I love how the Coast Guard Academy offers so many new opportunities here. Within the last month, I have been able to learn and experience so much. I got to go to New York City with APAC (Asian Pacific American Council) for the Lunar New Year’s parade. I got to learn a lot about the tradition behind the New Year and the trip also taught me a lot about leadership, communication, and organization involved in planning a trip. I was able to go again with APAC this past weekend on to ECAASU (East Coast Asian American Student Union) at Duke University with LCDR Hickey, and three other cadets. It was a really fun and educational trip and we, as cadets at the Coast Guard Academy, got to experience being a part of a bigger community with students from over 70 different schools. It was a great time to meet new people and also to run into old friends as well.
At the Academy, I have also been able to try a new sport. I just started up women’s lacrosse for the spring semester and I love it so far. It is a completely new experience for me since back home in New York City public high schools do not offer lacrosse so I only saw people from Long Island and upstate with lacrosse sticks. The first couple of weeks have been hard because I needed to learn the basics of throwing and catching, but the team is really friendly and helpful. It is strange to hear that a college allows people, like myself, to learn a sport from scratch.
I am looking forward to my upcoming summer as well and what I will get to learn during my third class summer experience whether being stationed or underway. I am grateful for all the new opportunities the academy has to offer.
More about Ellie.