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Going on three mission trips to the Dominican Republic to help children at an orphanage is one of the ways Westminster Christian School senior Andres Cardenal is giving back to the community. The mission trips are with the Smiles4All school club.
“We would donate certain supplies like toothbrushes, sheets, or clothes,” he says. “And we would do a project for them. One year it was building a stable for animals. Another year was building a playground. Another year it was painting a mural on the sidewalk.”
He plans to go once again in the spring.
While there, they work to build a relationship with the children in the five days of the trip.
“It’s always emotional the last day when you have to say goodbye,” he says.
Another community service project he has taken on is raising money for the Music Mentor Network.
“One thing I did this past year was start a fundraiser,” he says. “As co-president of Tri-M, the music honor society, I would hand make flower bouquets and sell them at as many concerts, events, and showcases as possible.”
He also co-founded another fundraiser with the Tri-M co-president to sell musical candygrams around Valentine’s Day.
When all was said and done, the two fundraisers brought in around $1000.
Cardenal is involved in Tri-M because he sings tenor in the school choir. He also was admitted into the University of Miami Honor Choir and the Florida All-State Choir.
“People from all over the state audition,” he says. “You rehearse for a couple of days with a renowned conductor and then you perform.”
He also performed at Carnegie Hall in December of 2022 and at Pearl Harbor in March of 2023.
Cardenal also volunteers outside of school. He’s been president of the Coral Gables Police Athletic League for the past two years.
“It’s the oldest and largest law enforcement-based youth crime prevention program in America,” he says.
It’s more than just sports. It also gets kids involved in community service through the PAL sponsorship of sports over the summer and community service camps.
“For two days of the weeklong camp, we can go to a horse stable and help pull weeds or clean up the stable,” he says.
They also volunteer at a senior living assisted facility called Sunrise.
He’s been in PAL since seventh grade. They hold town meetings at the police station every other Wednesday. In meetings, they listen to guest speakers, watch Ted Talks, or do team building exercises.
“We learn real world skills, like how to talk in an interview,” he says. “Or budgeting and credit cards. Or college applications. Or public speaking. Information that you can use in any aspect of your life.”
At school, he’s in Student Leadership.
“Every summer I’ve helped plan Warrior Week,” he says. “Over 650 people attend.”
Last year he was part of the inaugural class of student ambassadors. He’s a member of the World Languages Honor Society, Mu Alpha Theta, the National Honor Society, the National English Honor Society, the National Science Honor Society, and Rho Kappa Honor Society.
He intends to take a science related major in college. The options include Engineering, Physics, Biology, or Chemistry. His college list includes all the major Florida universities.
This summer he spent a month at South Miami Hospital, shadowing Dr. Jose Martel, a Cardiac Electrophysiologist.
“I was given the opportunity to witness countless kinds of procedures such as ablations, device installations, and stent placements while standing only a couple of feet away from the operating table in the OR,” he says.
Linda Rodriguez Bernfeld
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