2017 Edmund Jones Essay

My Life in Swarthmore

By Peter Foggo

SWARTHMORE COLLEGE

The community of Swarthmore has had a significant impact not only on my life, but on the lives of my family members, too. Over the span of my 18 years, I have lived in a total of five different houses — and neighborhoods — scattered throughout Swarthmore, all of which have provided me with the same cozy, welcoming feeling as if I had been living in each since birth. Not only have I moved around a little, but my mother has done the same. She spent the majority of her childhood in the town of Swarthmore (living in a total of three different houses), and she accordingly attended Swarthmore High School — which I now know as Swarthmore-Rutledge Elementary School. Astonishingly, my relationship with Swarthmore does not end there; both my grandmother and grandfather currently live in the Borough of Swarthmore, and my grandfather has been happily teaching at the College for 50 years. Clearly, Swarthmore has been a meaningful place for all of us!

I am sure I have not had the identical experiences that my mother had growing up in the town, although I do know we have been molded to share many of the same beliefs. Compassion is one of those core values that growing up in Swarthmore has ingrained in me. The combination of this trait with my love for basketball, which developed as I progressed through the ranks of SRA basketball, has had an everlasting effect on my life. More specifically, my experiences during the past two years on the local high school basketball team exposed me to people from different walks of life and triggered the value of compassion, amongst other virtues, too.

Our school basketball team rostered three players from Chester, Pennsylvania, who I quickly began getting to know. By about the season’s midway point, I was driving the three siblings back and forth from practice to their house, located in the heart of Chester, on a regular basis. In addition, I started inviting them to my house in Swarthmore to watch basketball games and eat dinner. These three teammates confided in me about their living situation, which allowed them to attend Strath Haven High School. Through this sharing process, we became great friends and bonded remarkably. This year, one of the guys joined me and my regular group of friends at the lunch table which solidified our friendship even more. In a short period of time, the tree brothers became some of my best friends despite our vastly different home lives.

Unfortunately, however, not all of my experiences at the high school regarding racial difference have been positive. I sadly witnessed one of my classmates, who was surrounded by his friends, make a somewhat subtle racist remark to my friend from Chester. Without hesitation, I stood up for my newly-made friend and defended his position against a flock of upperclassmen.

I believe the core value of compassion, as well as advocacy and tolerance, are true to Swarthmore and are values that I continually strive to embody. Being a well-educated white male who has benefitted in every possible way from society, I feel personally obligated to advocate for the under-represented and be the voice that many of the underprivileged may not have. The short anecdote about creating relationships with people who come from such a different background and then standing up for them speaks volumes to the impact Swarthmore’s community has had on my upbringing and life.

I appreciate the compassionate and accepting environment that is Swarthmore; in fact, this environment was one of the factors that contributed to my decision to continue my education after high school at Swarthmore College.