By Emma Buford
Row New York is always aiding and assisting New York’s youth. This year, we have an amazing group of summer interns that are instilling a love and passion for rowing as well as gaining great experience for their future endeavors.
Collin Clarke is our high school intern from the Future and Options organization. F&O is a non-profit organization that provides students with opportunities to gain work experience. This seventeen-year-old rising senior is from Brooklyn and attends Frederick Douglass Academy. His favorite hobby is basketball. He is a hard worker and very optimistic. “My experience as a high school intern at RNY is wonderful. I enjoy working here because it makes me feel like I am giving a helping hand and I enjoy working with my co-workers. I also like working here because it introduces me to a less commonly known sport played in New York. Working here makes me want to try to row. This experience will be a moment I’ll remember because it is my first internship and job.”
Claire Markoff (in featured photo) is working with the Middle School rowers in Queens with Harlan Trevithick and Veronica Castillo. This nineteen year old has lived in New York City her entire life. As a graduate of the Bronx High School of Science Class of 2012, Claire now attends Tufts University where she is a member of the women’s crew team and a rising sophomore studying international relations. “I learned about Row New York in high school from my good friend Abre Bokhari who was a member of the class of 2012 and I was immediately intrigued by the program. Only three weeks into the camp it has been an absolute pleasure developing relationships with the rowers, watching them grow stronger and faster, and traveling with them on field trips all over the city.”
Amy VanHeel is our summer intern with the Queens high school program. She currently rows for the University of Minnesota, where she began her rowing career as a novice in the fall of 2011. She is studying political science with a concentration on global politics, and minoring in global leadership. Amy found out about Row New York through her coach at the University of Minnesota and is here in New York for a combined class and internship program with her leadership minor. Her days are filled with coaching at our Queens boathouse and helping out with academics and college visits as needed.
Row New York promotes summer employment through partnerships with various organizations and we continue to provide opportunities for young people on and off the water; whether they are alumni or completely new to the unique sport of rowing. Row New York continues to grow and a strong committed staff is key to helping our many programs evolve! We will miss our summer interns and hope that they have a wonderful school year!
