![“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)
On Thursday, September 20, the seniors spent lunch and assembly time with their Eagle Buddies for the first meeting of the year, participating in numerous activities while supporting a Santa Clara canned food drive.
The fifth graders arrived at the Upper School campus to meet with their 12th grade Eagle Buddies on Davis field. After each pair or trio found and caught up with each other, they rotated through a number of activities.
One activity was a three-legged race, in which students tied one leg to the leg of their buddy and tried to make it across the field and back. Some groups strategized and stepped in sync, some hopped, and some simply ran as fast as they could, though there were no clear winners in the end.
In another activity, the seniors and their buddies were given the task of creating a team logo. The logos ranged from a combination of the buddies’ names to a colorful animal mascot. After thinking of their designs, the students drew them on nametags that they wore throughout the day.
The third event was a bonding opportunity for the Eagle Buddies; each person was given a balloon with a word written on it, such as “Travel,” “Animal,” or “Most Proud Of.” The students talked about the given topics with their buddies, at the same time playing with the colorful balloons.
“It was fun, especially the balloon [activity],” Eva Chang (5) said.
After having lunch on Davis field, the students participated in their final activity, which required more teamwork than the previous ones. Many of the students each brought two cans of food, which were to be donated to Santa Clara families. However, before the cans were collected, they were used in a friendly structure-building competition among the Eagle Buddies. The students were split into large groups by advisory and had a limited amount of time to build a structure using their foods cans. One group built a castle, complete with a flag and a drawbridge, while another stacked its cans for a height advantage. The winning structure was made of columns of cans sticking out of a tall plastic bin.
Seniors such as Richard Fan enjoyed being able to see their buddies again this year.
“I remember having a lot of the same teachers that [my buddy] had, and being able to connect with that and bring back those memories, and share them with someone who [is] essentially a younger me […] is really cool,” he said.
The students exchanged goodbyes and gifts with their buddies to bring the event to a close.
![“Probably the most important thing that I can do is to help raise awareness amongst youth because [students] are the ones that sadly are going to inherit this mess. It’s important for us, the people who helped take the planet to the place it is now, to really lean in and make a difference about this issue," Moss said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/DSC_9315-e1778880890147-1200x873.jpg)