The Beardsley Committee hosted its third annual Career Day for students at Beardsley School in Bridgeport. (This was the first one in person.) Third and Fifth graders met with members of the Engine 3 company of the Bridgeport Fire Department. The firefighters told the students about their backgrounds and their intense training as well as their day to day responsibilities. The students peppered the firefighters with questions, many about the dangers of the job, but also, “Have you ever rescued a cat from a tree?” (Answer: “From a roof.”) “Where’s the oldest fire department in the U.S?” (Answer: “Ohio.”) Fire safety was also a topic. A tip for all of us: “Make sure the batteries in your smoke detectors are current.”
Sixth graders met with Ramon Peralta, a graphic designer who created a very successful business in brand strategy, working with such clients as Priceline and Dr. Scholl’s. He told the students to work hard at whatever they do, something his immigrant parents (from the Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico) impressed upon him from an early age. He encouraged the students to create their own brand. He said, “You all have something that everyone could know you by. Your brand doesn’t have to be a brilliant mathematician or a great musician. Your brand could be that you’re kind or thoughtful.”