Reid wrote and submitted this essay to the LHS National Honor Society committee, as a junior in early 2002.

Leadership & Service Essay

Candidate #20

I am an example to my peers of what one can achieve when one challenges himself, despite obstacles and despite what others may say to discourage you.  I believe I lead by example.

I have overcome a major health obstacle in my life and have achieved goals my doctor said I should not set my heart on.  A few years ago, I underwent major hip surgery to partially repair damage caused by severe bilateral Legg-Perthes disease.  I spent four months in a body cast and rehabilitation lasted more than a year, yet I maintained top grades.  My doctor warned me that I would always have limited flexibility in my legs and that I would probably not be able to return to competitive swimming.  He warned that I would have the most trouble with my favorite event, the breaststroke.  Today I am a fraction of a second from qualifying at the National level in the breaststroke.

I was accepted to Philips Andover and Philips Exeter, but after spending many hours at those campuses trying to decide which to go to, I realized these schools were offering academic programs that were no more challenging than Lynnfield High.  I like to believe that my decision to stay with Lynnfield High set an example of leadership. I stuck to my commitments and to what was important to me.  I trusted what I observed and refused to be impressed by reputation alone.

To me, the only thing that those other schools offered but Lynnfield didn’t was a high school swim team.  Almost all of my teammates at the YMCA swam for their high schools.  When I began to investigate how to start a team, I was told that it had been tried several times before without success and not to be disappointed.  After all, Lynnfield did not have a pool.  With my mom’s help, I persisted and convinced the AD and school committee to allow the formation a co-operative team with Reading.  In its three years the Reading-Lynnfield Swim Team has been very successful, breaking many meet and individual records.  Last year I led a recruiting drive and we currently have more Lynnfield students on the team than Reading students.  I regularly drove several freshmen teammates to practice and helped them adjust to the practice sessions.

My days are as full and active as I think they can be, yet I take the time to enjoy life and friends. I’ve always taken as many courses I can, and taken the most challenging course levels offered.  I play saxophone in both the concert and jazz bands, and I play violin in a youth orchestra on the North Shore.  I still take violin lessons.  For much of the season, I practice and compete with two swim teams, returning home after 8pm each school night and competing with the YMCA team on weekends.  When swim season is over, I crew on the Charles River with Community Rowing in Newton, commuting there each afternoon after school. With all the homework (AP and honors), practices, and lessons I still find time to participate within my school on the math team, student council, newspaper, and in community service.  I believe I am respected as a leader because I am so active in academics, sport, music, and school life.  This requires me to juggle many demands but I have achieved excellence in everything I tried.  Many of these activities serve the community, by promoting interest in these areas and providing cultural and sporting entertainment for the people of Lynnfield.  I think this sets for my peers and underclassmen a strong leadership message that it’s possible to lead a wholesome, active life and still have fun.  In a way, this is a service to the community, too.

In summary, I am sometimes surprised when people comment that I have strong leadership qualities.  But I guess that’s because I don’t wake up each morning thinking about what I’m going to do to be a leader.  I’m simply working hard to get the most out of what is available to me.  The harder I work, the more important integrity and fairness become to me and the higher the standards I hold for myself become.  When I do think about it, these traits do separate leaders from followers.