You may have bumped into her at EM Normandie, or at the starting point of the Vendée Globe yacht race, or at the Route du Rhum ocean race village, or at a ski resort, wearing the École du Ski Français uniform…
In short, Lou Di Mascio (class of 2020) is an active young woman, overflowing with energy.
“I am from Lyon, but I was rarely at home” she explains. “In the winter I would spend weekends practising skiing, and in the summer, I would be on the family boat on the Mediterranean.” Throughout the years, Lou has cultivated her love of action through sport and competition. Even now, her life choices illustrate her love of a challenge “With me, everything is a challenge” she explains with a smile. “It’s probably because of that that I am so attracted to sailing events. In this passionate job, you are always on the look-out for solutions to the unexpected.”
EM Normandie is never far from its alumni
Sometimes though, to want something is not enough. You also need to know how to create opportunities, to listen and believe in yourself. This is what happened to Lou when she was looking for work experience during her optional year. Her passion for sailing led her to the Vendée Globe Village and her wish to invest herself in a charitable cause took her to the stand of the Association Mécénat Chirurgie Cardiaque (Heart Surgery Charity). Her interpersonal skills did the rest. “Once there, I talked with the co-founder of the charity. It was that conversation that made me decide to spend the first six months of my optional year with the charity, helping them prepare for their presence in the Route du Rhum village.”
Lou was the main actor of this story, but behind the scene, the school and the Alumni had joined forces to lay the groundwork for this positive story to develop. The school had motivated its students and became a partner of the charity MCC in the Transat Jacques Vabre event in October 2017. Vincianne Cussot (class of 2006) had herself worked for this association for many years before joining Initiatives, patron of the charity Initiatives Coeur, on the MCC boat. “Unbeknown to me at the start, my work experience led me to work with a certain Vincianne who managed communications for Initiatives, the partner of Mécénat Chirurgie Cardiaque in the biggest sailing events.” It was therefore two members of the Network who worked together to facilitate the presence of Mécénat and Initiatives in the Route du Rhum village.
Your beliefs will give you the strength to bounce back
Lou has not always succeeded in her projects, but it hasn’t prevented her from bouncing back and continuing to push forward. According to Lou, “It is fundamental to stay positive because, in the end, success is only a matter of time. Believing in yourself and wanting to do those things which are in line with your principles, values and passions are both powerful tools to help motivate you to move forward after you have suffered a failure.” After her work experience with Mécénat Chirurgie Cardiaque, Lou will be off to the snowy slopes to take on another challenge: passing on her other sporty passion, skiing, to the students of the ESF. And after that? Lou would like to find her third work experience in the sector of sailing events. We bet that, thanks to her energy, it won’t be long before Lou is presented with a great opportunity.
Interview by Gildas Le Moigne (class of 2005)
