At ten years old, a friend of Revere senior Wesley Leong predicted he and his best friend, Lauren Weil, would win Homecoming King and Queen. Little did they know, that far-fetched dream would become a reality nearly seven years later. 

Wesley Leong is a good student with lofty short and long-term goals. He does not just busy himself with activities but ensures that his participation makes a difference in his community, working hard to communicate effectively with his friends and family. He is well-known for his intelligence and friendliness.

“People see him as smart, but that’s not all Wesley is,” Weil said.

Involved in as many clubs as he has time for, Leong is an active participant in more activities than he can count on one hand, a few being the National Honor Society, Class Council and Mock Trial. In the Revere Marching Band, Leong holds two positions as clarinet section leader and the band historian, who takes photos of the students and their families. He even makes time to be a member of and run Revere’s Mu Alpha Theta after-school math tutoring program as its elected president. His activities gave him what he gave them.

 “Wesley does have a very loving, fun personality, so I think people are willing to follow his lead because he is so approachable and smart. People trust Wesley because they know he’ll do a good job,” Weil said.  

But most importantly, working with his community more than ever, Leong is one of the co-founders of the Red Cross club, with Revere alumna Isha Bansal. The relatively-new club works to support the local community through service projects. 

The club has broad section goals they must meet every year–fundraising, training services and biomedical services. Leong is leading the club in setting up their current fundraising event—a collection of essential self-care items for Veterans—and plans to head the candygram (buy a candy cane, send a message to a friend) fundraiser later this year to support victims of Hurricane Ian. Additionally, he plans to teach people to perform CPR to fulfill the training services requirement and start a blood drive for the biomedical services equivalent. He uses his leadership skills to get all of these tasks done. 

“Wesley is very bold… and he won’t be afraid to come up to you with a question or bring up a topic that you don’t want to talk about but needs to be talked about,” Weil said.

Leong has been working hard to set himself up for success in all his future endeavors, and a large part of that has been “being active in my community through my club[’s] activities and community service,” he said. 

He focuses the majority of his time on his community, aiming his goals to help those around him, whether that be through volunteering at the local food bank or helping out at his church. 

“Wesley and I are really good friends, so working with him is super easy, especially since Wesley is so flexible and willing to do work,” Weil said.

But, even through all of that work, Leong still remains as real and as genuine of a person as he can be. 

He still manages to keep his front up for others to see though, displaying a strength seen by Bonnie Simonelli, a faculty member who has known Leong since his middle school years.

“He is organized, motivated, and very supportive. . . I will always remember Wesley Leong,” Simonelli said. 

Even though there is always room for further development, Leong still changed for the better from his freshman to his senior year. 

“I used to be very closed off from new things,” Leong said. 

After working to improve the lives of others, Leong realized he can simultaneously do that and also engage himself in new hobbies as a tool of self-expression. 

“Baking and crocheting give me that room to explore my artistic and creative side,” Leong said.

However, Leong is not known for just baking for himself. 

“I had COVID, and Wesley made me scones,” Weil said. 

They have known each other for eleven years, and at some point during their time together, Leong learned of Weil’s gluten allergy. Despite that, Leong “will bake for me regardless of how difficult it may be,” she said. 

Leong works every day to involve his community in his life–a lasting theme throughout his time at Revere. 

“He’s very inclusive like that, and he wants everyone to be included and feel like they are part of the team–the team of Wesley,” Weil said.    

Working as hard as he does, Leong still finds time to look beyond the present and reflect on himself. 

“I will be able to… be more confident and have a real sense of stability in college. I have a lot of room to grow from where I am,” Leong said. 

In the future, Leong hopes to attend the University of Pennsylvania and study nursing, eventually earning his bachelor’s degree and moving on to earn his master’s to become a nurse practitioner.

Wesley Leong may have been elected Homecoming King by the people, but his close friends know more than just the surface-level accolades Leong has achieved. He has earned a long list of accomplishments he could flaunt, but every day he chooses not to. 

“I will miss him,” Simonelli said.