The Olympians are coming! The Olympians are coming! Josie and Joyce, two incredible seniors have been chairing an Evening with Champions this year and have scheduled what is sure to be a phenomenal event this weekend. Keep reading to see why they were the perfect candidates for this week’s Campus Celebs!
First, the basics! Tell us a little about yourself — where are you from, what do you study, and what do you enjoy doing in your free time?
Joyce: I was born in Philadelphia, but moved to Voorhees, New Jersey when I was one year old and have lived there my whole life. It’s a small town in South Jersey about 25 minutes away from Philadelphia. Here at Harvard, I am study Chemistry and Physics. When I have free time (and sometimes when I don’t), I like to follow food blogs, explore Boston, and watch more videos of cute animals on YouTube than I care to admit.
Josie: I’m from Ohio and am concentrating in Molecular and Cellular Biology with (hopefully) a secondary in Economics. I just like spending time with friends, watching movies and hoping to explore Boston like Joyce does in my free time.
What are some of the extracurricular activities you are involved with on campus?
Joyce: I’m involved in some fantastic organizations that have really defined my experience here at Harvard! This past year, I have been a Co-Chair, along with Josie Volovetz, for An Evening with Champions, an annual, world-class figure skating exhibition that has raised over $2.6 million for the Jimmy Fund in its history! I also have been involved in Chinatown ESL in various capacities for 6 semesters and am currently one of its Directors. This PBHA program brings about 300 recent Chinese immigrants each week to Vanserg and gives them a chance to learn and practice English! Snowflake Stories is another organization that I’ve worked with for a long time. We are a group that pairs Harvard students together as writers and illustrators of personalized picture books for children in orphanages around the world to encourage a love of reading and art! We have worked with orphanages in China, Poland, and Ethiopia to name a few. I serve as an Outreach Director and an illustrator for this group, which gives me a chance to get in touch with my creative side.
Josie: Along with An Evening with Champions, which Joyce mentions above, I am a Co Director of ExperiMentors, a PBHA program that sends students into Cambridge classrooms to teach science lessons every week, and I am involved with Alzheimer’s Buddies, a program which allows students to visit a buddy with Alzheimer’s in a nursing home every Sunday.
What are some of the biggest challenges and rewards from planning this event?
The biggest challenge is the sheer amount of work that goes into planning the event. From the Harvard student perspective, it appears to just be a show, but there is actually much more that goes into it! The event is actually a weekend long marathon that begins on Friday afternoon with a tour of the Jimmy Fund for our skaters, followed by a formal Gala Dinner for our biggest supporters and the skaters! Then of course, there are the two shows on Saturday and Sunday, which each have about 18-20 performances and also feature a silent auction. Each of these shows is followed by a reception that gives the chance for our sponsors to mingle with the skaters. On Sunday morning, one of the best “behind-the-scenes” moments is the Kids’ Skate, where children who are being treated at the Jimmy Fund and their families are invited to come skate with the stars and attend a fun, pizza-filled reception afterwards! It is absolutely heartwarming. Our board of Harvard students works tirelessly to plan each of these aspects, so as you can imagine it takes a lot of time! We work throughout the summer to make sure it all gets done.
The most rewarding part of the planning this event is knowing that it is all going to an amazing cause and seeing the product of our work the weekend of our show! As Co Chairs who cannot figure skate, we love seeing the performances and seeing everyone’s hard work come together. Audience members often tell us that if they hadn’t known, they would never be able to tell that students run the show, which is one of the best compliments we can get! Also, the Kids’ Skate on Sunday is always incredibly rewarding and reminds all of us why we are doing what we do. Recently, we’ve been told by some families who attend the Kids’ Skate that this opportunity is a blessing for their children who are often enduring painful treatments in their fight against cancer. This makes all of the work worth it.
Why do you think initiatives like these are so important here at Harvard?
I think events like this are incredibly important at Harvard because it takes us out of our comfortable Harvard bubble in a couple ways. First, it gives up the opportunity to interact with professionals and manage real-world situations and the occasional conflict. On another level, it allows us to be a part of something bigger than our experience here. Planning an event like An Evening with Champions puts “Harvard issues,” such as getting behind on a reading, into perspective, which we believe is incredible important at Harvard. Plus, when else would someone have the opportunity again to invite 8 Olympians to skate in a show!
Tell us more about An Evening with Champions!
An Evening with Champions is an annual figure skating exhibition that invites amazing figure skaters to perform at Harvard’s Bright Hockey Center and to raise money for the Jimmy Fund of the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. The show has raised over $2.6 million in the past 42 years. We have also been graced by the presence of skaters such as Michelle Kwan, Yuna Kim, Evan Lysacek, and many more! The show was founded in 1970 by Misha Petkevich, an Olympic skater, and John Powers when they lived in Eliot House. This year, the shows are on Saturday October 5th at 7pm and Sunday October 6th at 3pm.
What are the most meaningful things you’ve taken away from your experience?
This experience has reinforced my belief that giving back and doing good for others is one of the best ways to make yourself happy! We have also learned from our board that people can be absolutely incredible!
What were you doing this summer?
Joyce: I spent this summer in Cambridge and Boston. During the daytime, I was conducting research in the Hasan Group at MGH. This lab at MGH is a part of the Wellman Center for Photomedicine. Our group in particular studies the application of light-activated drugs to cancer treatment, and how we can use these drugs in combination with traditional chemotherapeutics to enhance treatment for pancreatic and ovarian cancer. In the evenings, I was most likely working on planning An Evening with Champions with our wonderful board!
Josie: In addition to working on An Evening with Champions with Joyce and the rest of our board, I spent my summer working a hematology lab at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, conducting thesis research. I also worked as a proctor for Harvard Summer School.
What would be your dream job after graduation?
Joyce: I wish I knew, but honestly I don’t know! I love science and research, but also love interacting with and helping people on a more personal level than science can be sometimes. I know that I love making people happy and improving the lives of others, so whatever I do will have to meet those criteria!
Josie: I am currently applying to medical school and would love to attend after graduation so that I can eventually become a physician!