Your Voice: Teen misses mom, freshman year at Sumter High School because of COVID-19

We've been asking our Sumter Item community to share their stories surrounding COVID-19 and the pandemic's impact on you, your family and friends, work, etc. We want to tell the stories of the people in our community, putting names and people to statistics and trend articles.

To share your story and read other submissions, go to https://bit.ly/3e3kcvf or email editor@theitem.com if you want us to send you a questionnaire. You can also call (803) 774-1235 and leave a voice message either detailing your story or a callback number.

* Editor's note: While we read through and edit these reader submissions to ensure they adhere to our publishing policy, we cannot fact-check all of these personal experiences. The Sumter Item does not endorse opinions that may appear in Your Voice.

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What is your name?

Nadya Walls

What county do you live in?

Sumter County

How old are you?

14

Are you a health care worker or other essential employee (grocery store, pharmacy, etc.)? Tell us about your experience.

No, I am not a worker anywhere yet. I'm a student at Sumter High School. My experience with the virus is not the best. It's kept me from seeing my family, and it's kept me from going to my first year in high school. This year was the last year I could go to school with my eldest sister. She's now in 12th grade. We're both doing school virtually. I really hope we get a cure for this virus. I miss how things used to be.

Do you know someone who is sick or has died who you want to honor? Tell us about them.

I had the virus and got through it. I thank God for my mom or my grandparents not catching it. The people I live with, they caught it, too, but they are OK now. The worst is over.

Are you working from home, self-isolating or quarantining? What changes have you made? How are you adjusting?

The only changes through the virus was not going to school and not being able to see my mom, but I know God has a plan and that everything happens for a reason.

Are you a student in K-12 or college? How have you been impacted? Have you missed anything? How do you feel about it?

I'm in ninth grade. I did miss my freshman year of high school, something I'll never get to redo, but I know I've been through a lot worse, so it doesn't really affect me.

What's something positive you've taken from this situation? A silver lining?

Sooner or later, it will come to an end. You have to make the best of every situation you're in.