Parkersburg High School junior Alfonso Valdez III attended the recent Michigan-Perdue football game in Ann Arbor. It is his dream to attend the University of Michigan where he wants to major in mass communications/journalism. (Photo Provided)

PARKERSBURG — Alfonso Valdez III has found a way to express himself through writing, whether that is music or writing to inform people about what is happening in the world around them.

The 16-year-old junior at Parkersburg High School is in Honor and AP classes as well as involved with the mass communications staff at PHS where he contributes to a daily newscast for the school. He also writes sports stories on PHS football for The Parkersburg News and Sentinel.

He is involved in the PHS Filmmakers Guild where he is doing screenwriting and acting as well as writing music as part of a musical duo he’s involved in called the Color Collective.

Valdez is also a teen volunteer at WVU Medicine Camden Clark Medical Center and works part-time in the arcade at Emerson Lanes.

Through writing he has found a way to affect people, whether it is informing them of what is happening in their community or music that touches them emotionally or through an entertaining story for the screen.

Alfonso Valdez III, a junior at Parkersburg High School, works part-time in the arcade at Emerson Lanes in Parkersburg. He volunteers at the WVU Medicine Camden Clark Medical Center. (Photo Provided)

“If you would have told me three years ago that I would be doing all of these things, I wouldn’t have believed it,” he said. “All of these things have truly motivated me to be the best version of myself.

“I am trying to gain as much experience in a broad variety of topics as I can so that when I can get older, I will be very versatile and that is a trait that can come in handy down the road.”

He is currently working with others on a short film that is a re-imagination of the “Frankenstein” story where they were trying to put more of a “modern twist on it.”

“We want to make it a product of our creativity,” Valdez said. “We are trying to make the creature more modern and we want to put more of an emphasis on Dr. Frankenstein where the doctor isn’t as skilled and he is more of a self-trained doctor who lives in a normal everyday town.

“I am very passionate about it.”

Alfonso Valdez III and Luca Lafrate have a band called Color Collective. They released a single, “Trust,” in August and will be releasing a new single, “To Be Free,” Nov. 14 on Spotify and Apple Music. (Photo Provided)

Valdez said he is inspired by the works of his favorite director David Lynch, whose credits include “Blue Velvet,” “Wild at Heart,” “Erasurehead,” “Twin Peaks” and more.

“His passing really upset me last year,” Valdez said. “He inspired a lot of the music I make as well.

“A lot of the moods I try to replicate in music I really took inspiration from Lynch on.”

Valdez plays bass guitar and keyboards and some rhythm guitar.

“I am a big music person,” he said. “Music and songwriting is my passion.”

Alfonso Valdez III, a junior at Parkersburg High School, is involved in doing a daily newscast at PHS to inform students about different things going on. He also writes sports part-time for the Parkersburg News and Sentinel. Valdez is interested in pursuing a career in journalism and is planning to go to the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor after graduating. (Photo Provided)

It is writing music that has inspired writing screenplays for some of the short films he’s involved in. A friend of his, who directs some of the short films, liked his band’s music and lyrics and asked him to try his hand at writing scripts. Valdez thought it would be fun and that led to him acting in some of the films as well and now he is doing sound production work.

His friend, Derek Roberts, made a parody film spoofing Batman called “The Man From Parkersburg” where Valdez was cast to play a knockoff version of the Penguin, called the Pelican.

“It was funny and I had fun doing it,” he said.

They will be doing auditions for their “Frankenstein” film soon. Valzez is not sure yet what part he wants to try out for.

His band is a duo consisting of him and his friend Luca Lafrate. He described their music as having a modern sound and having “spacey, cosmic and psychedelic sounds to it.”

Alfonso Valdez III, a junior at Parkersburg High School, is involved in the PHS Filmmakers Guild where he appeared in a short film by Derek Roberts called “The Man From Parkersburg.” It is a comedic take on Batman where Valdez plays The Pelican, a spoof of the Batman villain The Penguin. (Photo Provided)

“It is very slow and relaxed,” Valdez said. “We want to create a signature sound for ourselves.”

They released a single, “Trust,” in August and will be releasing a new single, “To Be Free,” Nov. 14 on Spotify and Apple Music.

“It has been a passion project since the beginning of summer,” Valdez said.

He has been volunteering at Camden Clark for over a year-and-a-half by going in every Wednesday with other teens.

“We go throughout the hospital, clean up, get drinks and food for the patients, organize files and help put together welcome packets,” Valdez said. “We are just there for the patients and the hospital to supply them with whatever they need.”

His sister got him involved in the program. Valdez had been on the crew team for a bit but had to step away from it and was looking for something else to be involved in.

“I tried it out and I have loved it ever since,” he said. “It is a great way to give back to the community.

“It is so much fun.”

If he is not at work or volunteering at the hospital, he is at his friend’s house recording music.

In doing the daily newscast at PHS, Valdez said they cover a variety of topics for the student body. The newscast is streamed to all of the classrooms.

“We try to have fun and inform the kids about what is happening at school,” Valdez said. “We give the kids a random fact every day where they can learn something.

“This is my second year on the PHS News staff. I plan to do a third year.”

He has been covering football and soccer as part of his writing for The Parkersburg News and Sentinel. He is looking to do basketball, baseball, softball and track coverage in the coming months.

“I am very excited about that,” he said.

After high school, Valdez has his sights set on attending the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor where he wants to major in journalism/mass communications. He also wants to get his masters there and see where life will take him after that.

He has had family who attended Michigan and it has become his dream to be a Michigan Wolverine.

“I have been a lifelong Michigan fan since I was little,” he said. “That has been my dream. My grandparents went to Michigan and they talked about it a lot while I was growing up.

“West Virginia is my home, but my second home is Michigan.”

He was recently able to travel to Ann Arbor and attend the Michigan football game against Purdue where the Wolverines won, 21-16.

He would love to eventually do sports broadcasting and writing.

Originally, Valdez thought he might want to become a history teacher as learning about history can help people prepare for the future. However, through journalism, there is more of a focus on what is happening in the present.

“I love it and being able to inform people,” he said. “Information and communication is key to keeping people informed and helping them to learn.”

Journalism also allows him to give recognition to people who might not be as well known as others as well as highlight people doing interesting things.

“There are so many people who do so much that goes unnoticed,” Valdez said. “I feel informing people about the special people in their communities and about what is going on in the world, it creates a sense of community, whether it is in Parkersburg or elsewhere.

“It means so much to me and makes me feel connected and a part of the community.”

It all started with music. It gave him the confidence to open up and express himself.

“Writing is important to me and it all began with songwriting,” Valdez said. “I think music is what I held on to and it has opened up a world of opportunities for me.

“Things are coming together like a song comes together. I am excited to see what comes next.”

Contact Brett Dunlap at bdunlap@newsandsentinel.com

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