Camp Cardiac

When her mother experienced heart issues and had a pacemaker implanted, Nourhan Abubaker took a keen interest in cardiology and decided that she would become a heart specialist.

Nourhan, a student at Chartiers Valley High School, was looking for opportunities to learn more about cardiology when she heard about Camp Cardiac through a conversation with Ms. Colt. Nourhan completed the application process and was one of about 20 people in grades 9-12 who were selected to attend the camp.

"It was a week long day camp at Pitt centered around the heart and how it works and different procedures for heart afflictions," Nourhan said.

Nourhan passionately explained some of the activities in which she participated at Camp Cardiac.

"We actually dissected a pig heart (similar in size and function to human hearts) and they explained the different sections and how the hearts work. Before the dissection we had a lesson on the anatomy of the heart. We got to meet a cardiovascular surgeon who explained what he does. We also did a sonogram of the heart of one of the camp counselors. They laid it down on the table for the sonogram and we watched a working, beating heart up on a monitor. They explained how they were able to observe and detect abnormalities with the procedure and how that guided their actions on treating the patient," Nourhan explained.

Most of the lectures and those conducting the camp were med students at Pitt. Camp participants were able to ask them questions about their college experience and received great feedback on the paths available for us to take on our way to med school.

 In addition to performing CPR simulations and receiving certification in that life-saving skill, Nourhan said she really enjoyed the visit of a neurologist who discussed the interconnectedness of the human body.

"In surgery, you can't simply focus on the ailment that has been diagnosed during treatment, because other bodily functions are going to be affected,” she said. “Another day we went to an office where some of the residents and doctors practice simulated scenarios for emergency situations where an immediate and correct diagnosis is needed to save a life. That was very interesting for us to see that."

Spending a week at Camp Cardiac further strengthened Nourhan’s resolve to attend medical school and specialize in cardiology. But first, she’s planning on a double major in Biology and Business and is considering Pitt, Carnegie Mellon, Duquesne and Penn State.

"I would definitely recommend this to anyone thinking about a career in cardiology," Nourhan she said of her experience.

According to promotional material, Camp Cardiac and Camp Neuro are run by local medical students in over 30 cities nationwide, serving as an introduction for any high school student interested in exploring a career in medicine.

With a focus on both education and real world experience, Camp Cardiac provides students with an opportunity to learn directly from experts in the medical field. This summer day camp provides a foundation for heart healthy living with an emphasis on both diet and exercise. Although Camp Cardiac's primary focus is on care and maintenance of the heart, it provides an excellent starting point for careers in all fields of medicine. Learn more>>
 

Leading the Way

This summer Chartiers Valley High School student, Nicole Cain, spent a week challenging herself to become a more outgoing person and better leader by attending the Rotary Youth Leadership Awards Camp at LaRoche College.

The camp targets students who have completed their junior year in high school and have been identified as leaders in their high schools and/or communities. Once selected, students are awarded a full scholarship by their local Rotary Club to attend the week-long event.

Nicole's scholarship came from the Bridgeville-South Fayette Rotary. The program challenges students in the areas of leadership, interpersonal skills, personal reflection and discovery, and service-focused application while offering opportunities to create new relationships with other students from Western Pennsylvania.

Each day, student leaders experience workshops that challenge them to sharpen their skills.
Programs, workshops, and hands-on activities are presented by camp staff members, members of the Rotary community, and reputable speakers from the region. A daily small group discussion, facilitated by trained RYLA counselors, allow participants to grow as an individual and as a leader. Teens will also enjoy structured social activities each evening that allow them to get to know their peers on a social level.

"I heard about the camp through Mrs. Kunkel," Nicole said. "I really wanted to go because I had heard good things about it. It's what people call a life-changing experience, so I thought that was pretty cool.”

Students from all around the area participate. The students talk about the community service projects they’ve done through their schools and share the leadership potential that comes with each project. In addition, the students discussed what some schools do and what others don’t do as a way to encourage all participants improve our community service projects.

Nicole also felt that the camp's main goal to help students break out of their social "shell" to work together and accomplish a task or goal would help her as she readies herself for college.

"I'm typically on the quieter side," she said. "I'm not a very outgoing person, but this really changed that. Being around people who were a lot like me really challenged me to further myself in my own skill set. I really put myself out there and that really encouraged me to do the same with my peers here when we started the new school year."

One of the activities the camp used to show students that they could affect others positively through simple actions was called Windshield Warriors.

"We wrote friendly notes to people and went into a shopping center parking lot and put the notes on their windshields. We hoped that when they came out from shopping and read a nice little positive note, it would brighten their day,” she explained. “We watched from afar as they read the notes and enjoyed their reactions. It's just a small thing, but it worked."

"The camp was definitely was a life-changing week for me," Nicole said. "On top of the service activities and doing things with the Rotary, it was a lot of just thinking and reflecting on yourself. Who you are as a person and if you are who you want to be or if you feel you need to change. I learned that we do have the power to change who we are and that was really important for me."

Nicole, who is planning to become a special education teacher, said she would highly recommend the Rotary camp to others.

Girl Meets Government: CV Senior Attends Girl State Program

When it comes all things government, Katherine Marra knows a thing or two. This CV senior spent a week at Shippensburg University learning about responsible citizenship and the internal functions of state and local government for the Girls State program.

Girls State is a week-long program that invites young women across Pennsylvania to learn more about citizenship and government. Attendees learn to work together as self-governing citizens and understand how to participate in their state’s government to prepare for their future roles as responsible citizens. Although the program focused mainly on state government, the curriculum touched on federal and local facets of government as well.

Katherine heard about this opportunity through her mother and was sponsored through her local American Legion chapter in Carnegie.

“My mother is a member of the American Legion Auxiliary – which she joined after six years in the Air Force – and she found the Girls State program there,” Katherine said.

Only 300 girls from Pennsylvania are invited into the Girls State program every year. The program only accepts young women with strong academic achievements and leadership skills.

“All of the girls there were very qualified students with amazing achievements,” explained Katherine. “You needed a certain level of academic success to be accepted into the program. It was great connecting with those girls and their diverse backgrounds.”

The program is extremely intense, making use of every minute of the day. Participants would wake up at 5:30 am and have scheduled activities, lectures and presentations until 11 pm.

“We split into groups and developed mock cities. Each dorm floor had its own city where we would elect mayors and other government officials and tend to the business of running the city,” Katherine said.

The program also included guest speakers.

“I was surprised by some of the speakers and what they had to say. They would talk about their government jobs and their duties and what they had to do on a day-to-day basis – things that you wouldn't necessarily associate with a job such as theirs,” said Katherine. “One woman detailed the number of women's equality issues she deals with and that was something that really surprised me.”

Girls State was also a great opportunity to meet girls with different experiences and backgrounds. Katherine said she enjoyed comparing cities and finding common interests with the girls she met.

“My favorite part was meeting new people from all around the state like Philadelphia, Harrisburg and Erie,” said Katherine. “We would compare where we live and got to see how the areas differed in how they were run and the social climate.”

Looking forward, Katherine said a career in government is not in her future, but plans to apply the skills she learned in order to become a more informed citizen.

“I really don't have an interest in working for the government as a career, but it's definitely something that is of interest to me. I wanted to learn more about how government works. I think it's important and something everyone should know about,” explained Katherine.

“I'm really interested in business and I feel that you need to have some sort of legal knowledge to properly run a business and to be up on state regulations,” Katherine added.

Overall, Katherine found Girls State to be an excellent experience for girls who are interested in government and law. Although the program did not apply to her career goals, she feels government is relevant to everyone.

“I think it's more beneficial for someone who may be into law and government, but I still think they taught a lot of things that every citizen should know. I've encouraged some friends to think about going.” Katherine said.

A Green Thumbs Up for Sustainable Farming

Chartiers Valley senior, Alyson Finnerty, is taking her passion for food to the next level. Alyson had the opportunity to attend the University of Massachusetts Amherst’s Sustainable Farming and Food Systems Pre-College Program.

This week-long intensive program introduced high school students to sustainability, systems thinking, social justice and agricultural leadership and food systems – both local and nationwide. With a combination of theory and hands-on experiences in this program, students had the opportunity to learn more about where their food comes from and their personal impact on the food system.

“It was amazing. Overall it was a fantastic combination of in-class work and field work. We got to get our hands dirty but also learned what we were doing while we were doing it,” Alyson said.

Alyson was hoping to gain more experience with sustainable agriculture to help her determine if it might be something she would like to pursue in the future. Now that she’s had this experience at the Sustainable Farming and Food Systems Pre-College Program, she believes it’s a career path she’d like to pursue.

The program participants were busy all day with classroom learning from 9 am to 12 pm and field and farm work from 1 pm to 4 pm.

“Our days were filled with adventure! Each day my classmates and I would wake up, walk to the dining hall and then make the dash across campus to Paige Laboratory,” Alyson explained. “During classroom learning hours we discussed the building blocks of sustainable agriculture, food inequality in America, the role of government in agriculture and organic growing practices.”

“In the afternoon, we put on our work boots to venture out to one of the many organic farms we had the pleasure of harvesting and learning from. These included Fungi Ally (mushroom farm), Simple Gifts (organic vegetable/ herb farm), the UMass student experimental farm, the UMass permaculture gardens and the UMass organic farm,” Alyson continued.

During her stay, Alyson had had the opportunity to work in the fields at Simple Gifts Farm. There we harvested purple/ orange carrots and onions for the weekly Community Supported Agriculture they distribute.

“Near the end, I marveled at our product,” explained Alyson.  “With lots of work and passion, we had an organic gold mine of food for the entire community to share.”

Alyson also had the opportunity to meet students who are currently enrolled in the Farming and Food Systems program and get a firsthand perspective on their college experience and career goals.

The experience taught Alyson a lot about creating a sustainable food system.

“We were talking about the core of sustainability for a lot of the time we were out there – the three main components are ethics, environment and economy. There are 50 million starving people in the U.S., but 40 percent of all the food that the U.S. produces is wasted, which is horrifying to me. It's not that we don't have enough food; it's just that it's not in the right places.”

“We talked about reusing the food that would be discarded as scraps, like distorted vegetables that can't be sold can be distributed to a homeless shelter, food bank so it can be distributed. Or even composting it rather than just throwing it away. Composting can add nutrients to the soil, making it richer so the next crop grows better. Starving people aren't going to be put off by the shape of the food. They just want something to eat,” added Alyson.

“I learned that doing something you morally and ethically agree with and still making enough money to live comfortably is possible!  Happiness by means of personal fulfillment is so much more valuable than an illusionary happiness that relies on possessions,” said Alyson.  “I also learned that I want to study sustainable agriculture in college!  When I came upon that realization, I was so relieved!”

Alyson has big plans for her future and she’s willing to take the steps necessary to reach her career goals.

“I won't be able to buy a plot immediately after I'm done with school, so to start off I'll likely work on an organic farms in the west and try to team up with a couple local schools to try to integrate programs involved with healthy foods and how to grow them,” she said.

Alyson’s advice to current students trying to decide on a college major is to try out things that interest you.

She explained, "If you're a student who is looking into majors, but don’t know which direction to steer, trying a program on the subject is always a good idea!  Get hands on experience before you commit to something you have not gotten the chance to explore!  For me, it made all the difference!”     

Fighting Flames for a Brighter Future

When things heat up, Corey Weir accepts the challenge – flames and all. The Chartiers Valley junior is a participant in Kirwan Heights Volunteer Fire Department’s weekly training program where he works towards becoming a volunteer firefighter.

This program provides fire simulations and other safety training exercises to prepare future fire fighters to approach any situation skillfully.

“The fire department would have control of abandoned houses and we would smoke the houses out, practice searches and practice forcible entry,” said Corey. “Other times we just practice fundamental things like advancing a hose line.”


Corey said the program is challenging, but it also has its perks.

“It is hard work and you must be able to work with other people because you have to rely on them,” explained Corey. “It is a great activity to be a part of because it is fun, requires a lot of hard work and you have the opportunity to save lives once you turn 18.”

Although Corey is training hard, he will not be able to fully participate in all the responsibilities of a volunteer firefighter until he turns 18.

“I can go out on calls with the department, I'm just limited in what I can do until I'm 18. I can't go into a burning building. I'm not allowed to use the power tools on scene for say a car accident, but I am allowed to use those tools for training purposes,” he explained.

Along with that, the department has business meetings in addition to firefighter training to get trainees familiar with all facets of a volunteer fire department.

Corey decided to join the Kirwan Heights Volunteer Fire Department training program to complement his Law Enforcement career goals.

“I've wanted to join a fire department for a while now. I started in September of 2014 and plan to continue for [a few] years.” said Corey.

Currently he attends Parkway West Career and Technology Center to accelerate his career path while attending CVHS.

“I'm [going to Parkway] more for the training. I'm not really looking at a firefighter career path,” said Corey. “I am looking at a law enforcement career path, but I do enjoy the idea of being able to help people out on my own time.”

Corey isn’t the only one in his family who is passionate about helping others.
“On my dad's side of the family there are a lot of uncles and cousins that are part of a fire department in Somerset,” he said.

As for certifications, the fire department offers many exercises and training opportunities, but Corey can only receive formal certifications at Parkway.

Looking forward, Corey believes this training has opened many doors for him to help others in the future.

“[I like] being able to help people. That's the biggest thing for me,” he said. “I enjoy helping people and being prepared to save them if that ever needs to happen.”

Making the Goal

Long odds don't intimidate Natalie Wasielewski or Annie Katonka. The juniors were among seven girls from the Mid-Am District (PA, OH, IN, KY, and WV) to be extended invitations to the USA Hockey National Development camp in St. Cloud, MN in July.

With only 35 Division I Women’s Ice Hockey programs in the country and 18 full scholarships available, an invitation to the camp usually puts players on the radar to be scouted by college hockey coaches. The July camp was the second week-long national camp for Natalie and the first for Annie. Both have been playing since they were 5 or 6 years old and reached the quarterfinals of their age group’s national tournament last year as members of the Pittsburgh Pens Elite Girls team.

Playing for an elite travel team, on the road many weekends during the season, can be a grind mentally, financially and physically,.

"There are no open ice checks in women's hockey, but that doesn't mean it's not physical," Annie said. "It's a lot harder than people think. They know football and men's hockey are tough, but we're traveling every other weekend. It seems like we're always gone and having to catch up on school work. There's a lot of driving to tournaments. And then on the ice, we get beat up a lot. It's much more challenging than people give us credit for."

Although the skill level is high at the elite league level, it's nothing like what the girls faced at the development camp.

"Every single girl is so good that it's very competitive," Natalie said. "The hardest part of the camp is probably going through all the skill sessions before we start team practices and playing games. It's pretty physically demanding. By the end of the day I'm beat. You can see in people's faces by the end of the week that they're pretty tired. I think it just shows you that this level is more competitive and because of the skill level, participating gives you a higher level of expectation. Everybody who attends is a first liner on their amateur teams."

"It's not all on the ice," Annie added. "We worked out, did team bonding activities, and attended seminars. I learned what it takes to take your hockey game the next level and many other tips on hockey."

"Some of my favorite memories included hanging out with friends before and after an ice session and playing the games," Annie said. She then went on to explain that since all the girls attending the camp were already strong fundamentally, there were a lot of team-based activities that were focused on developing mental aptitude and learning to play in a system.

Both Annie and Natalie said they felt that they improved as players during the week.

"I felt I was definitely a better player at the end of the week because I played with some highly skilled players throughout the week," Annie said. It made it more challenging to go up against players at that level. I had to step up my game and that's why I feel I improved. Everyone around you develops and when you take your game up a level everyone around has to match you."

"The high level of hockey is what I remember most," Natalie said. "I see improvement in my game because of the camp. While I think most of the contact from colleges comes from my amateur team, the recruiters do keep aware of who has been invited to and attends the camp."

The girls also felt that there was much to be gained off the ice as well. Both said they grew socially because everyone was initially strangers thrown into a melting pot.

"It was fun to stay in the dorms," Annie said. "I roomed with someone I never met before, so it was cool getting to know people from other parts of the country and learning about their lives and home towns. My roommate was from Boston and her accent was funny to me and mine was to her. It was a good mix of cultures."

"I made some really good friends that I talk to all the time," Natalie added. "Some of the girls I keep in touch with are from Minnesota and New Hampshire. We're all different, but we have the hockey in common, so that helps us open up."

Each player has had contact with colleges and hope for an opportunity to play at the Division I level, but that's not the end of it. Seminars at the camp gave insight to the opportunities available to the girls. A college education is an important factor. Looking towards the future, Penn State is one of Natalie's top schools. Annie hopes for a D-I shot, however she's open to playing D-III at the right school. There will be national team opportunities and further down the road, the possibility of playing for National Women's Hockey League that formed this year.

"I would definitely encourage more females to get into hockey,"Annie said. "Work hard at it and amazing things can happen."