Tuesday, July 14, 2015

About Me

Hello, Save The Harbor, my name is Michael Malpiede and this will be my first summer working with the organization and I am eager to jump into what happens here at Save the Harbor. I am going into my senior year at Needham High School, and am working at Save the Harbor Save the Bay as an intern. In my 17 years of living I have done quite a lot. I have two brothers, one who is 15, and one who is 21.  At Needham High School I play on the varsity golf and varsity lacrosse team and am passionate in each of the sports. This coming fall I will be the captain of the golf team and plan to use skills of leadership that I expect to learn with the Save the Harbor as well as applying previously learned skills.

My most recent endeavor was traveling to Barcelona, Spain in April visiting my brother who completed a semester abroad.  I specifically reference this experience because it is an example of something that I enjoyed and had a lasting impact that reached me even after the trip, much of what I expect to happen this summer in my time working with Save the Harbor.

My brother and I looking over the city of Barcelona 
July first and second was orientation for the staff working this summer. For me this was my first real interaction with the Save The Harbor staff. I had no idea what to expect, I came in absolutely nervous as can be, and could barely even find the meeting spot. After finally reaching the location of the meeting, the frightening process of introducing myself to the seemingly massive group of people began. Though everyone was incredibly friendly and seemed very welcoming, going into a situation where no one is sure of your name or anything about you is always somewhat of a struggle.

After the introduction process was completed the description and expectations for the summer began which made me excited to see what Save the Harbor had in store. Being an intern in a room mostly full of youth group staff, my role was somewhat unclear, but after a few hours of immersion into the group the role didn't really matter, I was more focused on meeting the new people. What I soon found is that the people working for Save the Harbor, especially the senior staff, were very eager to help and make you feel like you belonged. That quality is what stood out for me most during orientation, and gave me some comfort in a time where I was not quite sure what to do.

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