Hannah Gilges

Alumni Spotlight: Young humanitarian Hannah Gilges ’ 14
 
St. Mary’s School Alumnus Hannah Gilges ’14 is a senior at Our Lady of Mercy High School in Rochester and launched the first KinderEnergy club at Mercy. KinderEnergy is a non-profit international organization whose mission is to improve the lives of young children in rural areas by offering more opportunities and access to basic education.

Please tell us about KinderEnergy and how you became involved in this effort?
During my freshman year at Mercy, my mom told me about this non-profit organization that her friend started. After my mom planted this idea in my head, I reached out to the president of KinderEnergy, Elisabeth Delgado, and told her I was interested in being a student leader.
Being in my freshman year, I was just getting used to the new school, making new friends, and learning my way around, but by sophomore year I started sharing my ideas with friends and teachers. I just wanted to see if something like this would be possible and others would be interested. After gathering a group together, I reached out to Elisabeth and started making plans for my first project. After the success of the first project—a bike-a-thon hosted the summer before junior year—I started a second project: Walk for Water.
The first event raised money to hire local Cambodian manufacturers to make bikes and, through the local church, lend them to students who need transportation to school and who otherwise might dropout. The second project, which I am still working on, is raising money for a water cistern and new rain-water roof catchment system at a primary school in Uganda. I also went to the UN twice, through the organization. I spoke at the UN Conference, "The Future and Ocean: Children and Youth Perspective on Everything Ocean."

What are your future or professional goals and what has led you to these pursuits?
Next year I am considering studying a year abroad in Spain. I went for a semester in 8th grade, thanks to St. Mary's being so flexible with my classes. I've wanted to go back for a while to visit old friends and become proficient with the language.
I'm fascinated by science and the human body, so I am thinking I would like to study nutrition, genetics, psychology, neuroscience, or something along those lines, and depending where I go to college. 

What impact has St. Mary’s School had on your life?
I made great friends at St. Mary's, including my best friend, Adrienne Porter. Adrienne and I still dance together.  SMS gave me the confidence that I can need to go out in the world, make new friends, try new things, and start projects. St. Mary's also gave me many great memories, especially the trips to Philadelphia, Adirondacks, and Washington, D.C.

Do you have a favorite St. Mary’s School memory?
I loved the buddy system, although I was always the only girl to ever have a little boy buddy, probably because they knew I had four brothers! I also enjoyed playing 4-Square in the parking lot with my whole class.
I liked reading the Stations of the Cross in front of the school, and pajama parties in kindergarten. I also loved being the second grader chosen to read during free time to the even younger children. I liked the science fair and science labs, like protecting the egg (mine didn't break when going off the ladder!  It's hard to choose a favorite, I enjoyed my whole experience at SMS.