Multi-faceted, Hard working, Determined: Meet Andrew Callahan.
Judging from his wide variety of interests, one can easily describe Andrew as an extremely ambitious individual.
From high school to college Andrew has shown motivation and enthusiasm in every task he’s set forth to conquer.
Born and raised in rural Newbern, near the Croatan National Forest, Andrew grew up learning to appreciate the outdoors and the environment.
His parents, both East Carolina Alumni, were avid campers and nearly every weekend took Andrew and his older sister Amy hiking through the woods.
“Our parents wanted us to learn to respect and love nature as much as they did. We both loved going camping, but I think Andy was more into it than me,” says Amy.
To this day, Andrew thoroughly enjoys daily walks or runs through the park to help ease the stress of the daily grind. “Being outdoors,” he says, “is a great release. It helps being able to breathe clean air and just be close to nature in order to re-center myself.”
Aside from camping and fishing, growing up, Andrew also enjoyed playing soccer, going to the beach, writing, drawing, and listening to music.
He was very popular in school, excelled in all of his courses, and dated the hottest girl in school.
“It’s kind of cliche, but Andrew was the type of guy that everyone wanted to be” says life long friend Jason Knowles. If anyone had a problem, they’d come to Andrew and seek his advice, “especially in regards to dating,” said Jason.
When it came time for Andrew to move onto a higher education, there were many career fields that crossed his mind. “Andrew was into everything,” says his sister Amy. “Almost every day he’d come home with a new dream job he wanted.”
Andrew had many areas that he wanted to pursue: sports, art, music, you name it.
His mother noted his strong ability to draw and enrolled him in art school.
“Mom was so excited,” says Amy, “and I remember thinking it would be cool to have a brother in art school. It seemed like something he would enjoy.”
Andrew was accepted to the Pennsylvania College of Fine Arts, but something didn’t feel right. Despite his mother’s enthusiasm, he decided against it.
He chose to stay close to home and attend community college until he could figure out what it was he wanted most.
After two years of general courses at community college, Andrew enrolled at East Carolina University and decided to pursue a career in the medical field.
Majoring in biology, he spent two more years studying hard and making good grades.
Although there was promising work for him in the future if he chose to stay in that major, once again, something wasn’t right.
“I remember talking to Andrew when he was trying to figure out what he wanted to do,” said co-worker Toby Florez. “I could tell he just wasn’t into the whole medical field”
Andrew then decided to pursue a Business degree. Because he was interested in eventually opening his own camping supply store, having a strong foundation of knowledge in the business field seemed like the right move.
After a semester of business related courses, Andrew discovered that the material seemed too standardized and predictable for his taste.
“He just wanted to be happy,” said Toby. “If you’re trying to succeed doing something you hate, you obviously aren’t going to get far.”
It was then, while trying to decide the most satisfactory and fulfilling career path, that he met Mark Kempt.
At a local book reading, the two met and casually began talking. Andrew learned of the many accomplishments achieved by Mr. Kempt, including the title of chief editor of the popular magazine Rolling Stone and co-producer of the hit Mtv show, TRL.
Mark told Andrew of his own struggles to decide on a fulfilling career path. His best advice was that once he stopped trying so hard to do the right thing and just started doing what made him the most happy, he got to the top.
Andrew is now a journalism major and has never been more satisfied with a decision.
“Andrew has a lot more enthusiasm now,” says Jason. “It was like he was a different person before. Now that he knows what he wants out of life he’s happier and more fun to hang out with.”
Andrew one day hopes to write his own environmental articles for a non profit organization.
“It feels really good to finally be getting what I want out of school,” Andrew said. “After all these years, I feel like I’m on the right track and can’t wait to see what the future holds.”
Filed under: Classmate Profiles