![“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)
From February 25 to March 1, Japanese National Honor Society (JNHS) encourages students to write cards for the Towa Lower and Middle School students who were afflicted by the Fukushima nuclear disaster two years ago.
During all lunch periods, students can design and decorate postcards that bear specific messages of encouragement or list aspects of Japan that they like. JNHS members will translate the messages to Japanese, so the Towa students can understand the handwritten notes.
The moral support the club provides this year is different from the fundraisers it sponsored in previous years. Instead of supplying financial aid to fix the debris and rubble, the club changed its focus toward a more intimate standpoint.
“It’s not really a fundraiser, but more of like psychological support,” JNHS Co-President Kimberly Ma (11) said. “It’s mostly discrimination [towards] the Fukushima kids who are treated badly because of where they came from. They’re treated as if the radiation is going to pass to other kids, and some of them are really lonely and really sad because they got split up or their neighbors are far away from them. We’re just trying to cheer them up.”
Although Claudia Tischler (11) questions why the club chose not to fundraise this year, she believes that writing encouragement letters is “definitely a good alternative.”
“I’m half Japanese, and I wish that they get the resources and support they need and that they can go home soon,” she said.
Several students who heard about the event during the club’s school meeting announcement decided to support the cause.
“I definitely like the cause and think it’s important to maintain our outreach in schools internationally, especially ones who have suffered tragedy,” Sophia Shatas (10) said.
JHNS hopes that Upper School students could learn from this event and change their perspective towards the Fukushima Prefecture. According to JNHS Co-President Indica Sur (12), many students have a negative stereotype of the damaged area.
“[Fukushima] really is a beautiful place even though there’s still amounts of radiation left in the area. We want people to see the place for what it actually is,” she said.
The club plans to gather all the messages by the rest of the week and send them off in time for the two-year anniversary of the tsunami on March 11.
