VC senior Emma Noel can’t wait to graduate so she can go out in the world and help others

In the “Me” Generation today, young people are getting out of school wanting to make as much money as possible in order to buy as many toys as they can. Emma Noel does not fit that mold.
Her parents, Ted and Ann Noel, have instilled in her the value of helping others before helping herself. They showed her at a young age not to take what she had for granted. They taught her to look around and see that not everyone is as fortunate as she is. She took those lessons to heart.
“Ever since I was little, I hated seeing people who were in need of help and were not receiving it,” said Noel. “I have always wanted to try and help those who have not been helped before.”
Noel is a senior at Vermilion Catholic High School. She has maintained a 4.0 grade point average for the last 12 years. She can’t remember the last time she made a B in school. She made a 28 on her ACT and could probably get accepted at any college, but she has selected UL-Lafayette and will major in speech pathology.
Her profession choice has nothing to do with how much money she will make in the future. It’s all about how she will be able to help others.
“I have always known I wanted to help people,” said Noel.

“I looked into other careers but I wanted something that was more one-on-one with the person.”
She looked into special education until she job shadowed a speech pathologist and loved it.
“I enjoy speech pathology because it looks like you are just playing with the children but they are really learning something through it.”
The profession will also allow her to work with adults.
But before she joins the work force, Noel has a plan to work for Family Mission Company out of Abbeville after she graduates UL-L.
She is no stranger to the mission because she has worked at the mission summer camps for six years. Little did she know at the time, it was also laying down the foundation of her life.
“I have always known at the end of the day I wanted to come home feeling like I made a difference in someone’s life and not just sat behind a desk all day,” she added. “Even if it is in little ways. Through mission work, I will be able to help people who really need it.”
When Noel is not baby-sitting after school or reading fiction books, she has a passion for creating jewelry out of found materials. Re-purposing items like feathers, leather, rocks, pearls or anything else her family may have collected. She makes rings, necklaces, ear rings and bracelets.
“Anytime I have free time, I make jewelry,” said Noel. “It helps me relax and takes my mind off things.”