![“[Building nerf blasters] became this outlet of creativity for me that hasn't been matched by anything else. The process [of] making a build complete to your desire is such a painstakingly difficult process, but I've had to learn from [the skills needed from] soldering to proper painting. There's so many different options for everything, if you think about it, it exists. The best part is [that] if it doesn't exist, you can build it yourself," Ishaan Parate said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/DSC_8149-900x604.jpg)
![“When I came into high school, I was ready to be a follower. But DECA was a game changer for me. It helped me overcome my fear of public speaking, and it's played such a major role in who I've become today. To be able to successfully lead a chapter of 150 students, an officer team and be one of the upperclassmen I once really admired is something I'm [really] proud of,” Anvitha Tummala ('21) said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/Screen-Shot-2021-07-25-at-9.50.05-AM-900x594.png)
![“I think getting up in the morning and having a sense of purpose [is exciting]. I think without a certain amount of drive, life is kind of obsolete and mundane, and I think having that every single day is what makes each day unique and kind of makes life exciting,” Neymika Jain (12) said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/Screen-Shot-2017-06-03-at-4.54.16-PM.png)
![“My slogan is ‘slow feet, don’t eat, and I’m hungry.’ You need to run fast to get where you are–you aren't going to get those championships if you aren't fast,” Angel Cervantes (12) said. “I want to do well in school on my tests and in track and win championships for my team. I live by that, [and] I can do that anywhere: in the classroom or on the field.”](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/DSC5146-900x601.jpg)
![“[Volleyball has] taught me how to fall correctly, and another thing it taught is that you don’t have to be the best at something to be good at it. If you just hit the ball in a smart way, then it still scores points and you’re good at it. You could be a background player and still make a much bigger impact on the team than you would think,” Anya Gert (’20) said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/AnnaGert_JinTuan_HoHPhotoEdited-600x900.jpeg)
![“I'm not nearly there yet, but [my confidence has] definitely been getting better since I was pretty shy and timid coming into Harker my freshman year. I know that there's a lot of people that are really confident in what they do, and I really admire them. Everyone's so driven and that has really pushed me to kind of try to find my own place in high school and be more confident,” Alyssa Huang (’20) said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/AlyssaHuang_EmilyChen_HoHPhoto-900x749.jpeg)
SFCC begins Thanksgiving food drive
Food drive bins are distributed around campus in areas such as in front of Dobbins Hall and Shah Hall. The food drive will end on November 22.
Students for Charitable Causes (SFCC) announced the commencement of its annual food drive on Nov. 11 for the Second Harvest Food Bank, a charity that helps provide food for impoverished families during the holiday season.
The tradition of the food drive started two years ago. In order to increase participation among the students, club members turned the event into a class competition. Due to the minimal amount of donations received, the club officers decided that the first class to fill all four bins wins donuts. This is different from last year, when they awarded the winning class with donuts as an incentive.
“Last year, we didn’t get as many donations as we’d hoped for,” co-president Glenn Reddy (11) said. “This year, to avoid giving donuts to a class that although was the best of the four yet still didn’t donate much food, we set the minimum of four bins.”
In addition to their announcement during school meeting, club members also decorated posters to encourage the school community to donate non-perishable food items to the Second Harvest Food Bank. Although bins were placed around the campus, not many students have donated items.
“We’ve had a slow start as expected, but we hope to get the most food next week once people have had the weekend to figure out what they can donate,” Glenn said.
After the food drive, SFCC also plans to hold an items collection in the spring. Every year, they ask for donations and resell the items to the public at a garage sale. The profits are then donated to a charity.
The food drive will end on Nov. 22, and the winning class will be announced after Thanksgiving break.
Angeline Pan is the assistant Photo Editor of TALON. She is a junior and has been part of the journalism program since her sophomore year. Her favorite...