![“[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)
Humans of Harker: Aria Coalson advocates for others
“One day I went to India and I saw a chicken’s head getting chopped off and a whole line of sacrificial animals,” Aria Coalson (12) said. “I had befriended a goat in the line, and that’s when I realized that they were going to kill and eat the goat. After that, I turned hard core vegetarian.”
October 23, 2017
From the exterior, Aria Coalson (12) appears to be an introvert. She is quiet and values spending time alone, yet she is still keenly observant of her surroundings, always taking note of those who are often overlooked.
As a child, Aria always loved animals, but her passive interest turned into passionate activism after witnessing the beheading of a chicken in India.
“After that, I turned hard core vegetarian,” she said. “It showed me the direct impact I’m having. When you just get a plate of chicken or something, you don’t really see where it comes from, but when you actually see the animal getting killed, you can’t really ignore that.”
She hopes to someday have her own animal sanctuary, where she can directly make an impact on the lives of individual animals.
“There are so many other animals than dogs that are often overlooked,” she said. “I want to have a sanctuary where I can rescue any broken or unwanted animals that haven’t led a good life up until then, so with whatever time they have left they’ll be able to enjoy it to the fullest.”
Aria is also a certified yoga teacher, and she particularly likes teaching children, because when she was younger, she discovered the benefits of meditation. She found that it helped to relax and improve her time management skills.
“Teaching yoga was the first time I actually had to get out of my shell. I’m not a very extroverted person, so I had trouble dealing with large crowds of people, especially when all the eyes were on me,” she said. “I didn’t want any attention on me, but when I was teaching yoga, just having a class full of kids that were engaging with me and actually enjoying what I do made me feel a lot more confident in myself.”
Aliesa Bahri (12), one of Aria’s closest friends, particularly admires her for her honesty.
“She values your feelings, but she also wants the best for you, so she’d do anything in her power to give you an objective opinion,” Aliesa said.
Aria serves as a mentor in her job as Executive President of the the Robotics Club. In particular, she tries to encourage girls to stay on the team, in spite of the current gender imbalance in membership.
“The biggest thing is that it wasn’t that girls weren’t enjoying robotics, it was just an uncomfortable situation to be in,” she said. “I did what I thought would be best which was to just make friends with them and make them feel like they fit in and they had a place, so I think that’s helped.”
Another one of her close friends, Jessica Susai (12) appreciates Aria’s sense of humor and her ability to put people at ease.
“She can make the best out of any situation,” she said. “When things are hard or serious, sometimes she’s really serious too, but a lot of the times she can be relieving.”
