Bella Briggeman
Grove City High School senior Bella Briggeman is a go getter. With a seat on student council, more than 100 hours of community service, great grades and a handful of other titles under her belt, Briggeman is determined to succeed and be well-rounded when she does.
Briggeman thinks of her high school experience with a smile, crediting her enjoyment to the school clubs and organizations she’s involved in.
“I thought I’d have a more enjoyable four years of high school if I was more involved,” she says. “I didn’t want to be someone who said, ‘Oh, I hated high school,’ but then I didn’t try and do anything to make it enjoyable.”
Briggeman is the treasurer for GCHS National Honor Society chapter, a student council representative for her class, a member of the news team and an active member of Dawgs for Christ, the GCHS chapter of Fellowship of Christian Athletes.
She’s also an avid volunteer, joining her church in a plethora of service events and helping out during Grove City’s Buddy Ball baseball games. And somehow, while doing all that, she goes to work, finishes her homework on time and maintains a 4.0 GPA.
“I think my parents, my family and my boyfriend all really help me by making sure that I am still going out and doing stuff outside of work and school work,” says Briggeman.
Academics First
Before Briggeman dedicates her time to anything, she makes sure that she’s able to finish her homework first.
On top of her current school work load and extracurricular activities, however, she still finds time for more – somehow.
Briggeman takes advantage of her high school’s College Credit Plus program, which allows her to take college courses through Columbus State Community College, earning high school and college credit simultaneously.
Due in part to her impressive grades, she earned her membership in NHS, which determines eligibility based on academic achievement, leadership, school and community service, and character.
“I like giving back, and I’ll do anything to be able to help people in my community and just bring more positivity to the world." - Bella Briggeman
While Briggeman excels in each category, she’s a prime example of a leader, holding office in multiple school groups. As the NHS treasurer, she’s in charge of meeting attendance, disseminating important info to other members and T-shirt design.
She’s active in student council, representing her class of 2020 peers and working with the news team to advertise school events as the student body news coordinator. Her time on student council has even influenced how she thinks about her future career.
“I’m not entirely sure what I want to do yet, but I want to go into the communications field,” says Briggeman. “I’m just not sure what exactly it is, so student council has really helped me.”
Not to mention, she recently earned the title “world traveler,” leaving the country for the first time to visit Germany for three weeks over the summer through the GCHS German Club and Exchange program.
The Spirit of Service
No matter what the task may be, Briggeman is always willing to lend her community a helping hand. Her favorite volunteer activities involve working and interacting with small children and people with disabilities.
One of her favorite organizations to volunteer for is Grove City Buddy Ball, which creates a supportive community for children and adults with mental and physical disabilities to play baseball together and make friends. While Briggeman mainly works the concession stand, she still gets to see the players’ smiling faces after each game.
Her other volunteer organization of choice is Grove City United Methodist Church. Briggeman never fails to make time for it, clearing out her schedule every Sunday to make sure that she has time to volunteer in the Sunday school classrooms.
Through her church, Briggeman was able to enjoy a trip with other church members to Ashville, Ohio, where they served local firefighters a hearty brunch and prayed with them after their community experienced immense hardship. The trip made her realize, “how God works in our lives to help other people,” Briggeman says.
“Just feeling him in that room when we were praying with them was just really amazing,” she says.
And it’s that feeling – the feeling of satisfaction – she gets from helping others that inspires her to serve.
“I like giving back, and I’ll do anything to be able to help people in my community and just bring more positivity to the world,” Briggeman says.
Tatyana Tandanpolie is a contributing writer. Feedback welcome at feedback@cityscenemediagroup.com.
