Diane A. Rhodes | Contributor
The Hemet/San Jacinto Student of the Month program held its final recognition breakfast of the current school year at the Maze Stone at Soboba Springs Golf Course, March 16. Seven local high school seniors were recognized and honored for their character, love of learning and commitment to academics in addition to their involvement in school and community activities and their ability to overcome difficult life challenges. And they do this all in a setting that honors God, America, family, community and free enterprise. Students are nominated by teachers or other school personnel for making a difference in their homes, schools and communities.
Program founder and event facilitator Karena Zermeno also represents one of the sponsors, Altura Credit Union. Backpacks filled with gifts, a Student of the Month award, certificates of recognition and much more were donated by the program’s sponsors to the award recipients. Each student was invited to the podium to share their personal story, past challenges and future goals with a room full of supporters that included principals, teachers, peers and family members, as well as community and school district dignitaries.
March’s students of the month from Hemet Unified School District schools are Cataryna Acevedo. Sean Fuentes, Kevin Perales, Kaitlyn Turner and Salem Walsh. San Jacinto Unified’s honorees for March are Desiree Herrera and Soowut Rodriguez.
Hemet Unified School District
Cataryna Acevedo
Hamilton High School selected Cataryna to be recognized as an outstanding Bobcat who has been with ASB all four years, is a three-sport athlete and is someone who cares deeply about her fellow students. She helped create the Multicultural Club on campus because she wanted everyone to feel supported and welcomed. Her art teacher Rose Fickes said, “Cataryna is very inspired by creativity” and is a helper and leader in the classroom. Getting ready for the ceremony, Cataryna said she realized some things about herself that she had never really thought about before. “I realize I help my community and school in many ways. Gandhi once said ‘the best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others’ but I didn’t always feel as I do today.” Cataryna said the death of her grandfather from COVID-19 left her broken-hearted and low-spirited. “I lost all focus and motivation for school and sports,” she said. “I was mentally not okay, and I wasn’t taking school seriously.” She used the summer to work on herself and started her senior year with a better outlook but was still worried. On her first day of classes when she entered her third period art class, she felt “kid-joy” instantly. The class, and Ms.. Fickes, helped Cataryna cope with her problems and emotions. She plans to pursue a career as a licensed esthetician and continue to volunteer at her church.
Sean Fuentes
Western Center Academy singled out Sean for the impact he has had on people. Executive Director Paul Bailey said he serves as a barometer on campus and his counselor Sandy Arave agreed. She explained that Sean was a successful student since starting at WCA in sixth grade but struggled with online learning during the pandemic. Arave said Sean only earned 20 credits in his sophomore year and there was nothing she could do from behind her computer screen to motivate him. In his junior year, Sean arrived with a better attitude and set out to undo the previous year. By his senior year, he was back on track, serving as a true example of what determination can do; he never gave up. Sean said the inability to interact with classmates during the lockdown blocked him mentally and prevented him from doing what he wanted and needed to do at school. “I thought of myself as almost a failure that year,” he said about not being motivated to participate in school during this time. “I would be the first person in my family to go to college and that one year almost ruined my whole life.” He credits his counselor, Ms. Arave, as being his savior during that time, helping him turn things around. After attending MSJC for a year, Sean would like to transfer to UCR to study mechanical engineering so he can help design cars in the future.
Kevin Perales
Tahquitz High School’s top choice this month was Kevin. Principal Kari McGowan said that he is “kind of a legend” at the school, and she puts him in the same category with people such as Prince, Madonna and Cher, who are known by one name. “Because when you say Kevin, everyone knows who you are talking about,” she said. “When I told numerous colleagues that Kevin was our student of the month, everyone smiled.” He saw a need in ASB and instead of criticizing, he created a solution. Activities Director Lee Jones said, “My philosophy is that if you have suggestions, you can pitch them to the (ASB) class and you can help make them happen. Kevin accepted that challenge and started helping with announcements. He volunteered to take on projects. Other students looked forward to his input and direction.” Kevin said that growing up with immigrant parents that came here from Mexico with nothing was difficult. “My parents inspired me to become the best version of myself and gave my sister and me everything. On June 1, I’ll be the first person in my family to graduate from high school.” Kevin is captain of the award-winning varsity Titan cheer team, a varsity volleyball player and the social media manager for yearbook. “I have made the decision to attend Riverside City College to continue cheerleading and further my education. After RCC, I plan on going to UC, Santa Barbara to pursue my career in marketing.”
Kaitlyn Turner
West Valley High School recognized Kaitlyn as a scholar-athlete who is also a history buff and ASB president. Principal Gerardo Zavala said Kaitlyn has a desire to shape the future by becoming an English or history teacher. Kaitlyn said, “There are two types of pain that we feel – we feel mental and physical pain. The pain that I felt when I was in middle school was all mental and started when I was placed in honors classes.” The student dynamic was a little different in those classes and Kaitlyn said she soon realized that the other students weren’t going to accept her no matter what she did. “It’s really hard to think about what I was going through and how at that young age I didn’t realize I was experiencing social bullying,” Kaitlyn said. It really weighed on her and she felt there was something wrong with her. She was depressed and nothing was fun for her anymore. She had always dreamed of being a teacher but when she began dreading going to school instead of enjoying it, she knew she had to do something to help herself. “Instead of dwelling on the bullies, I started thinking about my teachers,” Kaitlyn said. She realized the teachers were her biggest supporters and she started making connections with them and focusing more on her academics. “The most significant life lesson I’ll take with me is that you have to be yourself,” she said. “You have to be confident in yourself and you have to rely on yourself to do your best. My self-esteem was so low in middle school that I didn’t even want to be alive anymore. To pay it forward, I’ve grown to be a giving person because I had something taken away from me, my confidence.” Kaitlyn feels that being a supportive teacher helps more than anything in the world which is why she wants to go to Pepperdine, get a good education and become an educator so she can make a positive impact.
Salem Walsh
Hemet High School’s Salem is ranked third in her graduating class and has many club associations, including being an integral member of Mock Trial. Teacher Jamie Killebrew has known Salem since she was about eight years old and said it’s been a privilege to see her grow into an amazing student and human being. She is captain of the tennis team, captain of Mock Trial and editor of the yearbook. She started a coding club for girls because she felt they were not being represented. “She saw a need and she met it,” Killebrew said, adding that “despite difficulties, she never let it compromise her education.” Salem said that one of her favorite aspects of Hemet High, aside from the amazing people, has been the endless opportunities it offers students, particularly in extracurricular activities. Since her freshman year, Salem has become involved with many clubs and groups. She has had the pleasure of participating in tennis, Mock Trial, yearbook, Computer Science Club, Breakfast Club, Habitat for Humanity Club and Link Crew, among others. “One of my greatest leadership opportunities was when I was awarded yearbook co-editor-in-chief as a junior, the youngest to receive such an honor,” Salem said. “My love and joy for yearbook has been synonymous with my love and joy for my community. Everything I do, I’m driven with passion.” Salem hopes to attend UCLA to study computer science. In her sophomore year, she started the Girls Who Code Club and hopes to one day be able to give back as an expert in the field.
San Jacinto Unified School District
Desiree Herrera
Mountain View High School’s Desiree was nominated by her math teacher, Karin Lee, who said that multiple teachers are impressed by Desiree for many reasons. She serves as the school board student representative and was elected as ASB Vice President. She also recently completed all her high school graduation requirements. “I was impressed with her focus and effort into learning her math,” Lee said. “She has become one of the finest board reporters we’ve had in many years.” Desiree began by thanking her father for being such a strong inspiration in her life and her older sister who put so much faith in her when she didn’t have faith in herself. Desiree has chosen to attend Mt. San Jacinto College for a year and then transfer to La Sierra University, which is her dream college. There she hopes to student criminal justice to become a special victims unit detective. “Throughout a person’s life, they are faced with obstacles and challenges. Obstacles I have faced are lack of confidence in myself and having to deal with the passing of my mother,” Desiree said. “One of life’s most dramatic obstacles is the aftermath of the death of a loved one. I found myself in the grieving process when my mother passed away a year ago.” She added that her struggles with self-confidence began when others told her she would never amount to anything and that she would never graduate high school. A life lesson she will carry with her to college is believing that she can accomplish anything she puts her mind to and just believing in herself.
Soowut Rodriguez
San Jacinto High School chose to honor Soowut and Principal Kristi Coulter said, “You can obviously see that he has a presence about him and I know that presence is cultivated. When I met with him in my office, there was this wisdom beyond his years, this very clear direction of where he wants to go in life. And most importantly, there’s this inner light that shines out and that’s unique.” AVID coordinator and teacher Niki Gray shared, “There’s a story that I’m sure most of you are aware of about two wolves that live inside each of us. Once wolf represents jealousy, greed, lies – all the negative darkness. The other wolf represents joy, peace, love, hope, humility and truth. Whichever wolf we decide to feed is the one that wins and I just want to tell you that the wolf this young man definitely feeds is the one with the hope, humility, peace and love. I have personally witnessed a big chunk of all of those characteristics within Soowut. He is literally one of the kindest students I’ve been around.” He has spent his summer breaks contributing to his community by working at the Soboba Indian Reservation Community Garden. He also helped distribute the produce grown there to its residents. “I plan to attend Cal State, San Marcos to major in American Indian Studies because I’m interested in learning about different Tribes, but I plan to become a professional baseball player as my career.” Soowut is on his school’s varsity baseball team and has played there all four years and recently pitching a no-hitter. A significant life lesson he said he will carry with him is to stay focused on goals to be successful and not give up during any challenging times. “I plan on giving back to the community by sharing my knowledge with the younger generation and assisting with as many events as possible,” Soowut said.
This year’s Student of the Year celebration dinner will be May 17 at the Soboba Casino Resort Event Center. For more information, www.studentofthemonth.net.
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