
After watching the 2024–25 school year fly by, Zephyrus will sadly wave farewell to one of our most welcoming and positive staff members, Rylie Nelson. Rylie joined our staff this year as a photographer and quickly became a constant behind the lens—capturing everything from high-energy soccer matches at the U.S. Bank Stadium to heartwarming moments at Highlands Elementary School’s Impact Day.
Aside from being on Zephyrus, Rylie is also a part of the Edina High School Girls’ Track and Field team. When asked about an extracurricular opportunity she wished she had taken, Rylie said that she would’ve ran for Student Council if she were given the chance again. “It seems like such a cool environment to be involved in,” she said.
In her free time, Rylie enjoys going on drives with her friends, listening to music, watching movies, and volunteering at her church on Wednesdays and Sundays. Her favorite movie that she feels encapsulated her senior year is “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off,” so much so that she even picked her senior yearbook quote from the film.
To describe her senior year in one word, Rylie chose bittersweet. “It’s fun to make the most of your senior year and enjoy your time, but it’s also sad because you kind of know the end is coming really fast,” she said. Although she loved her entire school year, her favorite memory from Zephyrus was hanging out after the first semester’s final week. “During finals, we had a big potluck and watched ‘Mamma Mia’ and then just did a ton of coloring pages, which was really fun,” Rylie said. Although she looks forward to going to college this fall, there’s still some downsides that she’ll have to face. “I’m going to miss seeing my friends everyday, but I’m excited to visit them at [their colleges],” she said.
Rylie dreams of exploring and traveling to Iceland in the future. “I’ve always wanted to go and see aurora borealis and the waterfalls,” she said. She looks forward to a change of scenery in college.
After graduation, Rylie plans to attend Montana State University and major in general engineering. “I’m excited to live in the mountains and be able to go skiing all the time,” she said.
This piece was originally published in Zephyrus’ print edition on May 20, 2025