Help Seamus Attend NYLF Pathways to Stem

Hi friends and family!

We are super excited for Seamus to have the opportunity to attend a wonderful camp that he was nominated for this summer. I asked Seamus to write a little bit about it to explain what it is, and why we started a fundraiser. Here is the man himself in his own words:

Hello, my name is Seamus Dunn, I have been nominated to represent my school at the National Youth Leadership Forum Pathways to Stem program this summer at Villanova University. During this week-long opportunity, I will have the chance to delve into the world of medicine, learn to program a robot, and do crime scene investigation! This powerful experience will allow me to interact with respected professionals in various fields while building relationships with other students. I can't wait!

As you can imagine, this will not be cheap. Tuition is $2745 for the day program. I have already earned a $300 scholarship from the program through an essay I wrote, and I am hoping to raise the rest of the money to attend by taking on extra jobs to raise the funds I need and asking for help from you. Would you consider helping to fund my attendance? Your support would be greatly appreciated. Thank you in Advance!

Back to Dad: We are really proud of the work Seamus has put into attending this program, and thought many of you may like to read the essay he wrote for which he was awarded the "Now I Know Scholar" award. This scholarship was given to acknowledge that he "exhibited a willingness to learn from prior experiences." Here it is in full:

NYLF: My Future Career Essay

By Seamus Dunn

My dream is to become an Aerospace Engineer. Since I was little, I have loved planes and how they work. Thrust! Lift! Wheels up! This career would also combine my love of building with problem solving. It would also involve the enjoyment I get by cooperating and collaborating with other people, which helps us to work together to accomplish our goal.

Engineering would be a good fit for me because I really like problem solving! For some people, after they complete a project and they realize they messed up one little part, having to take it apart again can be really stressful. But with me, I love it! It feels good to build something, but it feels amazing to build it again with improvements. It also lets me figure things out based on mistakes. I also like to do experiments at home with vinegar and baking soda rocket ships and test out different designs of paper airplanes. But my favorite experiment was when my family got two model rockets with parachutes. On launch day, the wind was blowing hard in one direction. We launched one in the direction of the wind and never saw it again. We learned our lesson and launched the second one into the wind. It made a successful landing (A little close to the road, though).

Aerospace Engineering would suit my passion to learn about the designs of aircraft of which I was inspired by my great-grandfather who flew small aircraft. I also love to visit aviation museums. One of my favorites is the “Wings of Freedom” Aviation Museum in Horsham. While going to places to learn about aircraft can be fun, reading about the history of planes, from the Wright Flyer to the Bristol F-2 of World War I to today with newer technology like the Hubble telescope and other satellites, is also great for learning. You might find me often with my nose in a book about planes and other technologies.

Finally, this career allows me to use my people skills, cooperation and collaboration, to work together, as do Engineers. This is important to me because I excel at being a team player. I play basketball, baseball, soccer, and I even own a business with my friends! In soccer, teamwork is important because we need to be able to communicate with each other to know where we need to be. In Aerospace Engineering though, being able to communicate with each other is extremely important so that we each may be working on a smaller part of a larger whole.

As you can clearly see, Aerospace Engineering suits my passion and love for airplanes, problem solving, and collaboration. Working with your team, building and fixing your creation, and fixing the problems are great, but the best part of all would be seeing people using your creation! An Aerospace Engineer is what I want to be, and an Aerospace Engineer I will be!