Coral Gables High School senior Alejandro Arzola loves acting and performing. He is the school mascot, the Cav Man.
“During the pep rallies I’ll come out with the flag,” he said. “During the game I’ll be on the field with the cheerleaders.”
He also has become the master of ceremonies at a variety of events. He started his sophomore year when he volunteered at a Special Olympics event and he was given a microphone and asked to help direct the students.
“I was, like, how about introduce them. We ended up making a tunnel of volunteers; I would get in front of the kids, the cheerleaders, the kids would walk in and everyone would be cheering for them,” he said.
Ever since then, Arzola has been hosting that event. He also has hosted the Gables talent show, along with two friends, as well as pep rallies.
At school, he’s in charge of the Improv group and is a member of Thespians.
“I do a little bit of everything. I’m more of a comedic actor but I also do dramatic things,” he said.
He does a little community theater, mainly comedic acting.
Arzola wrestles for the Gables varsity team. He played football his freshman year but found it was too time consuming to continue.
In college, he plans to major in biology because he has always wanted to go into medicine.
“I’ve had a deep passion for medicine since I was little,” he said. “I was born with a severe allergy to nuts. I’ve always wanted to understand that you can still be a regular person, like everyone else.”
They discovered the allergy the day his day care class did peanut butter sculptures. He broke out in a rash and had to be rushed to the hospital.
Arzola is a member of the Florida Food Allergy Research and Education (FARE) organization. He and friends participate in the FARE fundraising walk.
He has been accepted to FIU, UNC and UF.
— Linda Rodriguez Bernfeld
