Student Moves Readily From Varsity to Verse

As a center on Santa Fe High School’s football team, Jimmy Hope became a hero in Santa Fe Springs when he was named to the All-CIF first team two years in a row.

But as a student at Orange County’s Chapman University, where the straight-A junior has a full scholarship, Hope has created an even bigger sensation with his published poetry.

Last year, the 20-year-old was honored as a “distinguished member” of the International Society of Poets, and recently the organization nominated him for the 1997 Poet of the Year Award.

His recent poem “The Visit,” is being published in the society’s “Best Poetry of 1997.”

“He’s an extremely hard worker,” said Ken LaVigne, an English teacher and Hope’s former coach at Santa Fe.

“To have him be that successful in athletics . . . and then be that proficient in a fine art is extremely rare.”

LaVigne is rallying the community to raise money so that Hope and his parents, both employees of the Little Lake School District, can attend Hope’s August induction into the society’s Hall of Fame in Washington.

He said the cost of the trip is $1,000 per person.

Information: (562) 698-8121, extension 4000.