Emerson Whiting is a 17-year-old senior at Glendale High School. She is the Origami Club president and the captain of our girls’ varsity volleyball team. During her free time, she usually reads and watches movies, but she usually doesn’t have free time, because she is so focused on sports and other activities here at GHS.

Emerson created the Origami Club two years ago, and it is a place where people can come together and create origami figures. “I wanted to bring a semblance of Japanese culture onto the campus,” she said. 

Emerson first got interested in creating this club because she was inspired by one of her old Japanese teachers, who had an origami club at Wilson Middle School. And since GHS didn’t have one, Emerson created this club herself. She also wanted people to do something fun, creative, and entertaining.

Emerson thinks she is a good fit to be the president of the Origami Club because she has a wide background in the art form and she can speak Japanese. But her friends have also helped her along the way. She feels that a leader should have certain qualities, such as showing up for the people who are counting on you and setting a good example for them.

During club meetings, Emerson explained that their activities depend on the time of year because her club members make origami pieces based on the upcoming holidays. Also, they have been involved with a nonprofit organization called  Origami For Good, where they send their artwork away to earn community service hours. Sadly, they haven’t been able to participate in any workshops, since it is hard to get permission to do so, but Emerson hopes that the Origami Club will get involved with a workshop this semester.

Emerson stated that the most difficult part of managing a club is planning and organizing everything and having people attend activities. “Certain people don’t show up to meetings,” she said, “But it’s been a blast, so I can’t complain.” She admitted that the easiest part of working with the club is just coming together and doing origami. She also loves giving her origami artwork to teachers, because their faces light up.

Emerson’s future goal for this school year is just to do for our campus. She also hopes that someone will continue the Origami Club after she leaves, but she doesn’t know if this will happen.

For those people who plan on creating a club of their own, Emerson suggests that they just DO IT. Before she founded her club, she was scared, because she didn’t want to stand up and present in front of people. “The benefits outweigh the risks, and the discomfort of it all,” Emerson said.

You can join the Origami Club by contacting their club advisor, Ms. Raij, at [email protected], or you can find them on Instagram: @ghs.origamiclub!