Sequim high school students lobby premiere The Boys in the Boat

SEQUIM, Wash. – Sequim might not be the first place you think of when you go to a big movie premiere, but that’s exactly what a group of high school students are lobbying for after hearing that George Clooney is making a movie. movie about a hometown hero, Joe Rantz.

Clooney is directing a movie based on the book “Boys in the Boat,” which is the true story of the University of Washington’s sailor team and eight rowers who battled for a gold medal at the Summer Olympics. 1936 in Berlin. Rantz is the main character in the story.

Known as Hitler’s Olympics just a few years before World War II, the team narrowly defeated Italy and Germany.

Judy Rantz-Willman, Joe Rantz’s daughter, said: “They hit a higher stroke rate than ever before and at the end of the race they won it by six-tenths of a second.

Not wanting her father’s story to be forgotten, Rantz-Willman went to see her neighbor, Daniel James Brown, a published author, to see if he would take up her father’s story.

Rantz-Willman said: “If he could take me back to my dad’s story… it would be like he was brought back to life, that would be great.”

Joe’s story isn’t just about winning a gold medal. The book deals with his struggles being abandoned by his family and being left behind in Sequim.

“It’s about human adventure and finding the things within yourself that make you who you are,” says Rantz-Willman.

Rantz-Willman went on to talk about how her father overcame a difficult childhood.

“When they finally left him at Sequim, he had two options,” says Rantz-Willman. He may consider himself a victim and live his life as a victim or he may consider himself a survivor and live his life as a survivor. . He chose to live his life as a survivor.

Joe Rantz’s story has inspired generations after him, especially students at his alma mater, Sequim High School.

Students in the school’s Interactive Club created a TikTok asking George Clooney to host a movie premiere in their hometown, which revolved around the book.

“Why not have it where Joe Rantz was born?” said Danika Chen, senior and President of the Interactive Club. “He plays the banjo in the auditorium. and he went to school in the building we’re in right now.”

The motivation was not about a Hollywood premiere, but to have the proceeds go to Rotary Joe Rantz Youth Home and help other homeless youths like Joe.

“It’s just being able to help the people we know who are struggling in our school, help them succeed and move on and do better for themselves like Joe Rantz did,” Chen said. “He was homeless, and then he won the gold medal at the Olympics, and really made a name for himself. We just want to give people the chance to do that.”

TikTok says there are 160 homeless children in Sequim and 50 unaccompanied high school students surfing on their couches or living in their cars.

“Where it all starts, the movie starts there,” said Ayden Humphries, president of Interact and senior at Sequim High School. After that, all the money will also be used to support children with similar circumstances as Joe. It’s really had an impact, not just on the community, but has deeper implications in general.”

The video is racking up tens of thousands of views and continues to grow and has caught the attention of George Clooney’s production team. The students said they were working on something for the fall of 2023.

“It was amazing,” said Julie Jack, Interact co-chair and senior at Sequim High. We just started making this little video and then overnight it reached a lot of people and all the reviews were very positive. . I think it just makes us feel really good and feel like we can really make an impact.”

The Interactive Club works with local Rotary groups to raise awareness of many issues and make a lasting impact, like Joe.

“Of course, the most important takeaway from this story is not to give up,” says Rantz-Willman.