As a freshman at East, I was unsure of which club to join. Dr. Obreza, the principal at the time, once said “The first part of the day ends at 2:30. The second part of the school day begins at 2:30.” The “second” part of the school day includes all the clubs, activities and sports that students participate in. The seemingly endless list of clubs made me feel lost and confused. After speaking with Dr. Obreza, I decided to check out the Robotics Club. The last room in F-wing that is nonexistent to many, quickly became my home. I not only met some of my best friends there, but I was also exposed to STEM concepts through the creation of competitive robots. The last four years have been filled with late nights building, countless matches won and friendships that will last a lifetime.

As the president of the club for the past two years, I have been mentoring the underclassmen so that one day, another team can make it to the World Championships just as my team did. Twenty-five years from now, I won’t look back on the time I learned a new math concept but instead, I’ll remember the club that changed my life and pointed me in the direction of majoring in Mechanical Engineering. It’s not a matter of what club or activity a student participates in, but rather what that student makes of it. I truly believe that at East there is a club for everyone, but you just have to find it.