Jerry Joo:

Music is a big part of his life, but it’s not all that makes La Cañada 7/8 student Jerry Joo a standout in his community.

Joo, 14, is this week’s Valley Sun All-Star.

“Jerry is a dedicated student and exceptionally intelligent,” said Cindy Blandford, eighth grade English teacher at La Cañada 7/8.

Blandford jokes that her other students call Joo the “human dictionary,” because, “It’s very rare when we come up with a word he doesn’t know. He said once that he studies the dictionary when he has free time and I believe it. He seems to know every word there is,” she said.

Blandford also praises Joo’s ability to be unique and still command the appreciation of his peers.

“Jerry has a high level of confidence. He’s not very outgoing or outspoken, but he’s someone that everyone likes,” she said, adding that Joo’s creative abilities extend beyond his mastery of his cello.

“He’s also a fantastic artist and a brilliant writer. What I notice and appreciate most about Jerry is his writing. He has an absolutely uncanny style that is quite insightful and humorous for an eighth grader. He’s very witty and he’s an excellent writer,” she said.

Joo is the son of Won Chul and Moon Joo of La Cañada. He has a brother, Tim, 17, a junior at La Cañada High School.

The Joo brothers were born in Seosan, a small city on the west coast of South Korea. The family moved to the United States when Jerry was in second-grade.

After moving from South Korea, he attended Westwood Charter School and in fifth grade transferred to Palm Crest Elementary School.

He began learning to play the cello about seven years ago and has won first prize in numerous local and regional competitions, as well as in the Korea Times Music Competition. Joo also was the principal cellist for the 2008 All Southern Middle School Honors Orchestra and for the past two years has been a featured soloist with the Glendale Youth Orchestra’s annual concerto competition and a participant in the Side-By-Side Program of the Pasadena Symphony.

His musical talents also garnered him merit scholarships with the Colburn School of Performing Arts and the Young Musicians Foundation.

Joo takes his music seriously and practices about 90 minutes every day. He plans to eventually step up that practice time to three hours.

“I think playing an instrument should be taken very personally. It takes a lot of time to practice and become good, but it is worth the time. It has many benefits,” he said, adding that music has been a great way to meet many people and has been helpful in integrating him into his new homeland.

Joo and his brother were both soloists in the recent La Cañada High School Orchestra Concert and Pops concert. Tim Joo plays violin. Both young musicians selected technically challenging pieces for that concert.

In addition to his love of music, Jerry Joo is a voracious reader, his mom said, and he enjoys writing and plans to become a journalist someday.

He loves listening to music, and said he’s inspired by jazz music. He also enjoys playing tennis, practicing yoyo tricks, and has been a Boy Scout in Troop No. 502 for the past three years.

IF YOU’D LIKE TO NOMINATE an exceptional young person who lives in La Cañada or is a student here to be a Valley Sun All-Star, e-mail lcnews@valleysun.net.