By Stella Bryson, News Editor
It’s fair to say that sophomore Anna Tynch is not your typical high school student. Sure, she plays volleyball for FFHS and is a fan of the Tar Heels, like many of her classmates. But she’s also lived in four different countries on three different continents from the time she was 5.
Tynch was born in San Diego and lived in Japan for many years. She also lived in Italy for a short time before moving to Singapore, where she remained for three years. Thanks to her many experiences with different cultures, Tynch has a unique perspective on how other countries view American sports and athletes.
“America takes sports far more seriously than any other country I’ve lived in, and we’re known for it all across the world,” Tynch says. “Here, and in most parts of the United States, teams practice at least five days a week. But the varsity teams in Singapore practiced only two times a week. It was a huge culture shock. This pride of sports is one of my favorite parts of (the American) culture, and was one of the hardest things for me to leave behind.”
Instead of practicing for their athletics, Singapore culture expects students to spend more time on their studies each night.
“In Singapore, they valued academics significantly more than sports,” Tynch said.
Club sports are a major part of American culture. If you play a sport in high school, you’re almost expected to play on a travel team in the offseason. Some students drive an hour or longer to attend their club’s practices. This is the complete opposite of the standard in Singapore.
“There are club sports in Singapore, but again, I think it’s safe to say they take sports much less seriously,” Tynch said.
The continuous moves she made were because her dad was an officer in the Navy. He recently retired after 33 years of service. In both Japan and Italy, Tynch and her family lived on a military base.
Similar to a small town, there isn’t much to do on a military base. Tynch and her friends would venture off base to nearby playgrounds and shopping malls on the weekend.
“On military bases, pretty much everything was a walking distance away, so from the age of first grade when I first moved to Japan, I was walking myself to school every day,” Tynch said.
Around the time she started middle school, Tynch’s family was relocated to another military base in Italy, near the city of Naples. She only lived there for a few years.
Most recently, Tynch and her family moved to Singapore, where she lived for three years. Tynch’s early teenage years in Singapore were different from what a kid raised on the Outer Banks might experience.
“Singapore is mostly Indians, Chinese and Koreans,” Tynch said. “There were very few people who looked like me (in Singapore), and here that is definitely not the case.”
As a student in an international school, Tynch was constantly surrounded by people who were vastly different from her.
“My favorite thing about Singapore is the diversity. That is something that is kind of hard to find (on the Outer Banks),” Tynch said. “As a military kid, I’m glad I had all those years of a lot of diversity.”
Unlike her life in Japan and Italy, Tynch did not live on a military base in Singapore. Because of this, she had more freedom and was able to explore parts of the city that she might not have been able to see while living on a base.
“Singapore is a tiny and super safe country, so curfews were late and you could go anywhere on the island for the night,” Tynch said. “On weekends, my friends and I would usually take the public underground train, called the MRT, to Marina Square, or East Coast Park to hang out.”
After living in so many places for so many years, Tynch and her family finally decided to settle down and relocated to Kill Devil Hills. Tynch moved to the Outer Banks in August 2021, right before she started her sophomore year of high school. Tynch is planning on staying on the beach until she graduates high school.
Even though she has lived halfway across the globe, Tynch wasn’t a stranger to the Outer Banks. She used to visit every year and her dad came to the Outer Banks to surf when he was growing up.
With travel and interesting experiences being constants in Tynch’s life so far, another more traditional American childhood experience has always been with her as well: sports. Tynch was on the JV volleyball team this fall and plans to play again next year.
Even though it was her first year at a new school, Tynch had no problem making friends for a team that ended up enjoying an exciting season, earning second place in the Northeastern Coastal Conference.
“I think (her upbringing) helped her learn how to get along with other people,” said Hailey Stanley, one of Tynch’s teammates. “It was really easy welcoming her to the team.”
Although Tynch is grateful for all of the experiences she has had and all the memories she has made, she is excited to be on the beach.
“My favorite thing about the Outer Banks is that it feels like it’s one big community,” Tynch said. “There’s such a bond between locals. I feel like everyone who lives here has an instant connection.”
Junior Stella Bryson can be reached at 23brysonst69@daretolearn.org.
