A member of the second cohort of Chesapeake Bay Fellows, Deni Budman enjoys having the Bay in her backyard and has vowed to save it for future generations. When she’s not saving the bay, she loves performing with the Norfolk Academy Dance Team as the captain, acting in the annual Winter Musical, and teaching herself all of the tips and tricks of creating short films and videos.

Over the years, Deni has partnered with fellow Fellow Alice Yang to research the islands of the Chesapeake Bay. Their experience on Tangier Island on their first summer Fellow’s excursion awakened an interest in island life, history and culture. The following year, she conducted individual research on birds that live in, on and around the watershed, as well as their effects on the Bay and the Bay’s effects on them. Last year, Deni partnered again with Alice to create a day camp as a Norfolk Academy Summer Program. Their goal was to develop a camp with trips and programs that can be recreated in the future so the camp will continue after they graduate. Currently, Deni is working with Elise Turrietta and Alice Yang to organize a Benefit Regatta to raise money for the Chesapeake Bay to be held in the spring.