One World Week: Italy

One of the coolest opportunities at High Tech is their One World Week.  Each year over spring break, students and teachers depart to destinations worldwide for a cultural immersion.  This immersion opens the kids' eyes to the world at large.  Students have been to Belize, India, Panama, Egypt, Costa Rica, Thailand and many other far away places.  It is a once in a lifetime experience and Grant waited until his senior year for his trip to Italy.  Ahhh Italy.....my favorite country in the world where the people are warm and beautiful, the culture is bountiful and the scenery is exquisite.  The food is pretty incredible, too.  I give great kudos to Grant's teachers/chaperones, Margaret and Dominic, who took twenty-five children to Italy and returned them all safely.

A note from Margaret (12th grade Digital Arts and Sound Production teacher):

Grant,

In Italy you were a leader and voice of reason. You had your eyes wide and looked deeply at your surroundings and the cultural sites of Italy. There were many fun moments and it was great to have you on the trip! I wish you the very best on your future endeavors! Congratulations!!!

Sincerely,

Margaret

Photo above taken by Grant of his favorite city, Venice 
 

The Value of Work

The price of success is hard work, dedication to the job at hand, and the determination that whether we win or lose, we have applied the best of ourselves to the task at hand.
-Vince Lombardi

I recall my first job at age sixteen.  It was Gazebo's Yogurt Shop and I remember feeling so mature and responsible.  It was fun when friends came into the shop to visit and get some frozen yogurt.  The spending money was also a nice perk. 

Grant followed in my footsteps and although it was at one of the fast food establishments I most despise (from a dietitian's perspective), nonetheless, he has been working at this job since the age of sixteen.  I am very proud of his demonstrated responsibility to his employer given school and sport commitments.  Fortunately, they have always been flexible with his schedule.

As a parent, I have always viewed youth employment as a tool to teach financial competency as well as social education.   Working in a customer service driven job at minimum wage certainly is a stepping stone to learn the value of money, hard work and people skills.  A good article in the NY Times addressed similar issues.

It was great to hear friends and acquaintances around town say, "Betty, I saw Grant at the drive-through and he was so polite and seems so mature."  Yes!  The value of work.

Letting Go: Part II

I am an emotional wreck.  I just returned from taking my baby to his college orientation day.  The day was bittersweet.  How could it be that my baby is getting ready to go off to college and start his independent life?  I was just changing his diapers and wiping his snotty nose yesterday!  It was a long six hour drive each way with a lot of time to talk about life, expectations, plans and also much silence on my part as I reflected on this next transition.  I won't mention the arguing on each others driving skills.


The process of even getting a child to college is so very daunting these days.   The pressure for good grades in high school, SAT/ACT testing and test prep, investigating all types of colleges, the college application process itself, completing the dreaded FAFSA, applying for other financial aid and scholarships--the list goes on and on.  It is quite overwhelming as any parent of a collegiate can attest.


As I sat teary-eyed in the auditorium yesterday amongst all of the other incoming freshman and parents--one thing I knew for sure;  my son was ready and he chose a college that is truly the best fit for him and his promising future.  I am so proud.

Senior photo above

For Love of the Game

 In order to excel, you must be completely dedicated to your chosen sport. You must also be prepared to work hard and be willing to accept constructive criticism. Without one-hundred percent dedication, you won't be able to do this.  -Willie Mays


Baseball was the backdrop for a boy turning into a man.  I observed a transformation from boy to man starting with T-Ball at the age of five through Varsity baseball at age seventeen.  


Many benefits were reaped from this organized sport.  It taught teamwork, good sportsmanship, humility, respect, time management and the importance of physical fitness.  I thank the many coaches for these valuable life lessons.


One of my proudest mom moments was last year.  Grant decided to train hard to get stronger--ultimately to hit harder.  He woke up at 5:00 a.m. two to three times a week before school and went to the gym with a buddy.


Last year was his best year in baseball, ever.  With three home runs (and his first home runs ever) he had the best season stats on the team.  A memorable season.


An untimely broken wrist in his senior year (ugh, again????) before the season began has left us to look back at a great year and be thankful for those memories.


Photo above of Grant's junior year with the High Tech Storm

Vacations

There have been many memorable family vacations over the past seventeen years.  Adventurous spirits like adventurous vacations.  Looking back, some of Grant's favorites were Lake Tahoe (summer and winter), the Bahamas, Hawaii, a Mexican Riviera cruise, Estero Beach Mexico and Cozumel.  All of these destinations offered unique experiences and memories that should last a lifetime.  My personal hope is that these travels have sparked an interest in the world at large.

Our most recent trip to Cozumel was memorable due to a diving expedition.  This island is known for its diving and beautiful reefs.  I must say I was a very nervous mother.  The preparation for an ocean dive consisted of a brief pool instruction followed by the ocean dive.  How can someone learn all of the nuances of diving in a crash course (in a pool, nonetheless)?  I had to take many deep breaths and visit the Margaritas.

Travel has always brought me personal joy and my hope is for my son to seek future travels with an eye on adventure. 

Photo above of Grant and dad in the beautiful waters of Cozumel.

Space Part II: San Diego 6 Coverage of Quest for Stars at High Tech High

The Quest for Stars sponsored engineering project was a success thanks to Grant and Max's work on waterproofing the payload. As I watch the level of engagement in learning with these high school boys I just shake my head. We are so fortunate to have these opportunities at High Tech. According to Grant and his mentor, projects in space will become mainstream for all Americans as was the internet.

You Tube video of recent news coverage at High Tech with Grant, Max and their mentor, Bobby Russel of Quest for Stars.

A Fascination of Space

I vividly remember the inception of my son's fascination with space. Astronaut Dan Tani made a visit to Grant's third grade class.  Astronaut Tani showed up to the school auditorium and a very excited bunch of kids.  You could feel the excitement in the room.  Little did they know this day would be so inspiring and forever change their understanding of spaceflight.

Astronaut Tani flew on the Endeavor and was one of the lucky members to complete spacewalks and repair of the International Space Station.  He showed the children live video he filmed from the flight.  Everyone's mouth (including myself, the teachers and principle) was to the floor.  We viewed the astronauts performing important functions and also having fun just goofing around at zero gravity.  What an experience!

The fascination with flight and space continued for my son.  A few summer rocketry classes and we know this interest would continue.

All of these experiences have culminated in Grant's senior engineering project.  His mentor, Mr. Bobby Russel, of Quest for Stars will take these high school seniors to the next level of space exploration and aerospace engineering principles.



Photo above: "(L to R) Bobby Russell (Quest for Stars) Grant Garrity and Max Wasserman from High Tech High. They have taken on the challenge of improving our payload design. They will be focusing on making the avionics packages waterproof. Credit: Quest for Stars"