Name: Bree Amborn
Hometown: Black River Falls Wisconsin
Age: 21
Major: Media/Communication Studies
Year: Senior
Her Campus (HC): Wow, so you’re a long way from home! What made you decide to come to FSU?
Breanna Amborn (BA): I am #blessed with Florida Prepaid, so in high school I started looking at schools in Florida. I chose FSU one, because it’s a beautiful campus. But more importantly, two, when I toured the campus they were so excited to have me here. Other schools *cough cough, UF* told me about how great they were, FSU told me how great I was.
HC: Well, FSU was right about that! What was the first organization you became involved with here?
BA: The Marching Chiefs Color Guard! I’ve been a member all four years I’ve been at FSU.
HC: That’s so awesome! Being involved with the Marching Chiefs has brought you so many other wonderful opportunities. Would you mind telling us about other things you’ve been able to accomplish because of Marching Chiefs?
BA: I was fortunate enough to be in Chiefs for both trips to Pasadena. I recently was awarded the Hearn Family Scholarship through Chiefs, which was amazing. Outside of that, Marching Chiefs plugged me into all of my other involvements – RA, OL, APhiO, Be the Match, Dance Marathon and studying abroad. I’m extremely lucky.
HC: What were you able to do with Be the Match?
BA: I joined the Be the Match National Marrow Donor Program my sophomore year. The NMDP finds bone marrow matches for patients with cancer or other life threatening diseases. Only 1/38,000 people are a match for a patient & I ended up being a match with a woman with Myelofibrosis. I went on to donate peripheral blood stem cells to her and now, a year and a half later, she is healthy and back to her normal life!
HC: You were previously a Resident Assistant in Smith Hall for two years. What made you want to be an RA, and what was your favorite part about the job?
BA: I wanted to be a RA because of the community I had on my floor freshman year in Kellum Hall. We were so close; I wouldn’t have made it through my first year as an out-of-state student without those girls. I wanted to help a group of residents experience that same feeling I did my freshman year.
HC: On top of being in Marching Chiefs and an RA, you also managed to make time for being an Orientation Leader AND a member of Alpha Phi Omega. Could you tell us what Alpha Phi Omega is and what they do?
BA: Alpha Phi Omega is a national co-ed service fraternity. We do a lot of service projects on campus as well as in the Tallahassee community. For example, we’ve done service projects with the humane society, campus clean up, dance marathon… Pretty much any service project you can think of—we do it.
HC: For some people who might be interested in wanting to be an Orientation Leader, what advice would you have for them?
BA: Just be yourself! The entire process is meant to be an opportunity to grow as a leader & person, but also to have fun! If you are at all interested, apply. If you don’t get it the first time, apply the next year. I had to apply twice and I am so glad I tried again.
HC: I’m pretty sure you’re more involved here than anyone else I’ve met. I can’t imagine juggling so many roles! How are you able to handle taking part in all of these groups while still keeping up with school?
BA: I think it would be more difficult to manage everything if I didn’t thoroughly enjoy all I do. I guess I’ve just gotten good at time management!
HC: Out of all of these different groups you’ve been involved with, which one would you say was your favorite, and why?
BA: That’s hard. I love each of them for different reasons. I don’t know if it’s my favorite, but I would say the most fun opportunity I had was studying abroad. FSU’s international program is amazing and I would highly encourage everyone to study abroad.
HC: You’re always posting these amazing pictures on Instagram with the caption #AdventuresWithBree, and it makes me so jealous. Some pictures are even from beautiful places in or around Tallahassee that I’ve never heard of before. How do you find them all? I must know your ways.
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BA: Honestly #AdventuresWithBree started kind of randomly. I visited Wakulla Springs with some friends and I was in awe of the beauty that we have right here in Tallahassee. So I started driving around town to look for areas that looked interesting. I looked on Google Maps for green areas, I would search locations on Instagram and I followed Instagrammers like “Visit_tally” and “Aerialtallahassee” as well as hash tags like #IHeartTally & #Trailahassee. There is so much beauty in and around Tallahassee, I pity people who say “Tallahassee sucks,” or “All there is here is the night life.” You’re missing out on some amazing experiences.
HC: It only takes one look through your Instagram to see that you love to travel. What are some of the coolest places you’ve been to, and which one was your favorite?
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BA: I am very fortunate to have done a good bit of traveling both in and outside the U.S. A couple places I’ve been are Israel, the U.K, Chile and Australia. The coolest place I’ve been is probably the Atacama Desert in northern Chile; it’s the driest place in the world. It’s really unique, rugged and beautiful. My favorite place I’ve been is Isle of Skye in Scotland. It’s the most magical place I’ve ever been.
HC: Would you say that traveling is something you’re looking for in a career once you graduate?
BA: Absolutely. To me, traveling is one of the experiences you can have and the lessons you learn are so much more valuable than any house, car or tangible item you may own.
HC: Any plans for after graduation yet?
BA: I’m moving to Philadelphia in July where I will be dedicating a year of service to City Year, which is an AmeriCorps program. I’m very eager to make a difference in the lives of students during the 2016-2017 school year.
HC: What would you like to be doing ten years from now?
BA: Ideally I will have done a good bit of traveling. I want to join the Peace Corps and try my hand at a wide variety of jobs in the nonprofit field. Hopefully within 10 years I’ll be ready to have a more stable life and settle down a bit.
HC: If you could redo your entire college experience all over again, is there anything you would change?
BA: I’m not sure if I would “redo” anything, but I definitely would have gotten involved earlier in organizations that I didn’t hear about or gain an interest in until later in my college career. Such as the Freshman Leadership Institute, Alternative Breaks or maybe even the Student Government. Overall, I’ve had a very well rounded FSU experience and I’m extremely happy with all I’ve done.
HC: Since it’s November and Thanksgiving is upon us, I have to ask: what are you thankful for?
BA: I’m thankful for my family; both my blood family and my FSU family. I have such a fantastic support system, both in Wisconsin and here. I’m incredibly lucky because not everyone has that.
HC: Do you have any fun facts or pieces of advice you’d like readers to know?
BA: The number one thing I’ve learned at FSU is to make the most of everyday you’re given. Tomorrow isn’t guaranteed. Try to look at everything in a positive light, and make every day an adventure. Even if you’re not outside exploring, every day can be an adventure if you have the right mindset.