BASH students Lucia Bellino and Haydn Hallman recently have been named as Outstanding High School Seniors as part of the Boyertown Citizen of the Year Awards.
Lucia Bellino
While Lucia, better known as Lucy, makes sure she studies for her Advanced Placement (AP) classes as well as her other clubs, much of her time outside of school is spent raising seeing eye dogs.
Lucy got involved with an organization called The Seeing Eye, an organization that trains service dogs, in middle school after helping a neighbor raise one as part of a middle school. She said she was hooked ever since.
“My parents weren’t quite convinced, but eventually they came around. I got my first one when I was in eighth grade. Ever since, I’ve been raising them.”
Over the past few years, Lucy has raised two seeing eye dogs and is on her third. She will continue to raise dogs at the Rutgers University Honors College.
“One of the reasons I’m going there is because they have seeing eye apartments, so I can raise guide dogs while I’m in college.”
In school, Lucy takes multiple AP classes- including Physics, Economics, Chemistry, Calculus, Statistics, and Environmental Science. Last summer, she also took two classes at Montgomery County Community College to get ahead.
“I like the atmosphere of an AP class better than normal classes. It is more discussion based rather than a teacher instructing. I’ve always liked to challenge myself and my parents have always pushed me,” she said.
Lucy’s favorite subject is chemistry, and plans to major in it with a minor in environmental science when she attends Rutgers.
“I’m hoping to marry the two together, and use chemistry to better the environment.”
Lucy is currently the president of the National Honors Society (NHS) Club at Boyertown. She is also heavily involved with Technology Student Association and Student Council.
She served as the Student Council annual “Wish Week” chairman this past christmas, and was in charge of granting hundreds of wishes for students during the holiday season.
“It’s helped me out with gaining leadership and working with others. A lot of the time I like to take control of a project and not let anybody help. I had to learn how to divide up work, trust others, and be a leader.”
Although she said that Boyertown has always been supportive of her aspiration, she is anxious to leave and experience college life.
“I got into the honors college at Rutgers so I’m a little afraid because people there remind of myself– very uptight. I’m a little nervous for that. But I’m excited to start fresh, meet new people, and have a more diverse environment.”
Haydn Hallman
Haydn Hallman is a girl with a full schedule, and manages juggling advanced classes, three sports, church, as well as other extracurriculars.
“I think I’m very involved with the school and the community and have a positive influence on it.”
Haydn is a three sport varsity athlete: she plays sports in all seasons during the school year, including Field Hockey in the fall, Winter Track, and Lacrosse in the spring.
“Athletics get my mind off of the school work, and helps relieve stress.”
Haydn takes several AP classes, but mentioned that her favorite subject is Sociology. She wants to pursue a neuroscience degree, and will be attending Vassar College in New York this coming fall.
“I’ve always been interested in the brain, and how it works,” she said. “How a part of our body can control emotions, feelings, and thoughts,” she said.
She also attended a conference in tenth grade that prepared students like Haydn for a future in the medical field.
“In the fall of tenth grade I went to a conference in Washington D.C. We attended a lot of seminars where renowned speakers spoke to us.”
Besides academics, Haydn is involved with NHS and Green Cord– both of which focus on community service. She enjoys assuming leadership roles at her church, and often gives sermons and sings for the choir during services.
Last year, Haydn was also recognized as the Boyertown representative to the Berks County Young Woman Competition. To participate in the pageant, she had to go through various screenings, such as an interview, good academic standing, a talent, and even an athletic portion.
Haydn explained while that she has a lot on her plate, she actually likes it that way because it keeps her focused and productive.
“I think the more stuff I do outside of school, it helps keep me on track with time management. It’s a lot better when I’m in season and doing stuff. Sometimes it gets a little stressful, but it keeps me on task rather than just sitting down and being lazy.”
She mentioned that she is grateful to her mentors that have helped her realize her potential.
“My parents have always been great role models for me, and my teachers too– especially the math and science teachers who influenced me and my decision to look into neuroscience.”
Hayden is eager to start the next chapter of her life at college, but will always have a spot for her hometown.
“I’ve been waiting to go to college for a long time, so I’m very excited. It’s a good next step for me since I’ve been planning for my future my whole life– but I’m definitely going to miss Boyertown.”
