Perseverance is rewarded by Spirit of Princeton award
Dan O’Brien almost transferred out of Princeton because he felt strongly that he didn’t ‘belong’


There is a certain irony in the fact that a recipient of the Spirit of Princeton award actually filled out applications to transfer out of Princeton during his sophomore year.

Yet, perhaps, Dan O’Brien ’04 truly represents the spirit of Princeton because he persevered through those darker days and met the challenges facing him.

“I look at the classes here, and everyone is so talented. It’s impossible to not be intimidated,” he said. “I’ve been blessed to watch them. It’s elevated me, working with these people.”

This genuine, humble nature is part of what makes Dan, a graduate from the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, so likeable. Another part is the wry sense of humor he exhibits while telling some of his horror stories.

After spending a few hours listening gape mouthed to his tales of trials and triumphs, it’s easy to understand why Dan may have yearned to flee Princeton. It’s even easier to understand why so many who know him would nominate him for this award.

A select few
The Spirit of Princeton Awards were created in 1995 to recognize a select few undergraduate students for their positive contributions to campus life.

The award specifically seeks to honor students who have previously gone largely unrecognized for their contributions to the campus community. A committee of students and administrators selected this year’s nine winners from more than 70 nominations.

Recipients are presented with a certificate and a book prize, and were honored this spring at a dinner held at Palmer House. Dan said he felt thrilled but rather unworthy amidst his fellow award recipients.

“I looked around the room at the other winners, and I thought, ‘Whether or not I deserve this, it’s amazing that someone placed me in here with that guy,” he said. “I don’t really know how to define the spirit of Princeton, but every single person there had it. It was unique for each one of them.”

His contributions
Some of Dan’s award-worthy roles were as a resident assistant for the past two years, head of his club soccer team since freshman year, and team leader on a few service trips for the Student Volunteer Council (SVC).

He guesses that the main reason his classmates nominated him was his work to bring exciting concerts to campus during his job as social chair at Quadrangle Club, otherwise known as “Quad.”

“Yeah, it’s kind of a nerdy name,” he said. “What can I say? I’m an engineer.”

The concerts Dan has brought to campus, however, are far from nerdy. Some of the bands he was proud to bring were Lifehouse, George Clinton, and The Wailers.

The latest coup
Most recently he helped bring to campus Maroon 5, a popular hard rock band that currently has two hits getting air play on Top 40 stations across the country. Dan considers the concert a rousing success, although it was not without its challenges.
“When the band arrived, their tour manager came up to me and said, ‘We don’t have a drummer today.’ I said, ‘What do you mean you don’t have a drummer? Are you Maroon 4 now?’”

Because their injured drummer couldn’t play, the rest of the band did an acoustic show—said to be the first acoustic show they performed in the United States.

Lead singer Adam Levine stood on the catwalk, amidst the reaching arms of many excited audience members and spotted someone holding up a cellphone so a friend of theirs could hear the concert.

Levine took the phone, sang directly to the absent fan for a few bars, said “Next time, come to my concert,” turned the phone off, and continued singing.

“It was one of the coolest things I’ve seen a rock star do,” Dan said.

And off-campus...
In addition to improving the cultural life of Princeton students, Dan worked to improve the lives of people off campus.

He worked with the SVC on several service trips, building with Habitat for Humanity in Georgia and Maine.

The particularly ill-fated trip to Maine took place during the fall semester of his sophomore year. Dan would prefer to leave the past in the past and not dwell on all the grisly details of the excursion.

Suffice it to say that the fact that he was sleeping in a forest in Maine in November in a tent with bent, breaking bars and no waterproofing was the least of his problems.

Camping with a self-proclaimed hobbit, a wild goose chase, a trip to the police station, and an $80 dinner for four at Denny’s—on Dan—didn’t even claim the top spots.

Not dissuaded
Nonetheless, Dan remains devoted to volunteerism and is now working in Americus, Ga., at Habitat for Humanity’s home office.

Maybe Dan’s true spirit of Princeton is shown less by what he does and more by how he does it. He frequently finds himself in a leadership role, though he rarely seeks it.

“I’ve found that things don’t often get done unless someone steps forward and says they’re willing to accept accountability,” he said. “For some reason I always find myself in that position. I think maybe I wouldn’t feel like I was doing my job if I wasn’t.”

When asked what was the best thing about winning the award, the wise cracking Dan stepped aside for shy Dan.
“The most humbling thing about getting the award was remembering my freshman and sophomore year when I was thinking of transferring,” he said. “Staying here is the hardest thing I’ve ever done, but I didn’t expect recognition for it, because I felt I was so out classed.

“So it meant a lot to be at that dinner at Palmer House, thinking ‘Someone thinks I’m a part of this community, and not only that, but an important part of the community.’ It meant a lot.”