Positive vibes surround Hunter Curry.

Even when people tried to bring him down, he turned it into a positive.

The Brownstown Central High School senior was born with hydrocephalus, a condition in which fluid accumulates in the brain, typically in young children, enlarging the head and sometimes causing brain damage.

In elementary school, there were some students who teased him, but that stopped when they gained an understanding of his condition.

“It bothered me a little bit, but that’s because they didn’t know,” Curry said.

“Once they know, it has not really happened to me anymore because if you don’t tell them, they are just going to keep making fun of you for the rest of your life. Do you want that? No, you don’t.

“It really overcame itself. They got over it,” he said. “There are some that just don’t know about it. They just think I’m a normal person. They look past it.”

It all comes down to understanding, he said.

“That’s what my girlfriend and I base our relationship off of, understanding,” Curry said.

The only thing his condition has prevented him from doing is playing sports, but Curry said that’s OK.

“I can’t have a head injury, so I couldn’t play football, but I was never really good at football anyway. I found that out,” he said, smiling.

Curry has found other outlets to be involved, including musicals and a variety of organizations at school.

On Saturday, he will reflect on all of those activities and memories when he receives his high school diploma.

Curry said it will be a bittersweet moment.

“Leaving my girlfriend, especially. She’s only a sophomore,” he said. “It might hit me at graduation or after. You never know.”

He said he had enough credits to graduate midterm, but he chose to stick around. He said he did that for three reasons — he loves school, he wanted to participate in his final musical and, of course, he wanted to be around his girlfriend.

From a young age, he became interested in signing and performing. He participated in the music programs in elementary school and choir concerts in middle school and then was onstage for four musicals through high school — “Annie,” “Cinderella,” “Grease” and “Beauty and the Beast.”

“I found out that as I was growing up, I had a passion for singing. I kind of grew into it,” Curry said.

The musicals took a lot of time and work, but he said it was all worth it with the feeling he experienced onstage.

“Freshman year, I honestly didn’t know how it was going to be, but then I ended up having a good time, and I did it again the next year and then the next year and then the next year,” he said. “It honestly brought out the best in me because I didn’t know I was this talented until I started doing musicals.”

“Beauty and the Beast” gave him mixed emotions because he knew it was his last high school musical.

“You’re all happy up there and stuff, but on the inside, you’re going to miss it,” he said. “You could kind of see where I was happy but then sad on the inside because it was my last show.”

Also for four years in high school, Curry was involved with the Student Library Advisory Board, which promotes books and the school library.

“We do activities related to books and things like that,” he said. “I just like it because I like books. I’m a bookworm.”

For his final three years of high school, he helped with student council service projects and dances and was a member of the school newspaper staff. As a freshman, he also was a member of the Booster Club.

Another highlight was being chosen by Principal Joe Sheffer as a very important person and attending the annual VIP Breakfast his sophomore year.

For the past eight years, each school staff member has had an opportunity to select a student to be honored during the event for accomplishments or efforts that demonstrate excellence, attitude or achievements that have enhanced the classroom, school or individual student.

Students don’t know who selected them for the honor until they arrive at the breakfast.

“Oh, it was an honor,” Curry said of being chosen out of the nearly 600 students at the school. “He and I are close.”

After high school, Curry plans to work toward a two-year business degree from Ivy Tech Community College. He will take some classes online and others at the Jackson County Learning Center in Seymour.

“If I have to go back, I will, but I just want to start out with two years and see where that gets me,” he said. “If that doesn’t get me too far, I’ll go back.”

Growing up, he said he had always wanted to work toward a singing career. But for now, he’s going to pursue business.

“I want to become a singer, but you’ve got to have that backup career,” he said.

No matter where life takes him, Curry said he will maintain his positive attitude.

“That’s a good outlook to have, in my opinion,” he said. “If you open yourself up, you can get pretty far.”

As far as advice for others going through school, Curry said, “That’s easy — keep a positive attitude, and good things will happen. That’s always good advice to give, especially from a truly positive person like me.”

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Name: Hunter Curry

Age: 18

Hometown: Medora

Residence: Medora

School: Brownstown Central High School

School activities: Student council, musicals, school newspaper, Booster Club, Student Library Advisory Board

Future plans: Take classes online and at the Jackson County Learning Center in Seymour to pursue a business degree from Ivy Tech Community College

Family: Parents, Larry and Valleri Curry

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What: Brownstown Central High School graduation

When: 10 a.m. Saturday

Where: Brownstown Central High School gymnasium, 500 N. Elm St.

Who: 122 seniors will graduate

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