We are always proud of the experiences of our pterodactyls. Our Community Spotlight features the stories of alumni and community members after their time at Marvelwood. To submit your story or nominate a Marvelwood graduate, email alumni@marvelwood.org.
Joey Pelaggi’s ‘16 relationship with Marvelwood began when he was in Middle School. In the summer between his 7th and 8th grade school year, Joey attended the Marvelwood Summer Program and got his first taste of Community Service as a volunteer with the Kent Volunteer Fire Department. This spurred Joey’s interest and commitment to fire safety and ensured his application to Marvelwood for his freshman year. Joey’s dedication to his placement at Kent Fire earned him the Ronshaugen Community Service Cup award in 2016. Read on to see how Joey continues to support the firefighting community and make Marvelwood proud, written by Advancement Associate for Alumni Engagement, Abbey Gelineau.
Talk to me about your Marvelwood experience.
So, my Marvelwood experience started probably before most applicants’. My cousin, Karen, is a graduate from the Class of 2002. When I was in 7th grade, my grandparents, aunt and uncle, my parents, and Karen all came together and brought me into a discussion about attending Marvelwood. So that winter we took a tour, and then that summer, I decided to join their camp program. And this leads right to community service, because I worked at Kent Fire for my community service piece of the program.
Was this a choice you made or did the camp staff place you at the fire station?
Well, my parents met with the camp directors at the time and they decided the fire station would be a good fit for me because my Dad is a career firefighter in Bridgeport. He’s actually finally going to retire in another year or two.! He’s had a wonderful career – he and I actually both volunteer at the Echo Hose station in Shelton, CT. And my grandfather was a deputy chief here, too, from the mid-sixties right up until he passed away in 1980. And lastly, my great-uncle on my Dad’s side was also the Captain here! This Shelton station has been around since 1882, so it’s definitely a real part of the community.
So, did your community service experience that summer influence your decision to apply to Marvelwood for high school?
Yes, definitely. I had a difficult year in 8th grade and didn’t realize at the time how much I needed a fresh start. And it was great that I got to continue my community service at the fire station when I became a Marvelwood student. Actually, my advisor was John Russell, who was the Dean of Students and also the fire station Captain at the time. So he was another reason that I stayed involved.
Can you describe some of the tasks you were given during your community service time?
Learning about the fire service. Learning about the medical side of firefighting. Restocking the ambulance. Busy projects around the fire house, like refilling air bottles and things like that. Kent Fire also has a Rock-’n-Rescue team, so we would often have to inspect all of the ropes they would use at places like the Saint John’s Ledges, which are right near Marvelwood. So, my responsibilities involved a lot of station modification or maintenance work, just to make it easier on the guys, day in and day out.
Can you talk a bit more about your experience as a Marvelwood student? What else were you involved with on or off campus?
I was part of the 2012-2013 HVAL Championship Wrestling team, and I was the manager of the softball team. I was a job prefect my junior year and then continued that during my senior year in addition to being a dorm prefect. I did a lot on campus in addition to all the schoolwork and my time at the firehouse.
When you think back on your time as a student, what are some of the favorite Marvelwood memories that still make you smile?
Watching airplanes from the softball field during practice! I was probably one of the only people who could look up at the sky on Skiff Mountain and name all the planes that flew over. At first, people just said, “That’s cool.” But over time, they started to ask me where the planes were going. And I would be able to say, “Oh, that plane’s going to Tokyo” or “See that one? It’s flying to London.” I could tell from the aircraft flying over because Marvelwood is at a much higher elevation than everywhere else. And then I would use my phone to check flights.
My initial career path out of Marvelwood was to become a pilot. I wanted to fly. But unfortunately, the federal government told me no, based on my diagnosis of ADHD. And there were people who asked if I was going to challenge that. But I just said “It’s not meant for me, and not meant to be.” And at that point, I switched my path to emergency management/homeland security and counter-terrorism, but that didn’t work out either! And going to Florida in 2016 was maybe the worst decision ever! I did make some interesting friends and acquaintances, but I ultimately came back to Connecticut and have pretty much been here ever since.
Sounds like you’ve had to adjust your plans and pivot a few times before ending up back in New England. Would you change anything about your journey?
Yes and no. I thank Marvelwood for how I approach a lot of what I do now. For example, a lot of the people I work with at the firehouse think about things critically, like x,y and z. I bring another perspective, and think about things differently, like reminding them they need evidence to back up or prove their opinions.
Is there a part of this work that makes you the most proud?
Yes. I love training and helping people learn. This is probably what I gained most from Marvelwood. I believe that the school’s core values are still honesty, respect, responsibility and service. And I know that I have a responsibility to the guys I work with to make sure they’re doing just as good a job here as I would want them to do at my house.
I was elected to be the Secretary at the firehouse for this year and it’s been unique, to say the least. The position means that I get to sit up at the front table and take minutes during our meetings. I also had to memorize our Constitution, by-laws and voting procedures and make sure that all our members are eligible to vote.
Would you like to continue holding this position in the future?
Well, we hold an election every year and I plan to run again because this is a job that I originally went for two years ago but didn’t get. Ultimately, I want to become Captain.
Shelton is a volunteer department, which has been great, but I have been in the process of testing for career fire departments and I want to go to fire marshal school. I’m interested in the investigation side of it, but I also enjoy fighting fires.
Any last thoughts you want to share with our community?
Really, I just encourage everybody to be grateful for what Marvelwood has given us. We now have a huge network of skills, and not everyone is given that same opportunity.
I’m lucky I had that.
