The Hiatt Center at Beaver

We started the day off with a guest speaker, Beaver’s very own Nick Reisner ‘21. He shared his experiences with the Hiatt Center and how he worked at the New England Aquarium in Boston Aquarium for his Summer Hiatt Center Fellowship. After, we were separated into groups with whom we would be working with for the whole day. We got to know each other and did some team building exercises led by a leadership team of upper-schoolers and then it was time for our first workshop. I went to a workshop titled: “When a T-shirt is more than a T-shirt”  and we learned about how to make logos and slogans for causes that we feel passionate about. I chose heart health because it is a very important cause for me right now. Next, I went to “Immigration through Art” where I learned the story of Bren Bataclan, a local artist in Boston and his story and struggles with coming to America and fitting in. After that, I went to “Art as Activism” where I learned how different colors can convey different messages and how to make a successful poster or flyer to get your message across. For a special lunch, the facilitators for the retreat ordered in a beautiful spread from Wegmans with everything from sushi and dumplings to churros and delicious desserts. 

Later in the afternoon, we closed the retreat with time to paint with Bren, and create the logos that we worked on in the morning and reflect on what we learned earlier in the day and how to turn that into a design for action. It was a great closing to a great day. To anyone that wants a fun, educational, powerful day that will leave you with skills that you didn’t have the day before and a whole new mindset about Social Justice and how it relates to school each day, I would definitely recommend this anytime. I am sure of that!

Along with attending hearings and meeting some amazing people, spent a lot of time doing research for the different campaigns. My first big project was for the Markey campaign. For this, I needed to research all of the people who ran for a local government seat in all of the gateway cities. I spent multiple eight hour days researching who was running for city council in all of these different cities. I also discovered that there is a shellfish Board in Nantucket as well as many other obscure boards in different cities. Additionally, I designed flyers as well as wrote multiple facebook, instagram, and twitter posts. 

For me, a typical day in the after-school program starts at 4:30 PM. I first sign into the attendance books, then go to my assigned classroom. Based on the orientation and interview I had with the head of the after-school program, I was placed in the classroom with K-1 students. Once I arrive in their classroom, I help facilitate the activity that they are currently doing. Tuesday and Thursday are exceptions from the typical schedule because I help run the soccer club within the program. By 5:30, all the students go the Cafeteria or the Writer’s Room to either play board games or do homework until their parents come at picking them up. My shift ends around 6:30 PM.

I came across Community Servings by doing research on different organizations similar to the Greater Boston Food Bank. I love to organize and I also love to cook, so I assumed I would enjoy volunteering at Community Servings. A typical day would be arriving at Community Servings with a very kind, friendly receptionist who helps answer any questions you may have about scheduling or about the organization. Then, you go back into the kitchen area and put on a hairnet, apron, and gloves to start packaging the food. All of the staff are extremely friendly and make you feel very welcome. In the kitchen, you are asked to either work at either the food preparing, packaging, or labeling area. You work with a variety of other people from various schools, and some even come in with friends from the organization's surrounding neighborhood, Jamaica Plain. 

Each year, the pride parade takes place a little bit after our summer starts. This event is so crucial because it is standing up for who we are and supporting who those around us are. As you complete the long journey, reaching the banner of rainbow balloons near a train station, a feeling of satisfaction washes over you, and knowing that others feel the same way, everybody feels connected. There isn’t one person that’s not grinning when you complete this march for pride in being who you are.

The energy, the brightness, the colors, physically and emotionally, were spread out everywhere. You could see the clear joy on every person’s face as they screamed, shouted, blew their whistles, jumped, leaped, and danced up and down the streets of Boston and its neighboring towns. For me, this was one of the greatest, most incredible experiences. Last year, I was not able to complete the entire parade because I had to leave early but this year, finishing the whole march; it made me feel like I was on top of the world. Everything being said now sounds exaggerated and dramatic, but in fact, it’s all just the truth.