The Locksmith, September 2017

THE LOCKSMITH New York District / Division 11 Volume 5 Issue 5

Stuyvesant High School Key Club September Issue

About Us What does Key Club mean to you? Featured writer: Tasnuba Sukanna I remember joining Key Club on a whim, thinking it was just going to be one of those clubs where you earn hours for events. While that is one of the things you can do here, I didn't realize it would also give me a new family. During my first event, I didn’t feel out of place because the members in my club were there for me. I wasn’t limited to socializing with just people from my school: I met so many unique people who instantly emitted a warm aura and were always down for pho after a fundraiser. Most importantly, I realized the great impact Key Club had in my life; I feel like I can contribute in a significant way and learn valuable skills along the way. It’s not just about being a volunteer. What sets us apart is that so many are willing to give up their weekends for events, support another school’s/division’s events, and even take a pie to the face.

Give Us a Shout!

Cabinet Michelle Yang, President librasapphire2000@gmail.com Yuki Lau, Vice President stuyyuki@gmail.com

Contacts

Jenna Foo, Secretary jfoo@stuy.edu

Gilbert Papagayo, Faculty Advisor g.papagayo@gmail.com

Justin Chan, Treasurer jchan15@stuy.edu

Stuyvesant High School 345 Chambers St. New York, NY 10282

Tiffany Chen, Editor tchen8@stuy.edu Jason Lam, Webmaster jlam6@stuy.edu

Table of Contents Letters from Tiffany and Sammi Announcements from Stuyvesant Key Club Announcements from Division 11 Announcements from New York District Key Club Announcements from Key Club International Timeline of Past Events Timeline of Upcoming Events Featured Key Club: NEST+m Photos and Articles

4 5 8 9 11 12 16 18 20

Letters from Tiffany and Sammi Tiffany Chen, Editor

Sammi Lin, Locksmith Committee Director

Hi everyone! Thanks so much for reading this issue! We’re almost a month into school, and I hope it hasn’t been too stressful. We can get through this together! I’d like to thank the Locksmith Committee (as usual) for helping me get this issue out to you this hectic month. In addition, I’d like to thank everyone who submitted articles and photos for this issue. I was shocked at the amount we got! Remember to continue volunteering and submitting articles and photos!

Sending love <3

Hey guys! We wanted to kick off the new school year with a new issue of the Locksmith! For those who didn’t know, we are going to try our best to start published monthly issues, so you can get your Locksmith-fix every month now! I wanted to thank all of the returning members of the Locksmith Committee for their continued effort in putting out the best content for everyone to read, and a warm welcome to all of the new Locksmith Committee members! We’re so excited to have you and look forward to working with you in our next issue!

Announcements from Stuyvesant Key Club To everyone who is considering joining Key Club, thanks for reading the Locksmith, our monthly newsletter! There is so much you can do in Stuyvesant Key Club, and here’s a list of them.

As a Key Clubber, you can… ● Give back to the community! Key Club is all about volunteering at many events. ● See other people from different high schools! There are many Key Clubs in NYC, and schools such as Bronx Science, Brooklyn Tech, LaGuardia, and NEST+m have Key Clubs. Some Key Clubs volunteer at the same events we do, so you get to meet new people across the city. ● Participate in fundraisers! This year, we’ve already had two fundraisers: one at Dave and Buster’s and one at World Ice Arena. The money raised in these fundraisers often go to amazing causes, and we often raise hundreds of dollars. ● Join cool committees! There are six committees to join: Art, Locksmith, Fundraising, New Projects, Web/Video, and Public Relations! All of them have different experiences that are equally fun. ● Have amazing leadership opportunities! Key Club International is run completely by students, which is so mind-blowing. You can lead the club, the division, the district, and even the organization! ● Get free food and stuff! A lot of Key Club events give out free food, shirts, and other things. ● Be part of a really amazing community. Key Clubbers are some of the kindest and coolest people I know.

Stressed out from your tiresome school days? Join us on Columbus Day for the first ever inter-division Color Wars! This is a great chance for you to exercise right before hibernation season, meet new people, and hit on that cutie from another club ;). There will be a wide variety of team building such as RELAY RACES, FREEZE TAG, TUG OF WAR, EGG SPOON RACES, THREE LEG RACES AND MUCH MORE. Not athletic? Don't worry! Our main goal is for everyone to have fun and to break a little bit of a sweat.

Feel free to bring your own food if you're in a sharing mood or just chow down on a delicious buffet of food coming on the day of!

In addition to that, we will be giving out prizes! Compete for gift cards, Dave and Buster cards, and surprise goodie bags! We will be holding raffles, auctions, contests, and more!

Don't know how to get there? We'll have meet-ups in Queens at the Flushing Library and in Brooklyn at the Atlantic-Barclays Center.

All proceeds go to NAHA, so come enjoy yourself and improve the lives of those in need!

Date: Columbus Day- October 9 Time: 10 am- 5 pm(actual event) Meet-ups: 9 am Cost: $10 ($7 if you bring food! ) Location: Rockefeller Park near Stuyvesant High School Sign up here!

Announcements from Division 11 Our Ninja Panda BBQ with Division 8 was on September 16th, and we raised $350 for the Honeybee Conservatory! Thanks so much to everyone that went.

Bronx Science Key Club and Staten Island Tech Key Club had a tie dye and picnic fundraiser on September 22nd, and they were able to raise $400 for the Honeybee Conservatory. Congrats to them!

LaGuardia Key Club is hosting a karaoke night fundraiser on October 21st from 1:30pm to 4:00pm! It will be at Soho KTV in Flushing and will cost $10. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ll be super lit, so I hope you go!

Announcements from New York District Key Club Thank you to everyone who attended the Kiwanis Family Picnic on September 2nd! Over 90 people attended, and we were able to raise over $750 for the Kiwanis Pediatric Trauma Center in Long Island! Look forward to the picnic happening next year.

The New Opportunities Fund is giving out funds for Key Clubbers to finance any Key Club project. Key Clubbers can request funds from $100 to $2,000.

Applications are now open, and they are due October 15 at midnight. A notification email will be sent out to all applicants during the second week of January 2018 about their application status. This is a great way to fund any amazing projects for the next service year.

Announcements from Key Club International UNICEF Trick or Treat boxes have started! Collect money with UNICEF to protect a mother and her children from neonatal and maternal tetanus. Prizes will be given out! You can learn more here.

If you want to serve others, learn more about yourself and have one of the best Key Club experiences possible, join us Jan. 1-7, 2018, in either Miami, Florida, or New Orleans, Louisiana, for Breakthrough. This immersion experience focuses on learning about the host city while serving there. During service events, participants focus on the city's needs and serve alongside other members of the Kiwanis family. Find more information, the application and an incredible video about last year's experience here.

Kiwanis Gives Online is a great way to help Key Club projects gain awareness and earn more money. Learn more about it here.

The 2017-2018 International Board committee descriptions are out now.

Check them out here.

Key Clubbers from all around the world helped Hurricane Harvey victims get back on their feet. Read more about it here. keyclub.org got a massive makeover. Check it out here!

Nickelodeonâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s HALO Movement is accepting applications for Key Clubbers to receive $2,500 to make their ideas for big projects a reality.

Applications already opened and are due November 30th. Learn more here.

Timeline of Past Events ●

September 9:

Taste Talks Time: 8:00am to 8:00pm Location: Williamsburg, Brooklyn Project Captain: Justin Chan Description: We helped out at Taste Talks. Volunteers mainly were located at the All-Star BBQ. We checked off peoples' menu cards at each chef station and/or were a "floater" to assist with any needs that came up during the event.

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September 10: Taste Talks Time: 10:00am to 5:00pm Location: Williamsburg, Brooklyn Project Captain: Justin Chan Description: We helped out at Taste Talks. Volunteers mainly were located at the All-Star BBQ. We checked off peoples' menu cards at each chef station and/or were a "floater" to assist with any needs that came up during the event.

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September 16: Flushing BID Street Festival Time: 8:00am to 6:00pm Location: 40 Rd and Prince St Project Captain: Xi Lu Description: We helped out at the Annual Flushing Street Festival to display the rich, distinct culture that Main Street has to offer! There were over 70 booths of food, shopping, as well as raffles and bounce houses.

In addition, there was an orientation to inform volunteers and to distribute t-shirts.

Buddy Walk Time: 10:00am to 3:15pm Location: The Great Hall at Central Park (near 106th St entrance) Project Captain: Tiffany Zhong Description: The NYC Buddy Walk brought awareness of Down Syndrome and raised money to support the education, research, and advocacy programs of the National Down Syndrome Society! We assisted with registration, handing out food/water, handing out T-shirts and medals, or cheering the runners on.

Mid-Autumn Festival Weekend Walks Time: 11:00am to 8:00pm Location: Forsyth St & Eldridge St (next to East Broadway Mall) Project Captain: Yuki Lau Description: Chinatown Partnership hosted the 4th Annual Mid-Autumn Festival Weekend Walks! We helped put together this exciting event filled with music, performances, face painting and much more!

There were free food and mooncakes!!! â&#x2014;?

September 17: Photoville Time: 10:00am to 2:00pm or 1:30pm to 6:00pm Location: Brooklyn Bridge Park (directly under the bridge in Dumbo) Project Captain: Yuki Lau Description: We helped out at the Photoville located on the Brooklyn Waterfront! Photoville is a massive and unique photographic event that showcases over sixty exhibitions of photos taken around the globe in shipping containers. We helped greet visitors, answer questions about exhibits, and give directions.

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September 19: Stuy Blood Drive Time: 1st, 5th, 6th, 7th, 10th period Location: 2nd floor, by the scanners Project Captain: N/A Description: We assisted with signing donors up.

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September 20: Stuy Blood Drive September 23: Photoville Time: 10:00am to 2:00pm or 1:30pm to 6:00pm Location: Brooklyn Bridge Park (directly under the bridge in Dumbo) Project Captain: Tiffany Zhong Description: We helped out at the Photoville located on the Brooklyn Waterfront! Photoville is a massive and unique photographic event that showcases over sixty exhibitions of photos taken around the globe in shipping containers. We helped greet visitors, answer questions about exhibits, and give directions.

●

September 24: Bubble Tea Festival Time: 8:00am to 6:00pm Location: Broadway between 51st St and 52nd St Project Captain: Michelle Chu Description: We helped out with the Hello Taiwan Bubble Tea Festival! Major chains in the industry, as well as boutique tea shops, were on site to offer their drinks.

This was the only place in NY that you could sample teas from different stores in one block!

Photoville Time: 10:00am to 2:00pm or 1:30pm to 6:00pm Location: Brooklyn Bridge Park (directly under the bridge in Dumbo) Project Captain: Sammi Lin Description: We helped out at the Photoville located on the Brooklyn Waterfront! Photoville is a massive and unique photographic event that showcases over sixty exhibitions of photos taken around the globe in shipping containers. We helped greet visitors, answer questions about exhibits, and give directions.

National Dumpling Day Time: 1:00pm to 7:00pm Location: Doyers St (between Pell and Chatham Square) Project Captain: Sonia Lee Description: We helped out with the National Dumpling Day party hosted by Chinatown Partnership!

This was an afternoon filled with games, music, crafts and much more! We helped with the setup and management of different booths, answered questions from the public. and broke down the event afterwards.

â&#x2014;?

September 30: Riverside Park Conservatory Time: 10:00am - 1:00pm Location: Riverside Park, New York Project Captain: Kelly Chen Description: We cleaned up two locations on the Hudson River shoreline to create a beautiful and safe experience for everyone!

Timeline of Upcoming Events ●

October 7:

Undy Run Time: 9:00am to 11:00am Location: 425 Main St, Roosevelt Island Project Captain: *needed* Description: The Undy Run hopes to help knock out colon cancer and honor those impacted by the disease. We'll be helping with the set-up, check-in, water stations, the food, beverage tent, course cheering and marshaling, and cleaning up.

Sign up here!

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October 8:

Autumn Moon Festival Time: 9:30am to 7:00pm (various shifts) Location: Mott Street (between Canal and Bayard) Project Captain: *needed* Description: We will be needed to help with setting up, running the festival activities, and breaking down.

Sign up here!

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October 14:

Walk With Us to Cure Lupus Time: 7:00am to 11:30am Location: Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum -- Pier 86 Project Captain: *needed* Description: We will be distributing food and beverages to the participants, doing check-ins, and cheering on the walkers.

Sign up here!

â&#x2014;?

October 21:

Monster Mash Time: 2:00pm to 5:00pm Location: Studio 10 -- 566 Nostrand Ave Project Captain: *needed* Description: We'll be helping out at Monster Mash, hosted by NYSoM! There will be Halloween activities such as pumpkin painting and slime making. We will be helping out at booths which will include a scavenger hunt, Halloween crafts, and other Halloween games and activities! And in the meantime, you can witness a costume contest and cool DJ-ing.

Sign up here!

â&#x2014;?

October 28:

Halloween Havoc Time: 3:00pm to 6:00pm Location: Target East Harlem Garden on 117th St between 1st Ave & Pleasant Project Captain: *needed* Description: We'll be helping out at Halloween Havoc, hosted by NYSoM! There will be fun Halloween activities, themed gardens (such as Transylvania and Ghostbusters) and we will be provided costumes!

There will also be free Halloween candy.

Sign up here!

Featured Key Club: NEST+m In each Locksmith, we feature a different high school’s Key Club to spread awareness of our interclub activities and emphasize the large community Key Club fosters. This issue, we are focusing on NEST+m Key Club of Division 11.

Samiha Khan, Newsletter Co-Head: Hey Stuy Key Club!

I am the newsletter co-head for NEST+m Key Club and we’re thrilled to be your featured club for September!

This service year, our club has decided to make Holy Apostles Soup Kitchen our club charity. We volunteer at the soup kitchen many times and we’re aiming to volunteer there for at least once every month this year.

We are mostly school-oriented and focus on two annual events: Valentine’s Day candy grams and decorating our school for Pi Day. For Valentine's Day, we partner up with our school’s PTA and Peer Leaders to sell chocolate, flowers, and teddy bears for our whole school in February! For Pi Day, we team up with Math Team to decorate the entire school in celebration of our school’s love for math.

Other future events we are currently planning is the Trick-or-Treat for UNICEF fundraiser later this month and a potential Blood Drive with our school’s Red Cross later in the year. We plan on having more organized club meetings and even more events for our members!

We have our meetings after school on Fridays if you wanna stop by!

Sincerely, Samiha Khan

NEST+m Key Club at their bake sale fundraiser

NEST+m Key Club helping out at Pi Day

NEST+m Key Clubâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s first meeting!

Pho & Artic

otos & cles

Kiwanis Picnic

By Tiffany Chen When I arrived at Prospect Park, I was super excited. I could not wait to see my old Key Club friends and make new ones from Key Club, Circle K, and Kiwanis. Once I saw a few familiar faces, I sat down at a picnic blanket, where a game of Exploding Kittens was going on. I watched with enjoyment, even when turns would take minutes long due to some people being preoccupied.

When the food was ready, I automatically got some wraps before joining a game of Uno. The wraps were nice, but what was nicer was watching my new friends take pictures of each other and chat about Key Club. As I munched on some chips, I saw Aaron and Justin (attempt to) sell two boxes of chocolate, some hardcore advertising for Stuy and Bronx Scienceâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s bowling and pool fundraiser, and many Key Clubbers, Circle K-ers, and Kiwanians smiling and having a good time. I introduced myself to everyone I saw, making friends from Bronx Science, LaGuardia, and even the newly charted Baruch Key Club! I enjoyed watching Eric get pied (for $60!) and videotaping everyone laughing at the pieing. Time flied fast, and before I knew it, it was the end.

It was the first time I attended the picnic, and I am super happy I did. I made some amazing memories while having fun with friends.

Stuyvesant and Bronx Science’s Bowling/Pool Fundraiser

By Tiffany Chen I arrived at Jibs Lanes right when the fundraiser started, quickly handing my $20 to Justin before heading inside to bowl with my friends. I then found a group of six to bowl with (which became 5 after Justin dipped) and started bowling with an eight pound ball.

Our scores weren’t very high at first. Many of us got gutters. Alfredo actually got a gutter nine times in a row, and by the end of the first round, his points were still in the single digits. However, my friends and I just had fun, laughing with each other as we failed to bowl. I even almost won, which shocked me because I barely bowl.

Once we finished bowling, we waited for everyone else to finish. I played a couple of games where you try to grab a prize with a hook. I failed epically.

(Goodbye $2. You will be missed.) I then bought some wristbands guaranteeing me a slice of pizza and bubble tea before going outside to meet everyone and heading out to the bus stop.

The buses took really long. We had to wait for three buses until we got on one. The trip took over half an hour, meaning that we would be at the pool place late. It also meant that all of the tables would be occupied, leaving little room for the large amount of Key Clubbers there. We also had to play elimination games for a while, and I dreaded that since I hate those games.

After I was eliminated first, I went to play 8-ball with a couple friends afterwards, at first watching but then joining. Even though I hadn’t played pool in a long time, I ended up being pretty good. I won most of the games I played. I bought myself a bar of white chocolate to keep me going.

I had way more fun at this fundraiser than I would’ve ever imagined. I hope there will be a similar fundraiser soon.

Taste Talks

By Kenny Lin Taste Talks is a food exhibition festival with presentations on a variety of foods from all cultures. The event spanned three luxurious hotels in the heart of Williamsburg, Brooklyn. As this was my first Key Club event, I was quite nervous on my way there, especially since a delay in the bus meant I was slightly late.

However, everyone was very welcoming and I felt at home almost immediately.

We were all given individual shifts to help out with the event. While some people worked in the check in table, registering people for the exhibition, others worked as floaters, assisting in whatever tasks they were delegated.

I was appointed to meet and greet, so I directed people down to the different talks as well as answered any clarifying questions. With our help, Taste Talks was able to ensure that all the festival goers were properly set up and enjoying themselves. For my second shift, I was given a company credit card to pick up various print jobs from places such as Office 11211 and Staples, which I took a taxi to get to. After that, I worked within the presentations themselves, delivering wine and sashimi samples to an eager audience.

In return for our help, Taste Talks invited us all to the Cookout, one of their exclusive events, free of charge. Unfortunately, I could not to attend, something that I regretted enormously after hearing about all the delicious foods offered.

Photos taken by Kenny Lin

Photos taken by Kenny Lin

Photos taken by Tasnuba Sukanna

Photos taken by Tasnuba Sukanna

Photos taken by Tasnuba Sukanna

Flushing BID Street Festival

By Chelsea Yan The Flushing BID Festival is perfect for people who are interesting to learn more about Asian cultures, especially the Chinese culture. There were more than 70 booths of delicious cultural dishes, Chinese and Japanese cuisines, fashionable clothings, beautiful jewellery, and many more at the festival, Moreover, interesting performances by different groups of skilled dancers and artists featuring many aspects of Chinese and other Asian culture created a exciting and thrilling atmosphere at the festival. However, behind the scenes were the hard work of organizers, helpers, and volunteers If you paid attention, there were many volunteers from Stuyvesant Key Club, it is them who ran up and down the street festival, doing all they can to help everyone enjoy the experience at this brilliant festival; they were the ones directing, helping, translating, and advertising.

At around 6 A.M., the few people who walked by Main Street would have seen these volunteers working together to put up tents and organize the festival layout. They went around asking if the vendors needed any help and worked together tirelessly to organize jewelleries and clothings for sell. One volunteer, in particular, helped to take care of the vendorâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s baby while the vendor herself went to work with other volunteers to assemble clothes stands.

Just before 10 A.M., right before the Queens Library booth was about to open and start its day, more than a dozen high school volunteers stood around the booth, quickly putting flyers, gifts, and pencils into the provided gift bags. A few more stood outside the booth, translating to visitors and advertising the benefits of Queens Library. Long lines of visitors stood around to watch the coordinated and organized teamwork of the volunteers and waited patiently for the booth to open, When the booth did open, the volunteers explained more about the benefits of Queens Library and the services provided at the library. When after the first wave of people left, the project captain, Lu Xi, stood djhk

at the booth for hours translating and advertising.

Throughout the day, the volunteers did not stop helping people. They translated for the traders and the visitors, gave up flyers and directed people around. Although the temperature was high, youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;d see them anywhere and anytime.

I am glad I got this opportunity to work as a volunteer at this festival, it was incredibly interesting and I loved it.

Photos taken by Chelsea Yan

Photos taken by Chelsea Yan

Photos taken by Chelsea Yan

Photos taken by Penny Wang

Photos taken by Penny Wang

Photos taken by Vincent Huang

Photos taken by Vincent Huang

Photos taken by Karen Lin

Photos taken by Karen Lin

Photos taken by Irene Chen

Photos taken by Irene Chen

By Vincent Huang The alarm rang abruptly, and I awoke, unaware that the day was going to be one of the most memorable days of my life. As I arrived at Flushing, I peered at the gloomy clouds covering the bleak and dim sky. At the site, the workers started to block off the entrances to an entire block while the tents were being set up. The supervisor, Daniel, instructed us on our tasks. I met many Key Clubbers from Stuyvesant High School, and my favorite one, Penny. We started to set up the tents and fasten them to the ground using sandbags. Although it sounds relatively easy, it is quite difficult in real life (even though we were given a tutorial). The weather conditions were less than favorable, but with the help of others, this task was manageable and fun. Once the vendors arrived, we were assigned to help around and set up. There were so many different varieties of booths: clothes, jewelry, and, best of all, food and drinks. Crowds began to form and the clouds cleared up, revealing the sun in all its glory as it shined its rays, masked by the shade of the tents.

Although we were volunteers, we were given time to enjoy ourselves, which made this event stand out. Key Clubbers were able to spend so much time with each other, and it was fun to roam the premises together. We were given free Ginger ale, which I had just found out was actually made using ginger (yeah, I know Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m dumb D:). Free fried ice-cream vouchers were given to the volunteers as well, and our fried ice cream was sizzling, hot, and sweet in all the right ways. There were so many spin-the-wheels, and if you spun them, you would get free stuff. There were water bottles, discounts to dim sum, and even dragons on sticks, which you could use to battle with and bring your greatest fantasies to real life. A couple of hours in, talented dancers appeared on stage and danced to classical and Kpop songs! A karate class even performed. The young children punched and kicked as the crowd saluted their warm and welcome efforts.

There was even a bouncy castle for the kids to jump and play around in.

Eventually, the festival came to an end after many hours of fun and the volunteers put down the tents. The day ended with a bang, only for our thumbs to die in pain the next day from the aftermath of the tents.

Mid-Autumn Festival Weekend Walks

Photos taken by Karen Lin

Photos taken by Karen Lin

Photos taken by Karen Lin

Photos taken by Karen Lin

Photos taken by Ying Zi Mei

Photos taken by Daniel Liang

Photos taken by Daniel Liang

Stuyvesant Blood Drive

By Tiffany Chen I arrived at the second floor, ready to get as many blood donors as I could. I had already signed up to donate blood, and I hoped that I could get more people to sign up. I joined the other Key Clubber, Loretta, at the table before starting my shift.

It was slow at first. I asked a few of my friends and teachers if they wanted to donate blood, but I was hit with many reasons why they couldn’t. “I don’t weigh enough.” “I have anemia.” “Last time I donated blood, I passed out and had to have my blood given back to me.” I know that these are good reasons for why not to donate blood, but at the same time, every time I heard them, I was a bit disappointed. Before I knew it, half of the period passed with no sign ups. I got pretty sad.

Despite this, Loretta and I continued to try as we talked to each other. I was able to learn a lot about her. She also learned more about me and Key Club, which was nice. When people started to come in once the warning bell went, Loretta and I advertised the blood drive one last time.

And we did it!

We got one sign up from one of my friends, and I was super happy. I left the sign up table at the second floor feeling accomplished. I got one sign up, and that’s all that counts.

Photoville

By Sammi Lin Drowsily, on a Sunday morning, I headed over to the Photoville event in Brooklyn Bridge Park. My shift was in the morning, and the start time was much later than other events that Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve gone to in the past (where shifts can start as early as 5 am!). I was very early to the event, with only one volunteer, two staff, and one security personnel at the venue. My job was at the Information Booth, so once I was there, I waited for the event coordinator and volunteer organizer, Cailley, to arrive. I took this time to wander around the exhibits just as everything was getting set up. I was amazed by the range of subjects amongst the showcases, ranging from environmental issues, to immigration and discrimination, to Broadway, to showcases of varying cultures across the globe.

There were also many more lighthearted subjects, including an exhibit that explored finding the extraordinary in ordinary objects, which was set up like a supermarket with each product featuring a photograph of that product being displayed in an extraordinary way. All of the exhibits were featured in storage containers, adding to the charm of Photoville. One of my favorite showcases was that of LGBT+ rights in Africa. The storage container was painted black, and walls were erected so that a viewer would have to wind around corridors in pitch black darkness until coming across a photograph that was dimly lit with a summary explaining the significance of the photo. I found the whole setup of that exhibit very unique and humbling, and the message was emphasized by the way it was presented. Once the event actually started, I was tasked with refilling postcards at each exhibit for visitors to take home for themselves and restocking visitor guides and maps. I volunteered on the last day of the event, so things were relatively slower, and after my shift ended, all of the volunteers were given a free meal from one of the food vendors by the beer garden at the event (which was a park where food and alcohol were served to visitors).

Overall, I found the event powerful, and I was impressed by the wide variety of photographic works featured.

Photos taken by Sammi Lin

Photos taken by Sammi Lin

Photos taken by Sammi Lin

Photos taken by Sammi Lin

Photos taken by Penny Wang

Photos taken by Penny Wang

Photos taken by Tina Chen

Bubble Tea Festival

Photos taken by Irene Song

Photos taken by Vincent Huang

Photos taken by Vincent Huang

By Vincent Huang When Penny (a fellow Key Club member) and I arrived at the blood drive table on the second floor, decorated with balloons and posters, we were greeted by a woman who handed us some stickers and pamphlets. She immediately told us to go speak in front of a class whose teacher really wanted to raise awareness about the event.

With some short greetings and notices, we were off straightaway and headed up to the fifth floor. As we peered into the room, there, we realized the weight of our actions and paced around nervously, going over our speech frantically. Once we entered the room, with the stickers and pamphlets in hand, we were able to take a good look at the students and realized that they were juniors. All were focusing on a historical documentary and took no notice of us.

However, the teacher who eyed us down paused the clip and thirty sets of eyes began to peer at us.

Overwhelmed by the daunting upperclassmen, I stuttered around in my speech and fell to the trap of constantly saying the word â&#x20AC;&#x153;yeah,â&#x20AC;? while staring down nervously at my pamphlets I was holding. Seeing my distress, the teacher slowed me down and went over how to speak publicly, helping me through the difficulties. After the brief tutorial, Penny took charge and went over the cause that we were supporting and mentioned signups. Leaving the room, I sighed a breath of relief and once we arrived back at the table downstairs, we were once again greeted by the lady who commended our actions.

We were then assigned to go around encouraging signups to any seniors and juniors wandering by, and though it was awkward every time, in us getting freshmen and sophomore mixed up with the upperclassmen and approaching them, it was a really fun experience that I learned a lot from. The horrors of public speaking that I usually turned away from were mediated by Key Club and gave me hope for future events to come.

By Penny Wang When I first learned about the Bubble Tea event on a Facebook post, I knew I had to go because nothing is better than free bubble tea. This event was on a Sunday and I was supposed to arrive at 7:30. However, after waiting for 40 minutes for the E train, which I had not known was detoured, I took the R train to Times Square. I finally reached between 51st ST and 52nd St, where the event was taking place, 2 hours later than when I was supposed to. Needless to say, my morning was not going smoothly.

Upon arrival, I was directed by the project captain to help tie the legs of adjacent tents together using zip ties and to help put up tents. I also helped wrap plastic covers around the tents. Later on, many volunteers were trying to help inflate a large bubble tea balloon. This took a while because the straw was hard to insert into the cup and inflate. After successfully inflating the large balloon, we blew up differently colored balloons to as makeshift tapioca bubbles in the bubble tea. This was definitely one of the coolest things at the event.

As the festival began, I was assigned to a booth selling intestine vermicelli and fish cake. I had to know how to explain the food in chinese and spoon them into bowls. I, along with 3 other key club members, were helping a nice couple who were helping out at the event as well. After they cooked the food, we spooned the noodles and fish cakes into bowls and sold each bowl for five dollars. These were some of many Taiwanese small eats sold at the festival. Many people at the festival were eager to try the intestine vermicelli and the fish cakes, while some were new to the idea of eating intestines. This made the experience more interesting because many people were being exposed to Chinese food.

After selling the food for several hours, it had become hot and uncomfortable. However, we were able to successfully sell all the food that was made and had acquired a lot of money. After we finished our jobs, we were able to explore the festival. We checked out other booths selling Taiwanese food and many Key Club members were busy attending to each booth. We nfakjnakjfjfnanf

also saw energetic advertising and a lot of dedication at these booths. On the other side, we saw many booths that sold bubble tea from many different chains. It was incredible having so many types and kinds of bubble tea come together in one place. We even got free delicious milk tea in bottles shaped like men and womenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s torsos as well as many Big Macs.

At the end of the event, we proceeded to take down all the tents. This was a drudgery and the hardest part of the day. The legs were very stubborn and each tent required at least 4 people to take down. However, we all pulled through and got all the tents down. Despite the hard and tedious work, we could tell that many people at the festival appreciated our help, which made the task less harsh.

Despite my aching hands and sore legs, I enjoyed this event. Besides the aspects related to food, I also found out that this festival was helping to spread the culture of Taiwan as well as raise political awareness. This festival was a very clever way to bring in many people in order to help raise awareness and I was happy to be able to contribute to this amazing movement.

Photos taken by Irene Song

National Dumpling Day

Photos taken by Rachel Lee

Photos taken by Vicky Zhu

Photos taken by Vicky Zhu

Photos taken by Vicky Zhu

Photos taken by Winnie Huang

Photos taken by Winnie Huang

Photos taken by Winnie Huang

Photos taken by Winnie Huang

Riverside Park Conservatory

By Kelly Chen The volunteering event for Riverside Park Conservancy is a nice experience but getting to the event prove to be difficult. I woke up early, knowing that the trains are usually delayed during the weekends. I got off at 125 Street and planned to walk to the location thinking that it is around 110 Street. However, the location given in the email was wrong and I ended up walking about 60 streets to get to the right location with the help of the other key club members who were also given the wrong location.

When we got to the location, we were directed to plant flowers and other plants. At first, I was clueless at how to plant the plants since I never gardened before but the task proves to be easier than I thought. The digging was the fun part but it's hard if the area you were digging had rocks in it. I manage to plant four flowers with some help from the other key club members and the coordinators. Then, we were instructed to rake up leaves. After a while, it was time to clean up. We put all the leaves that we raked up into a truck while we place the shovels, rakes, bags and other equipment in another truck. After all the cleanup, we took a group picture.

Despite all the time it took to get to the location, I think that this event was a nice learning experience.

Photos taken by Kelly Wang

Photos taken by Anupama Debnath

Photos taken by Anupama Debnath

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