![“[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)
During long lunch yesterday, the Harker Business Club (HBC) hosted the DECA Events Fair, where members and officers met to discuss different DECA events.
DECA is a international student organization focused on business, finance, and marketing. The goal of the fair was to help all new participants learn about the numerous events that DECA offers, including roleplaying events, online stock trading simulations, and written business and marketing plans. According to HBC President Tiphaine Delepine (12), DECA is one of the biggest clubs on campus this year, with an email list of over 300 people.
Freshman Aarti Kheskani is one of the many new members. Aarti joined DECA to have fun and improve her speaking skills.
“I think [DECA] is really cool,” he said. “I like speaking events since I’m a debater, so I think it’ll be really fun.”
Tiphaine is similarly looking forward to the coming year, partly because of all the new members. She has been in DECA since freshman year and enjoys participating in the club because it allows her to put her ideas out into the world.
“I really enjoy making [my] own business plan, and developing [my] ideas and presenting those to a judge, and seeing what they think,” she said.
Michaela Kastelman (12) is the president of the Silicon Valley DECA chapter, a regional DECA chapter including multiple schools. Michaela joined DECA because it helps her hone her business skills, while providing a worldwide community where she can make friends and find support for her ideas.
“The reason I do DECA, and why I enjoy it so much, is that I can learn more about my places of interest. I can practice my business and public speaking skills, while meeting lots of awesome DECA members from around the world,” Michaela said.
Mostly freshmen attended the fair to learn about the DECA events, but many new and returning members were also sophomores, juniors, and seniors. Sophomore Agata Sorotokin is a new member of DECA this year.
“I decided to join because it seemed like a great way to learn about the business aspects of marketing. Both the roleplaying and written [events] seem like they have benefits,” she said. “The roleplaying [event] does not take much time, but you still get to use your persuasion skills. I also might do a team written [event] because you can work with other people to write your essay and present it to the judges.”
The Event Fair allowed new and returning members alike to start preparing for the numerous DECA events and conferences that they will attend throughout the year.
![Winged Post Editor-in-Chief Katerina Matta and Managing Editor Young Min were selected as first place winners from a pool of around 2,000 students. “This page [shows] how much we paid attention to detail and how much we pushed ourselves to ensure the best quality that we could,” Young said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/IMG_4254-900x1200.jpeg)
