sounds,” Williams-Smith said. “Just be passionate about what you’re doing at Costa, and remember to always find the greatness in yourself and others.”
Mamet has been the US Ambassador of Argentina since 2014, Williams-Smith, is recognized as one of the first girls to join the Costa Cross Country and Track team, before starting off her career in the 1984 Olympic Committee. She now coaches the Costa Girls’ Cross Country team.
“I remember how there were practically no sports teams for girls at Costa,” Smith said. “But now girls are starting to dominate every sport and I feel very proud.”
Snyder co-hosts the Color Run, and hosts the Color Dash, where all profits in which go to ending extreme poverty. Gibson began his career as a professional surfer before managing surfwear industries such as O’Neill Clothing USA and Rip Curl USA.
“What I like about the Hall of Fame is how we honor very diverse people,” Hofreiter said. “How it’s just not the adults with PhDs that we honor or the lawyers or the doctors, it’s people who have done interesting things with their lives.”
Armato has created world tours such as the FIVB Championships of Beach Volleyball, AVP Pro Beach Volleyball, and the ASICS World Series of Beach Volleyball using his sponsorship sales coalition formula. Bloom won the Golden Globe winner for the Best Actress for her show, Crazy Ex-Girlfriend, in 2015.
“I knew since I was four years old that I was going to be a Mustang,” Bloom said. “I felt so much pride when I graduated from Mira Costa.”
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