My name is Luciana Piarulli, and I am currently a Senior at Mass Academy. I’m very curious, passionate, I love music, Taylor Swift, traveling, reading, making bracelets, space, the beach, volleyball, taking pictures, and other things. I also love to spend my free time with my friends and family.
I have a lot of different hobbies, but one of my favorites is traveling. Last year, my family visited Quebec City, Canada. Not only is this city known for its European-style architecture (which allowed for me to, in a sense, visit Europe without actually visiting Europe), but there was also a park that had waterfalls. One of the activities they offered was ziplining across the chasm where the waterfall was located. This was a really cool experience, since it allowed me to get a view of the waterfall from a very unique and unusual perspective. To learn more about the falls, click here. (The website is in French, so make sure to switch it to English)
Outside of school, chances are you’ll hear me playing an instrument, since I play both piano and acoustic guitar. I enjoy playing piano more, but the sound of guitar more. I started playing piano during the COVID-19 pandemic (I think in 2020), which means I’ve been playing now for 4ish years. I started playing guitar about a year later. I love making music and being able to share what I learn with the world, and I’d recently started a social media account where I post music! Link to my Instagram!
If I’m not playing an instrument, You might find me playing volleyball. I started playing the summer before my freshman year, and I’ve learned a lot along the way. This past year, I played for Dragons volleyball club. Playing has taught me how to be part of a team and work with others, perseverance, and not to give up on the first try. The hardest thing for me to master is still my overhand serve, which has gotten more consistent over the past few years, but still could be refined.
If still you can’t find me, I might be curled up on a couch on my deck, reading and watching the sunset. Most of the books I read are romances, fiction, mystery, classics, drama, historical, or some combination of these. As of October 2024, I hooked myself on the Twilight Saga. I am currently reading Eclipse. On the far right, there's a few more recommendations from books I've read. I also recommend Where the Crawdads Sing. It's one of my absolute favorites, but my copy has been missing for a while.
Mass Academy has provided a few volunteer opportunities for their students. At the beginning of the year, we had a volunteer day where we traveled to Tatnuck school in Worcester, MA to teach the students there about different STEM concepts. My group taught the kids how to build a Davinci Bridge, and watching the curiosity in their faces as we did the activity was really cool. I also helped at one of the school's open houses, where prospective MAMS students got to come and check out the school.
Dudley Middle school is home to the Dudley Blue Devils, the town basketball league. My sister and I helped to sell tickets and run the concession stand for a few of these games. It was really run getting to support our town team while also helping out behind the scenes. Next year, if given the chance, I will probably help volunteer to help at these games as well.
At my sending school, I was a member of National Honor Society. Even though I'm no longer part of the Shepherd Hill NHS chapter, the advisor has been really nice about letting me participate in their volunteer activities. These photos were from a trunk or treat event called haunting on the hill. My friends and I decided to use an Alvin and the Chipmunks Theme for our station. We also had music playing throughout the event, and we got to dance and hand out candy to kid that came by with their families. This summer, I plan to help with a cornhole tournament that the NHS is running, as well as any other volunteer opportunities that haven't been announced yet!
I've been an active member at my church (Saint Roch Church in Oxford, MA) for many years now. I've helped at numerous pancakes breakfasts over the years, cooking at retreats, fish bakes, helping with the summer camp, etc. There's a great community of individuals that I've met through these events, and I always look forward to coming back to helping at more events. This summer, my church is running a summer camp in conjunction with other churches at the area and is also having a festival on the town common. I'm looking forward to possibly helping at both events, as well as watching my priest get dunked in a dunk tank during the festival.
Senator Fattman has run an Easter Egg Hunt at Water's Farm in Sutton, Massachusetts for a couple years now. When I started participating in the Senate Youth Council a few years ago, I was introduced to this event. First, there's a few nights where volunteers stuff 30,000 eggs with candy. The day of, all of the eggs get picked up by the kids in less than 5 minutes. This past year, I helped manage all of the craft tables that were run in between the two waves of the Easter Egg hunt. I have a lot of fun helping with event, and I can't wait to voulnteer to help with it next year as well!!!