My North Star

I made it to Philly by way of San Diego, California, joining City Year after I graduated from college last May. Even though I'm new to the city, City Year offers one of the best introductions to the city of Philadelphia. The city offers an exciting blend of history and modern day city life.

One of my very first and very vivid memories of Philadelphia was seeing the city skyline for the first time. About a year and a half ago, I was visiting the city with my family and we arrived late at night. I noticed a bright yellow circle in the skyline and it grabbed my attention immediately. I wanted to know what it was because the bright yellow color was so striking. I ended up learning that it was the clock dial to Philadelphia’s City Hall.

The sight of the building still gets me, daylight or night time. It’s a beautiful building with eye-catching architecture. It’s a sight that I am fortunate to see often since it's across the street from where we do our Physical Training (PT) on Tuesday and Friday mornings. I consider it my North Star because I’m always at peace whenever I see it and it always brings me back to the first time I saw it.

- Jackie Lopez, 23, service leader, Deloitte team at Kensington International Business High School