The School Newspaper of West High School

West Signals
The School Newspaper of West High School

West Signals
The School Newspaper of West High School

West Signals
Darren Kawazoe

Darren Kawazoe, Staff Photographer

Darren Kawazoe is a photographer for West Signals and a junior at West. This is Darren’s first year with Signals and he’s excited to create memories through his photography. In his free time, he enjoys playing sports, skateboarding, and going to the beach. 

All content by Darren Kawazoe
Boasting a wide variety of high end stores and tempting restaurant options, the Westfield Century City mall provides a qualitative shopping experience. Spanning 1.3 million square feet, the mid-century aesthetic is prevalent in the design of architecture and can be admired throughout the shopping district. Shoppers can experience the glamorous lifestyle of Southern California while visiting countless stores to their desire: “The architecture was really cool. The mall had a lot of different shops that we don’t have locally in Torrance,” revealed Bennett Valdez (11), a recent visitor.

Hidden Gems in Los Angeles: Westfield Century City Mall

Darren Kawazoe, Staff Photographer • January 2, 2023
Trump’s National Golf Club is a 7,242 yard course found on the cliffs of Ranchos Palos Verdes, California. The public area offers panoramic views stretching two miles long of the grand Pacific Ocean. Anthony Zeller (11) voiced how the view is “really amazing” and “this place looks beautiful.” Along with several open picnic tables available along the hiking trail, unbeknownst to many, the course is home to many clear water tidepools at the bottom of the cliffs. Whether planning a family day trip, or a mini golf tournament with friends, Trump’s National Golf Club is an all-in-one entertainment spot.

Wayfarers Chapel, also known as “The Glass Church,” is located in Rancho Palos Verdes, California. It is well known for the organic architecture and prime location on the cliffs above the Pacific Ocean. "It looks like the perfect place to spend with your significant other,” expressed Taran Sunkara (11), adding that the chapel “looks like a fantasy.” Surrounded by a lush grassy landscape, majestic redwood trees, and cobblestone walkways that lead to a breathtaking ocean view, this mystical chapel captures a fairytale-like ambience.

[Art/Photo] Hidden Gems of the South Bay

November 16, 2022
Wayfarers Chapel, also known as “The Glass Church,” is located in Rancho Palos Verdes, California. It is well known for the organic architecture and prime location on the cliffs above the Pacific Ocean. "It looks like the perfect place to spend with your significant other,” expressed Taran Sunkara (11), adding that the chapel “looks like a fantasy.” Surrounded by a lush grassy landscape, majestic redwood trees, and cobblestone walkways that lead to a breathtaking ocean view, this mystical chapel captures a fairytale-like ambience.

Hidden Gems of the South Bay

Darren Kawazoe, Staff Photographer • November 16, 2022
Warm Nights and Glowing Lights: The ever so popular St. James Fair returns! Held annually at St. James Catholic School for educational fundraising, the fair was open from Oct. 7 to Oct. 9 this year. Students from across the South Bay gathered for the thrilling rides, mouthwatering appetizers, and game booths. Attendee Alan Bribiesca (11) expressed his excitement: “It’s pretty fun to come and hang out with friends, while messing around. It was worth paying [for tickets] for this once in a lifetime experience.” (Pictured: Jordan Seiler (11) and Alan Bribiesca (11))

[Art/Photo] Festive Fun at the St. James Fair

Anthony Parker, Entertainment & News Editor • October 26, 2022
A Night to Remember. Ryan McBride (11) asks Danielle McClain (11) to accompany him to the Homecoming Dance at the Homecoming Football Game on Friday, Sept. 30, 2022. Emotions were running high, as McBride had just finished a triumphant game against South High. Adrenaline high, he asked McClain to Homecoming and scored another win when she said yes. He reflected on the hoco proposal: “Asking her immediately after taking the dub against South was like a movie, and got me really hyped!” (Art/Photo courtesy of Reagan Naylor (11))

Homecoming Proposals

Darren Kawazoe, Staff Photographer • October 19, 2022
A Not So Strange Proposal. Trevor Strong (12) invites Faith Iwanaka (12) to the Homecoming Dance, because friends don’t lie about their feelings. Prior to the proposal, Strong turned on an episode of Stranger Things to hint at his surprise. Iwanaka couldn’t hold back her excitement: “We watched Stranger Things together, so I got the message right away and thought it was really cute. I was excited about the Hoco proposal and it made me look forward to going to the dance even more.” Iwanaka embraced the proposal without hesitation as she beamed beside her Hoco date. (Art/Photo courtesy of Tracie Iwanaka)

A Beary Sweet Ending. Nathan Espiritu (10) asks Christina Kim (10) to spend the Homecoming dance together with a “beary” unique poster! Undoubtedly, the prolonged wait for Espiritu to see Kim’s reaction to his poster was un-bear-able. Espiritu stressed, “All I could think about was if I messed up on the poster and I didn’t notice, or what if I look dumb right now.” His worries faded away when Kim was overjoyed at the sight of the poster. (Art/Photo courtesy of Isabelle Espiritu (8))

Fall Fits: A Timeless Craft

Fall Fits: A Timeless Craft

Darren Kawazoe, Staff Photographer • October 10, 2022
Dadivas’s inspiration for her outfits aren’t derived from trend-setting celebrities, and she doesn’t “think [my outfit] is anything that innovative, I just like to have fun trying things out.” Dadivas encouraged others to work their creative minds and to make fashion fun. (Art/Photo by Darren Kawazoe)

Dadivas’s urban blend of soft, warm colors, and textures contrasts well with her black leather belt and boots. The brown patterned paperboy cap topped off Dadivas’s nostalgic ambience. She explained the creative vision behind her fall fit: “[I wanted to] experiment with accessories in ways that people don’t typically wear them, and find a way to make it match from top to bottom.” (Art/Photo by Darren Kawazoe)

Fontanilla describes his shoes and pants as “more of a military vibe to the outfit, but the sweater balances everything out, so [the military vibe] is not too strong.” (Art/Photo by Darren Kawazoe)

Dadivas and Fontanilla stand fashionably on the outdated escalators of Old Torrance. The escalators added a level of aesthetic - the blending colors of their grunge-inspired fall outfits and the worn out escalator stairs - making their styles timeless. (Art/Photo by Darren Kawazoe)

Fontanilla highlights his camo pants in his fall fit. “[The pants] are different from most traditional pants, and have more realism to them,” he explained, adding how “green and brown are always a good color combo.” Heavy black leather boots completed Fontanilla’s fashion look by emphasizing a casual, yet masculine vibe. (Art/Photo by Darren Kawazoe)

As the summer heat waves level off, West High students transition into light layers of fall attire. Kayla Dadivas (12) and Quentin Fontanilla (10) modeled their casual, yet exclusive outfits in the neighborhood of Old Torrance, as they welcome autumn’s cool, crisp breeze. While Dadivas’s long blue denim skirt married perfectly with the chocolate-colored, knitted cardigan draped over her shoulders, Fontanilla’s black Lacoste sweater contrasted great with his uniquely patterned cargo pants. (Art/Photo by Darren Kawazoe)

Showtime! All-Male Drill Team

Showtime! All-Male Drill Team

Darren Kawazoe, Staff Photographer • October 10, 2022
The Homecoming Top 15 have been announced! All of the nominees were ecstatic and full of smiles as they walked down the stairs at lunch with their “Stay Groovy” balloons on September 16, 2022. ASB (Associated Student Body) also announced the highly anticipated theme for this year: Saturday Night Fever. West High students couldn’t be more excited to dance the night away under a shiny disco ball. Ticket sales for Homecoming will start on Friday, September 23, 2022. The Homecoming King and Queen will be announced at the Homecoming football game on September 30, 2022 at 7pm. (Pictured from left to right: Kate Amano (12), Beckett Tom (12), Ian Chen (12), Sullivan Kolakowski (12), Nancy Kim (12), Cooper Acuesta (12), Lauren Ng (12), Frank Wong (12), and Jasmin Cuaresma (12). Not Pictured: Allison Tsai (12), Faith Iwanaka (12), Gaby Nieraeth (12), Jaden Mooney (12), Julia Araujo (12), Kate Phan (12), Molly Paulson (12), Natalia Torres (12), Riyana Roy (12), Samantha Jiao (12), Amare Cooper (12), Ben Arrata (12), Brandon Howard (12), Chris Matsuoka (12), Dean Ashley (12), John Kang (12), Jordan Au (12), Jude Arabit (12), Matt Rochford (12), Trevor Strong (12), and Tyler Schlappatha (12).) (Art/Photo by Darren Kawazoe)

[Art/Photo] Homecoming Preparations!

September 29, 2022
Load More Stories