On Tuesday, June 2, Mamaroneck High School welcomed Jake and Caroline Danehy, MHS alumni and the founders of Fair Harbor, a successful sustainable swimwear company, as the keynote speakers for its second annual Junior Career Expo. Created to help juniors learn about different professions and the many paths that can lead to success, the expo brought together students and professionals for an afternoon of conversation, advice, and career exploration.
The Danehys took the stage in McLain Auditorium for a panel discussion moderated by The Globe’s Editors-in-Chief, Toscane Decker, Emma Moskowitz and Jack Ilardo. Throughout the discussion, they reflected on their time at Mamaroneck, the experiences that shaped their careers, and the process of building Fair Harbor into a nationally recognized brand, offering students a firsthand perspective on entrepreneurship.
The Danehys developed their passion for sustainability and fashion long before beginning their careers. After suffering multiple stress fractures playing lacrosse, Caroline made the heartbreaking, yet important decision to change her plans for the future. She developed a strong interest in fashion, starting a fashion blog in high school and recalling that she often found herself “standing on the Lincoln Center steps begging for people’s extra tickets to go into fashion shows during Fashion Week.” As for her interest in sustainability, Caroline organized park cleanups throughout high school that helped to lay the foundation for Fair Harbor’s mission.
Jake, on the other hand, majored in geography at Colgate University and developed a passion for keeping oceans plastic-free. Studying the Great Pacific Garbage Patch motivated him to take action. This sibling duo teamed up in Caroline’s senior year of high school and Jake’s junior year of college, combining their interests in fashion and sustainability to create their multimillion-dollar clothing brand, Fair Harbor.
Many juniors in attendance were very interested in hearing about the process of creating a business and the roadblocks that the Danehys encountered along their journey. Caroline started by acknowledging that “there’s not one roadblock… but there’s roadblocks every day,” and explained that finding success in entrepreneurship comes from persevering through those roadblocks, “trying your best, and trying not to make the same mistake twice.”
Jake responded to this by explaining that the best way to overcome obstacles in entrepreneurship is to surround yourself with the right people. Jake and Caroline like to say that “[entrepreneurship] is like jumping off a cliff and building a plane on the way down.” There will always be roadblocks in your way, “but if you surround yourself with great people who have flown a plane before, it always helps a little bit.”
The Danehys ended their discussion with a few pieces of truly inspirational advice. Caroline mentioned that one of her high school mentors told her, “If you can combine something that you love with something that you’re good at, that’s really where the magic can be.” The Danehys believe that a major reason for their success was their genuine passion for their work, and noted that the determination to keep pursuing it made all the difference.
Caroline concluded with a quote that resonated with the audience. She stated that “there’s no silver bullet for success,” and that success can look different and come in different ways to everyone. The Danehys’ story proves that anyone with the motivation to achieve a goal can accomplish anything with the right mindset. The event showed juniors that success can begin at MHS and that embracing the unknown and chasing your dreams can change everything.
