By: Drew Baxter
Not Your Average Joe
No one is the same. Joseph Cicchetti learned this at a young age through the lessons he has taken from his siblings.
“I think the biggest thing I learned was tolerance. Since I was exposed so early, I feel like I am much more mature than others when it comes to this topic. My experiences with them have allowed me to get along with all kinds of people.”
A well-liked and respected senior at Oliver Ames High School attributes his open-mindedness to growing up with two homosexual siblings. From a young age, Joe learned a lot about other people. This has allowed him to succeed in many different facets of life and has shaped his behavior.
“I do have a good relationship with my siblings,” Joe replied when asked about his relationship with his two siblings. “When I was younger I didn’t really get what being ‘gay’ meant, so it was never something I gave much thought to. Now that I kind of know the things that come with it, I have gotten closer to them. It’s different sometimes, like when my brother brings home a new boyfriend or something like that, but I think our indifferences have actually made us closer.”
Joe prides himself on being a high-character individual. His upbeat personality allows him to build friendships and relationships with a variety of people. His ability to refrain from judging others, and giving himself an opportunity to get to know someone let him positively interact with new people and build a large network of friends.
“There are a lot of things I give high value. I guess if I had to choose one, it would be the relationships I share with people. Whether it’s my friends, family, my girlfriend, I’m always trying to put them and me in a good mood.”
Joe’s success with creating strong relationships with others has led to many positives in his life. His demonstrated leadership as a person has been recognized by his peers.
“Getting captain of the baseball team is my biggest high school accomplishment. Growing up playing baseball, being the captain of your team is something you always imagine, and now that I am it’s kind of surreal to think about.” When asked about what being a captain means, Joe shared that “it means you have to have a level of accountability and responsibility. As captain, I need to make sure I’m setting a good example for my teammates and leading them in the right direction,” Joe responded with a sense of pride.
Joe is a very passionate baseball player. Since he can remember he has been surrounded by baseball, whether it be playing baseball on little league teams or going to Red Sox games with his dad. He spends a lot of his time in baseball tournaments playing for his club called East Coast Eagles.
“I plan on playing baseball in college if I get the chance. It would probably be somewhere at a small Division three school. I want to go somewhere local and try my best to limit the amount of money I’ll have to pay after graduating.”
As far as aspirations go, they do not end at playing college baseball. There are a number of things Joe has planned for himself for his life outside of high school. On the top of this list, he possesses a great passion for learning about new people, trying new foods, and seeing new places.
“I would really like to travel when I get older. The farthest I’ve ever gone is to the Bahamas, and I’d love to learn more about other cultures and locations around the world,” he shared as he looked at the ceiling, thinking about a future goal he has for himself.”
Being a senior in high school, free time is often hard to come by. When Joe does find himself having free time, he always makes an effort to take advantage of it. He works at Porticello Ristorante in Easton and has baseball practices throughout the week with games on the weekend. Additionally, this fall, Joe’s been hyper-focused on getting all of his college applications out to his prospective schools, an evidently draining task.
“Balancing work, sports, and school have been super stressful to start this year. With the added pressure I feel to get all of my college stuff in I feel like I need to lean back on my friends and kill time with them whenever possible. I’m excited to be done with the whole college process. I definitely think my stress level’s gonna go way down and I’ll have much more free time.”