Meghan Hamilton, Member Services Assistant

What school do you attend, and what was your major? How did you decide your major?

I am still attending the University of Maryland where I am majoring in history. More specifically, I focus on diplomatic and military history. Originally my major in school was art. After about a year I decided to change it to history. I have a love for art and continue to pursue it but I realized that history was a greater passion of mine. My love for history stems from my interest in understanding why human beings are the way they are. We live our lives based on the examples of those who preceded us. I believe history is a vital tool in paving the way for our future.  

How did you first learn about humanism? 

Although I have been a lifelong atheist, it was not until a couple of years ago that I learned about humanism. The way one might define a humanist would also describe me in many ways but for the longest time I was unaware that there was a term for it.

Did you grow up in a religious tradition? What was that like?

I was born into a large Irish Catholic family. Catholicism has a great presence in my family, but I realized at a young age that Christianity was not for me. I then took interest in other world religions which ultimately led me to the conclusion that religion was not for me, period. I do not face criticism from my family for being a non-believer although it can be cause for some heated debates.

What interested you most about working for the AHA?

To be able to go to work and genuinely enjoy and appreciate what it is that who I am working for is doing.

Have you read any good books lately? What's your favorite book?

Reading is one of my favorite activities. Currently I am reading A Brief History of Time by Stephen Hawking.  I have read so many good books; I definitely do not have just one favorite. There are a few, however, that immediately pop into my head when I am asked this question. I do enjoy Dostoyevsky’s Crime and Punishment, William McNeill’s Pursuit of Power, Kafka’s Metamorphosis, Simon Singh’s The Code Book: The Science of Secrecy from Ancient Egypt to Quantum Cryptography, and mostly anything written about World War II, the Revolutionary War, or conspiracy theories.  

If you could have dinner with any three people (living or dead), who would they be and why?

Oh boy, tough question. Maybe Thomas Paine, Galileo, and John Brown. Can Bob Dylan and John Locke come too? Neil Young? OK, I’ll need a bigger dinner table.