![“[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)
Students, parents, and faculty from all three campuses gathered on Davis Field on November 3 to celebrate the life of Jacqueline Wang (11) and to honor her passing.
“She was the very essence of happiness,” said Simar Mangat (11), Junior Class President, reminiscing on the happy memories he had shared with Jacqueline.
A ”tree of life” has been planted near Shah Hall in remembrance of Jacqueline’s life. The ceremony began at 4 p.m. with opening remarks from Head of School Christopher Nikoloff, followed by a few words of encouragement from ASB President Revanth Kosaraju (12) and Simar.
Jacqueline’s parents spoke next. They gave anecdotes of the joy and wisdom their daughter had brought into their lives: her refusal to let her father kill a mouse in their shed because all living things “have a purpose in life,” her passion for science and the laboratory, and a hike with her father off a ski trail to a mountain summit and their shared hope of finding a similar snowy mountain in heaven. Though raindrops began to fall, everyone stayed to honor Jacqueline and her family.
After teachers and students were given the chance to recall their favorite memories of Jacqueline as well, Head of Upper School Butch Keller explained the symbolism of the landscaping: yellow daisies for the Class of 2015, green boxwoods for the Class of 2014, white daisies for the Class of 2013, and black lava rocks for the Class of 2012. Closing the ceremony, Keller invited everyone inside Shah for a more intimate look into Jacqueline’s past.
There, a slide show of photographs of Jacqueline, compiled by her parents, was shown. The photographs captured her smiles from toddlerhood through high school. At the end of the slide show, Jacqueline’s father said that seeing the school community come together in such a way brought him joy and made him feel that Jacqueline would “live in our hearts and our actions.”
