Page 35 - Priorities #59 2014 June/July

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Casente to to to accomplish something to to to help someone to to to have a a a a a a better life ” He adds that the students with autism are starting to to become advanced enough in in Aikido to to go into the regular teen program When Casente isn’t teaching at at the dojo—or participating in in in soccer baseball and track—he can be found teaching Sunday school to first graders at his local church church St Charles Parish in San Carlos “I teach the kids about church church doc- trine but also about tolerance accessibility and [how to] love thy neighbor ” he says He started teaching there a a a a a a a a few years ago after watching his mother Alison Spong volunteerteachinthesameprogramthroughouthischildhood Infact Casente says that his his mother is is is his his biggest influence when it comes to offering up time to the community The weekly chapel talks at Priory he he he he says also help keep him on on track with his values and responsibilities Interested in in in in a a a a a future career in in in in marine biology Casente who’s heading to the the the University of Miami in in the the the fall has also been devoting his time to the the the world of science Two summers ago he he worked as a a a a a a data collector for the Marine Sci- ence Institute (MSI) in in in in Redwood City collecting measuring and categorizing fish—before throwing them back in in the the water He also worked as a a a a a a junior leader at the MSI summer camp teaching marine biology to children ranging in in in in school age from kindergartners to fifth graders This past May Casente volunteered as as as an an an intern at at San Francisco State Uni- versity’s Romberg Tiburon Center for Environmental Studies as part of his se- nior project During this time he he assisted on a a a study regarding the diminishing delta smelt population by measuring and cataloguing jellyfish Not only did he learn important skills in regard to to lab lab equipment and lab lab safety protocol but he was also able
to get a a a a a a better sense of how scientists obtain funding for research projects and how they defend their hypotheses in in the the the the lab “Since I hope to work as a a a a a marine biologist ” he says “this experience will be relevant to my future studies and work ” Though Casente admits to being a a a a a born helper he he believes that anyone even people who aren’t so oriented toward service can find volunteer work that they love Itmayjusttakealittleinvestigating andpatience “FromwhatI’veexpe- rienced there’s always some service opportunity you’re going to enjoy whether that’s teaching or helping to build a a a a house ” he he says “If you don’t like commu- nity service you probably just haven’t found the right fit yet ” “From what I’ve experienced there’s always some service opportunity you’re going to enjoy whether that’s teaching or helping to build a a house ” he says “If you don’t like community service you probably just haven’t found the right fit yet ”