My name is Brenden Blair, I am a Junior in an Environmental Science major, minoring in Chemistry and Biology. I have a work study with Campus Safety in the Fire Safety Office and occasionally dispatch for them as well. I am the Resident Assistant of Blum House. I belong to a group called SARNAK that is responsible for wilderness search and rescue of the northern Adirondacks. I have been with the Paul Smith’s Gabriels Volunteer Fire Department for almost three years now as an interior firefighter. Perhaps one of my most involved positions is as the President of the Medical Emergency Response Team. If anybody out there is unfamiliar with MERT, we are an entirely volunteer group of students who are on call every night to respond to emergency medical calls on campus, providing emergency first aid to those in need. As President of MERT my responsibilities include coordination and overseeing of all MERT activities, from community outreach programs, to fundraisers, to ensuring continuity of day-to-day operations. At times I wonder if this is all worth it, being so busy all the time leaves so little time for friends. But when the one call comes through where we can truly make a difference in someone’s life, it all becomes worth it in the blink of an eye.
Where is your favorite place on campus?
The front porch of Blum House. To sit out there for a moment, and watch the water and the clouds, the trees and the serenity of it all is like hitting a reset button that gives me the energy to continue on through the day.
What is one piece of advice or information you’d give to your fellow students?
Get involved!!! There are so many opportunities on campus to aid the community and give back. It gets you out of the dorm room, it’s a distraction from school, these things look great on a job application, you help the community while increasing your human capital, and at the end of the day it just feels good!
What is one piece of advice or information you’d give to faculty and staff?
Some faculty and staff here are truly great. They are down to earth, understanding but firm, and can see the greater picture. However there is always a percentage of any group – faculty, staff, and especially the administration in our case – that lack real life experience and, dare I say it, common sense. My advice would be to this percentage and those on top of the hill, re-evaluate your priorities and get them straight.
