My name is Margaret Coppinger, but I go by Maggie. I have lived in West Roxbury my whole life, since I was born on August 13, 1997. I live with my parents, Ed and Donna Coppinger, and me three little sisters, Emma, who is 12, Ava, who is 9, and Maeve, who is 4. We live right across the street from my mom’s parents, my Nana and Papa, and we are very close with them and actually my whole family.
My sisters and I went to all different pre-schools. I went to the YMCA in West Roxbury. For elementary school, I went to the Patrick Lyndon Pilot School, a Boston Public School in West Roxbury. My sisters, Emma and Ava, have also gone there since kindergarten and Maeve starts there in the fall. At the end of fifth grade and the beginning of sixth grade many people were focused on the ISEE and they were all hoping on getting into either Boston Latin School or Boston Latin Academy, myself included. I am the oldest in my family and the oldest out of all my cousins so getting into this prestigious school was kind of a big deal. But this school is definitely not the school for everyone and there were times when I thought it was not for me, but I’m glad I stuck it out. My sister, Emma, as she enters seventh grade, will be attending Mt. Alvernia High School. She has a learning disability and she, herself, realized that BLS would not be the school for her. Leaving my elementary school and going to BLS was a very big change, but definitely a worthwhile one.
At Boston Latin I have really enjoyed a lot of classes, and really disliked other ones, but there was always something to take from every single class. I really enjoy math classes and this year, along with precalculus, I really liked my US history class. Beyond academics, I have been a part of the crew team, the basketball team, the swim team and the Key Club. I have since stopped swimming and decided to participate in the fall crew team, with the intention of focusing more on rowing, which is a decision I’m glad I made.
My dad is a State Representative and he represents West Roxbury, parts of Brookline and parts of Roslindale. He is now in his second term and is currently running for re-election. My dad is a big reason of why I am interested in public service. He was and still is always participating in campaigns and very involved with what is happening in our neighborhood, whether coaching sports teams, trying to get everyone the help and support they need and so much more. He always had me out holding signs when I was younger and as I got older I would go door knocking and also phone banking. It was not until recently I realized why he has always been so involved in politics, and it is because that’s where change happens. There is so much that can me done in government. Even if something seems so small it can really impact someone greatly. Government jobs and other public service careers have the ability to transform people’s lives and affect them in great and positive ways.
As I enter my senior year of high school and think about college and my future, there is most definitely a lot to consider. To be honest, I really have no idea what I want to do, but I know for a fact I want to live, I want to explore and I want to have a profound and positive effect on people’s every day lives. Currently I am looking forward to starting my senior year and graduating from Boston Latin School, hopefully with even greater dreams and ambitions in mind.