Shannon Welsh may seem like your typical freshman (undecided major, pledging a sorority, close with her freshman floor, insert other freshman attributes here…) but this week’s campus celeb is anything but ordinary. Understated yet enthusiastic, Shannon has a passion for beekeeping (Yes, beekeeping. Hang in there with me.) that she wanted to share with the rest of campus. And what better way to share something than to start a club about it??
Name: Shannon Welsh
Year: Freshman
Hometown: Northern Rapids, Michigan
Major: Undecided, Sculpture Minor
On-Campus Involvement: Kappa Kappa Gamma, President/Cofounder of the Bee School
What got you interested in beekeeping? I read a lot about it in high school, and I’ve wanted to have my own hive for a few years but couldn’t in my hometown because they had nuisance policy. So when I got to Wash U, I started contacting a lot of local beekeeping places that have monthly meetings.
Do you go to them? Yeah, I’ve been to a couple, but it’s mostly beekeepers getting beers…
Oh…yeah, of course. If you weren’t doing this, would you have started a different club? Hmm, I don’t know. I just love bees!
Most people have an aversion to bees. What are your thoughts on that? It’s an irrational fear. Most people are actually stung by wasps and yellow jackets, but they don’t know the difference. Honeybees are pretty passive. Also, if they sting you once, it’s good riddance for them, so…
If you could compare a celebrity to a bee, who would it be? Someone hardworking and selfless…maybe an Olympian? Definitely not Jerry Seinfeld. Have you seen Bee Movie…? Uh, yeah, me neither. (Sadly this reference went right over my head.)
What’s the purpose of your club? Currently, bees are facing a lot of problems relating to colony collapse disorder. People still aren’t sure about what’s causing it, but basically the bees are disappearing. So backyard/urban beekeeping is beekeepers’ way of giving back and helping the bees out to make sure we don’t lose them. And there are a ton of benefits like harvesting the honey and wax and different bee products.
How did people react to the idea? Most people were really excited and thought it was a good idea. But I’m sure some people think it’s pretty weird.
Have you recruited a lot of friends? Yeah, a lot of people from my floor are helping me start the club. Paul Edoka is the treasurer, and he and Callie Schneider are my cofounders. It’s been a lot of red tape up to this point.
So what’s the status as of now? We’re official – we got approved by SU in December. Right now we’re primarily working on getting this hive on campus. We just got our funding passed so we have all the money for the equipment. We’re still trying to figure out which rooftop or ground location would be the best.
What do your parents think about it? They think it’s cool. They’re also wondering why the school is paying for me to keeps bees on campus…