| Students Venture to the City that Never Sleeps |
 New York, “the city that never sleeps”, welcomed six Hidden Lake High School students last month who were inspired to dream big and take action. Spearheaded by sophomore Patty Valiente, the trip was organized and executed according to a well designed plan. Patty and five other students, who had never been to New York, raised money individually and organized a Pasta Night to pay for the trip. Valiente said she was looking for a way to step outside her comfort zone. “I wanted to go before I graduated, so I said, ‘let’s just do it.’” The students visited the Statue of Liberty, Time Square, the Empire State Building and other New York attractions. They also sought out unique experiences by trying new foods and going to China Town for the Chinese New Year. Sophomore Jessica Espinoza said the trip was an unforgettable experience, “We wanted to create a trip that meant something to us, so we did it from the ground up. We planned when we were going to go, and what we were going to do,” she said. For senior students Diana Carrillo and David Martinez, the trip represented a symbolic transition, “I took it as a goodbye to high school and a hello to the next chapter in my life,” said Martinez. The students also reflected on the diversity of New York; riding the subways was an eye opener. “We could see how the cultures changed by who got on at each stop,” said sophomore Cecy Ramos. “New York moved very fast, we turned a corner and had moved into a whole new cultural area, it was very different from Denver”. Hidden Lake Educator Zoe Driver helped to plan the trip and served as chaperone. She said the trip provided a valuable lesson. “They can travel to wildly different places and experience new things while not spending a ton of money, while being curious, being interested,” she said. Daniel Sanchez expressed the feelings of his fellow travelers: “We still haven’t gotten over it; we talk about it all the time,” he said. |
| Posted February 28, 2013 |
