By: Amira Turner
It’s crazy to think that only three and a half years ago, I had no friends who lived in New York, let alone Brooklyn. As I prepare to graduate, I can genuinely say I now have a whole new family in Brooklyn thanks to The Vanguard.
I, of course, have to thank my incredible friends and family (if you’re not in Renton, wya?), who have always been incredibly supportive in my dream to move across the country to pursue journalism. I cannot understate how much their support and love mean to me. Mama, Papa, Ahah, you know I love all of you to the moon and back, even when I don’t answer your texts.
I’ve always had a passion for journalism, but thanks to my incredible professors and peers in the JAMS and TREM departments, I can graduate with a full understanding of what it means to be a student journalist. I also own three copies of Kovach and Rosensteil’s Elements of Journalism; I’m sure they’ll all come in handy someday.
My time on the Vanguard has been filled with stress, late nights, successes, failures, but most importantly, love. My time as a staff writer affirmed my love of journalism. My time as Arts Editor fed my love of all the culture Brooklyn has to offer, and my passion for collaboration. My time as Layout editor has reminded me to love taking risks and solidified my passion for design and print. None of this would’ve been possible without Kate Dempsey, Paulina Gajewski, and Tony Lipka. Thank you for seeing potential in me that I didn’t see in myself, and for passing down all of your knowledge to me.
Now, three and a half years later, I can say I’ve been in the photo pit at a Rico Nasty concert, covered fashion shows, attended symposiums, made new friends across campus, published zines, and honed my graphic design skills. None of those things would be possible without the Vanguard, and I wouldn’t want to share those memories with any other staff.
Some of my proudest memories at the Vanguard have been watching my peers grow their confidence and experience. Whether it’s a staff writer celebrating their first cover story or CUNY Dateline feature, or an artist or photographer seeing their work in print for the first time, getting to share my passion and excitement with our team has been life-changing.
I’d love to say my time at the Vanguard has been all sunshine and rainbows, but even my fondest memories here are marked by late-night editing sessions, last-minute graphics, and a few minor crashouts. I hope that if you all learned one thing from me, it’s to put your photos in the drive with a caption before Monday night!!!
T’Neil, Khalailah, Serena, Key, Mars, and Emily, you all have become sisters to me. I really cherish all of our juicy post-meeting gossip sessions. I think we should all co-host a daytime talk show together.
Rami ‘angel baby’ Mansi. I don’t have to tell you how incredible you are; I think you’ve known since you stepped into the Vanguard office. It’s been a pleasure to watch you blossom and spread your passion and enthusiasm to everyone you meet.
Jaida Dent, what can I say? You’re truly a joy to be around, brilliant, loyal, and a hard worker. Every single day I get to see you on campus has been made infinitely brighter. I feel so lucky to have had the opportunity to work with you, and so should everyone else who is awarded the privilege. More importantly, I feel so lucky to get to laugh with you and be your friend.
All my BC girlies (you know who you are), I love you and all of the college experiences I’ve gotten to have with you. You’ve all made Brooklyn feel like home!
I came to The Vanguard sure of what I wanted and who I wanted to be, but not quite sure of who I was. I want to thank all of the incredible people I’ve met at BC for embracing me and helping me grow into the person I am today. I couldn’t be prouder to be a BC graduate and a Vanguard alumnus.
Keep print journalism alive!