![“[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)
Clubs attract new members at club fair with interactive activities
In the hustle and bustle of yesterday’s Club Fair, many clubs used new interactive techniques to attract sign-ups.
Clubs used posters, powerpoints, and videos to introduce their clubs, as well as decorations, such as a bubble machine by TSA. Others set up activities for passing students at their booths, like a chess game at the Chess Club table or a puzzle by the Linguistics Club. The Robotics Team displayed robots from previous years.
Other clubs took new approaches that required more setup and planning both before and after the fair. The Multimedia Club set up video equipment to interview and film students. They hoped to be able to create a video to show at a school meeting to promote their club.
“We’re basically just interviewing people about what they think about photography and multimedia and how that has influenced or inspired their photography,” Alex Mo (10) said.
Face painting at the Art Club table and card tricks at the new Magic and Cardistry Club booth also helped to draw attention. Some clubs held prize drawings to attract students, like Red Cross with its spinning wheel raffle. Math Club had a guesstimation jar filled with gummy bears. The person with the closest estimate would win the entire jar.
“It was fun. I’m excited to see if I win one of the T-shirts or one of the Red Cross prizes,” said Alexandra Dellar (11), who spun the Red Cross wheel after signing up.
Many students who stopped by for the prize contests were more willing to learn more about the club and perhaps sign up.
“We had a lot of sign ups — more sign ups than usual,” Math Club President Ashwath Thirumalai (12) said. “Most of them come here for [the gummy bears].”
A cappella group Guy’s Gig also took the stage to perform twice, first outside near the entrance to the fair, and later on the gym stage. They sang songs while holding up their club poster board and encouraged interested students to sign up at their booth.
Some club members left their tables to walk around the fair with signs. Interact Club carried an “Interactstagram” poster, stopping students walking by to ask for a photo with them with the poster border around their faces.
“It’s a trend in individual Interact clubs. Since Interact is really involved with using social media to promote club events, we thought that it would be fun and cool to have members participate in/be in the ‘social media’ itself,” Interact Co-President Kevina Xiao (11) said.
Free food helped draw more potential club members. Options ranged from marshmallows and Starbursts to homemade cookies to healthy smoothies made by the new Healthy Habits club.
“We were actually having a sleepover together, and we watched Foodies,” Healthy Habits club member Shannon Richardson (11) said. “It changed our perspective on food in general, and we wanted to eat healthier and spread what we learned from the movie to the school.”
Fifty-six clubs attended the club fair, and many plan to have their first meetings welcoming both new and returning members in the upcoming weeks.
Cindy Liu, Academics Editor for the TALON Yearbook, is a senior and has been on staff for four years. Her favorite part of journalism is being able to...
Neha Sunil (12) is the Social Media Editor and Seniors Editor for the TALON yearbook. She has been part of the publication for four years and was previously...