On this week’s edition of Student of the week, the Blue and Gold staff selected Daniel Rodríguez. Rodríguez’ full name is Daniel David Rodríguez Suárez, and he is a new freshman at our school.

Rodríguez grew up in Maracaibo Venezuela. His family and he moved to the States in 2018 due to the opportunities that America offered, and the safety and economic concerns in Venezuela at the time. Rodríguez and his family moved in with his aunt for a time, but eventually found their own house. Rodríguez has two older siblings, his sister, Luii, and his older brother, David, who is a senior at Carmel. David is one of his closest friends, as they grew up constantly playing and hanging out together. Rodríguez has always felt close with his family. He has made it a priority to remain close with them throughout his life.

He also has always loved sports and remembers a deep affinity for them even since childhood. He has been around baseball since an early age, since David played. He also enjoyed playing soccer and volleyball. When he first moved to Charlotte, he played for Charlotte Independence soccer league. Rodríguez unfortunately missed the try outs this year for Carmel’s team, but he hopes to join in the future.

Rodríguez is a part of the Carmel baseball team this year. He has enjoyed the pre-season workouts and will be playing as pitcher for the team. Rodríguez states that so far “the team has been encouraging. We all have good team spirit and just have a lot of fun together.”

Before coming to Carmel, Rodríguez attended Porter Ridge Middle School. Rodríguez mentioned that, “at first transitioning to Carmel wasn’t something I had planned or even wanted, but after some thought it seemed to me like a good idea. I enjoyed making new friends. Also, the people are very welcoming.”

Rodríguez has also enjoyed his various freshman year classes. He stated that his Bible class, with Kay Brinkley, has been the most enjoyable. He appreciated the “interactive environment. We don’t just sit there. We go around the school and do different activities. It’s just not a typical class.”

Though Rodríguez is only a freshman, he already has hopes and plans for his future. He states,”after highschool I plan to play some sport, I’m not sure which or even where. For what I study, I want to major in veterinary sciences and possibly minor in sports medicine/kinesiology.”

Both Daniel and David Rodríguez have been a wonderful addition to Carmel. The freshman class and the baseball team are lucky to have Rodríguez as a part of their community.