![“I wasn't discouraged by some of the obstacles we faced. I learned a lot from the leadership. I found that different people need different ways of receiving feedback — you can't [just] tell them to do something and expect the best. [Some] people needed more incentive. A large part of my role was to figure out what worked for everyone and to figure out how to lead all these separate individuals as a team,” Suhana Bhandare (’26) said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/SuhanaBhandare_JasmineHansra-1-1200x798.jpg)
![“This is actually from Randy Pausch Randy P. Brick: ‘Walls are there for a reason. You have to show how much you want to overcome them.’ You have to show how much you want something. That's what I've always been able to do with tennis, Link Crew and getting that internship [with Kushy Baby]. It’s important pushing through that — getting around that brick wall, climbing over it or clawing through it,” Yash Sachdeva (’26) said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/YashSachdeva_RamBatchu-copy-1200x1002.jpg)
![“[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)
Noel Banerjee and Darby Millard will dance at the London New Year’s Day Parade
Seniors Darby Millard and Noel Banerjee perform at the Santana Row Tree Lighting Ceremony with the rest of the Varsity Dance team. The two will be traveling to London from Dec. 26 to Jan. 2 to perform at the London New Year’s Day Parade.
Seniors Noel Banerjee and Darby Millard, accompanied by dance teacher Karl Kuehn, left for London on Friday to perform at the London New Year’s Day Parade.
The two dancers earned the invitation after receiving the All-American award for their technique, style and showmanship at a dance camp hosted by the United Spirit Association (USA) over the summer. The two will join 107 other USA dancers on the trip.
“I’m honestly just excited to see London itself, spend time with [Kuehn] and Noel and meet tons of new people,” Darby said. “And then, of course, I’m stoked to perform in the parade. It will be such an incredible experience.”
The girls are excited by the magnitude of the opportunity.
“This trip is something different than other dance trips I have been on because it is the first time I am traveling to another country to perform, and I could not be more excited,” Noel said. “This is also something that will potentially be televised and is the first time that I will be performing in front of this many people, so I am so lucky and can not wait to have this experience and share it with others.”
To prepare for the performance, USA sent all of the dancers their uniforms and a DVD of the dance they were required to rehearse for the New Year’s parade.
“I feel prepared; it just hasn’t hit me yet. I cannot believe we’re actually going,” Darby said. “It’s so surreal. It feels like just yesterday we were at dance camp.”
Their itinerary, besides the dance rehearsals, includes sightseeing, shopping, a disco cruise and the musical “Wicked” at the West End Theatre. The three will return back to the Bay Area this Friday.
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...
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...