On May 27th, the California Scholarship Federation held its annual Sealbearer reception. It was a ceremony to honor and recognize the seniors that have achieved membership throughout their four years in high school by maintaining a certain GPA and, most, also volunteering. The ceremony began with CSF President Erica Liu (12) stating an opening greeting to the seniors and parents.

After a short introduction from Principle Egan, Cliff Numark, a candidate for the Torrance Council and guest speaker for the night, stepped up to the podium. Zach Gray (12) called Numark an extraordinary orator. “Cliff possesses both the poise and experience necessary to inspire outgoing seniors… He attributed his success to hard work and rightly encouraged students to find their success in a like-wise manner.”

David Cho (12) thought that the reception was a success. “The event was very formal so I appreciated it. The food was delicious too!” Although CSF has a high academic standard, members of the organization can enjoy themselves while serving the community. Cho said, “[Being] a sealbearer means a lot to me. I remember that was another motivation for me to be even more involved in the community events to [remain] active.”

The reception held more significance to certain individuals. Kevin Jones (12) received a scholarship from the club. To Jones, “CSF has been a club that has been one of the defining activities of my high school career since I have been able to help the community and grow from my experiences. It has been an institution in which I have fostered leadership and organization skill.” Jones, a current board member and sealbearer, summed up the purpose of the reception: “It is a time to celebrate the hard work of others and look back at all of the events that we have participated in over the course of the year.”

The current juniors of the CSF board planned the this year’s reception. Next year, the sophomores, Brianne Ahn, Stefan Ecklund, Madhu Ganesh, Ariel Kimmok,  and  Shalin Patel will plan the reception. Ganesh stated, “I will try to have more seniors come so they can enjoy the evening.” Surely the sophomores will plan another successful and inspirational reception next year.