Tying the knot

On Sat., Jan. 17, at the Redondo Beach Historic Library, Ms. Stratford weds her fiancé Rick Crespo. “Lots of work goes into a wedding, but it’s all worth it once the day came,” Stratford said. “My bridesmaids were long time friends so they helped me through the stress.”

Natalie Gomez, Arts & Entertainment Section Editor/ Staff Writer
February 6, 2015

On Jan. 17, English teacher and Writer Center Adviser, Kelly Stratford, wed her long time boyfriend in front of friends and family at the Redondo Beach Historic Library. Marriage is already a serious commitment, but as a teacher, changing maiden names can have a dramatic impact.

“For the longest time, I thought that I would never change my last name because it is such an integral part of my identity,” Stratford said. “Even after I knew that I would one day marry Rick, I was certain that I would not change my name because there is just so much of my life tied up in the last name Stratford.”

The last name Stratford has been a major part of her life as her students have known her as Ms. Stratford for the past eight years, her lacrosse players as Coach Stratford for four years, and her friends as “Strat”. Not only do people know her by her last name, but also her English BA and credentials are under the name Kelly Stratford and she’s currently working on her English MA under the same name.

Along with Stratford, Crespo is also a teacher at UC Riverside where he is a Political Science PhD candidate. As a teacher, like his wife, he understands the thought that goes behind changing last names.

“It is of course a wonderful honor for Kelly to take my last name, for it represents love and respect,” Crespo said.

Senior Lizette Rangel is a current student in Ms. Stratford’s English Reading and Writing Composition class.

“I came into my senior year knowing Ms. Stratford as Ms. Stratford,” Rangel said. “It’s crazy to know that I could come back next year to visit my old teachers and have to call her Mrs. Crespo.”

Stratford has decided to finish the school year as Ms. Stratford and start the next school year as Mrs. Crespo. Although, she couldn’t completely leave her maiden name behind, so she will be replacing her middle name Danielle with Stratford.

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About the Contributors

Natalie Gomez, Arts & Entertainment Section Editor/ Staff Writer

Senior Natalie Gomez joined The Downey Legend as a writer this fall. She first became interested in journalism after her experience with yearbook camp the summer before her senior year. She is excited to start the year and further advance her writing skills by taking on challenging stories. “I hope Newspaper helps me gain confidence with my writing and helps me stay on top of current events,” Gomez said. Gomez is optimistic in making The Downey Legend a recognized news outlet to students, faculty and the community by writing interesting stories.

In her spare time Gomez enjoys catching up on the latest news, driving around town and staying home watching her favorite shows on Netflix. Her love for baseball developed during her time playing softball in previous years and her all time favorite team is the Los Angeles Dodgers. After graduating from Downey High School, Gomez plans on completing a degree in psychology and continuing her education by applying to medical or law school.

Areli Dominguez, Co-Photo Editor

As her final year begins at Downey High School, Areli Dominguez, 17, joins Newspaper as a new-coming photographer. Her interest for photography started last year in Photojournalism and Yearbook and she has loved it ever since. “I like that you can show your own point of view,” Dominguez said. She learned a lot within Yearbook, but she knows that Newspaper will be different and new and hopefully a challenge. She knows that at times it may be difficult, but she is hard working and motivated. Her main goals for this year are to keep on task and be proud of her own work.

She moved to Downey in the fourth grade and has been here ever since. Dominguez likes to draw, sing and do photography. She has two dogs named Casper and Oreo, who she loves to play with and be around. She hopes to attend Long Beach Community College in the next fall semester, but is unsure of what she wants to major in. In 5 years from now she has high hopes of to start a new job, and have the same friends from high school and other aspects of her life. When it comes to her friends or family she has a very caring heart. “I am a trustworthy, whether it is big or small, I for sure won’t tell anybody,” Dominguez stated. In her spare time, she likes to listen to bachata and eat sour patches, which is her favorite candy. She does not play sports now but when she was younger she played volleyball and swim. Her role models are her parents because they struggled to makes things work. She hopes to achieve greatness this upcoming year.