By Savannah Mitchell
CCC Journalism Program
From growing up in Queens, New York, to moving to Williamstown, New Jersey, Damier Mills has had quite a journey to get to where he is in his lifetime. As a full-time student, Camden County College’s drama club president, 91.5 WDBK-FM success coordinator and water park cashier, he manages to maintain a happy and healthy lifestyle while caring for himself and being reliable to others.
Growing up
Mills was born in Queens and then moved to New Jersey at age 16. After living in Berlin, New Jersey, he now resides in Williamstown with his grandparents. Coming to New Jersey was a huge change for him, especially with the city to suburb lifestyle change. After leaving his friends and his life behind in New York, he wondered what it would be like rebuilding that here. That was until he joined Overbrook High School’s Theater Department, where he met his community and some of his closest friends. Not only this, but he performed in multiple shows and even had the opportunity to write and direct his own one-act play.
Theater life
Being in Overbrook’s Theater Department, Mills realized his love for the arts and now he continues his journey at CCC, where he is president of the drama club that he not only leads but founded this year. With the theater program no longer having a drama club, Mills stepped in to ensure it came back. He stated, “Arts are just as important as math, English and science.” Alongside being a leading person for the program, he is involved in the upcoming production of “The Importance of Being Earnest.”
Radio station
Not only does Mills promote leadership in the theater department, he also serves as the station success coordinator at CCC’s radio station, 91.5 WDBK-FM. He spends much of his free time at the station and is also dedicated to his Midday Madness talk show and podcast Tea Time Talks. As the success coordinator, he looks for ways to promote the station and open up real world opportunities for students involved. Head of the radio station, Vincent Focht, said of Mills, “He is very hardworking, gets down to business when he needs to, keeps people in line, especially here at 91.5, where he is station success coordinator. He does a good job holding that position.” Mills noted, “It gives me an outlet to get my creativity out in other ways other than theater. As a station success coordinator, my job is to make the station successful.”
Career aspirations
Outside of school, Mills works part time at Sahara Sam’s Oasis Water Park as a cashier. This is not his ideal job as he has dreams of being an actor or a high school theater teacher, for which he is going to school to get his degree. In hopes to pursue these dreams, Mills auditions for shows outside of school to increase his knowledge in real life scenarios and to open opportunity and community for himself.
Community
When not at school, the radio station, the theater or his job, Mills spends time at home, where he resides with his grandparents. He described his home life as “a space to calm down after a long day of talking and being around a lot of overwhelming things.” While he loves his alone time, he equally loves being around people and is a dependable individual who is always willing to help someone out or be there for others, whether they are in need of something or even if it is just to give a smile or a laugh.