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Connection, diligence, happiness, and even discomfort. These are all things NS senior Fernando Montaño seeks in his day-to-day life.
Born and raised in Moroni, Montaño grew up with three sisters. It was here that he found his love for soccer.
“Soccer is like an art form, it’s not perfect, but I think that’s what makes it beautiful,” Montaño said.
He sees that the game can switch direction at any time and finds interest in that. The game’s success is not only in the hands of him, but in his teammates as well.
“I love how much the team is willing to put in because it’s not about certain individuals, it’s a team sport,” said Montaño. “So if one person’s off their game, it tags on to everybody else and creates an imbalance.”
He puts hours in at practice and home towards soccer. It has become a high priority in his life, but he finds interest in other places as well.
“Homeboy will wake up, go to jazz band, school, soccer practice, go home, do his chores, and stay up to finish his homework,” sister Diana Montaño said.
As he has a tight schedule, it is hard to fit other activities in, but since becoming SBO President Montaño has done just that. He attends many school activities to support his peers and hopes to influence others to come support too.
“The fact he’s become a big part of the school makes me want to be more involved as well,” senior Eric Navarro said.
Last year’s attendance for Montaño and his friends had reached an all-time low. He seeks to fix this by becoming more involved himself.
“I want them to come to school, to make them feel like school is a safe place for them and that they have someone they know,” said Montaño.
Being SBO president puts him in a higher position where he feels he has a big voice. He wants to use his position to bring more excitement to school activities. But this position does not come without difficulties.
“Through him just having the privilege to be an SBO, he breaks stereotypes and barriers,” said Diana Montaño. “It is rather obvious that he is Mexican-American, so he brings with him a heavy load on his shoulders to try to represent his community well, as well as himself.”
With his position comes opportunity, but being in the spotlight is something he struggles with.
“I don’t like sticking out that much because I get shy and sometimes stutter here and there,” Montaño said.
Anxiety is something he often feels in taking on the role of president. He sees this as an opportunity for improvement and wants to become more comfortable with being uncomfortable.
“There are a lot of people that tend to stick to their own bubble, their own friend group, but I want to get out there,” Montaño said.
He likes the different perspectives that other people have and tries to make connections with everyone. Because of this, he has made many friends over the past few years and is a good friend himself.
“I think what makes him a good friend is that he is very inclusive and sympathetic to everyone he meets, even if he doesn’t know them it’s apparent that he cares,” Navarro said.
Many people find Montaño to be a supportive friend. He often focuses on others more than himself and doesn’t outwardly show it when he is having a bad day.
“The days where I notice it more is when his social battery is past low, it is on the floor,” Diana Montaño said.
Montaño’s sister shares these feelings as she was also SBO president. Even on hard days he conceals these feelings, but his sister can see through that. This is because of the close relationship they have grown over the past few years. They have spent a lot of time together and are more than just siblings but friends as well.
“She kept saying that I was her best friend and I didn’t really take that into account until like the last couple days that she was there,” said Montaño.
It was after his sister left for college in Canada that he realized how close he was with her. This feeling is shared between them both.
“Moving away from home, and especially not seeing my little brother, has been a challenging experience,” Diana Montaño said.
They share a love for traveling and have traveled to Japan, South Korea, Switzerland, Mexico, and far corners of the USA together.
“Through getting out of our bubbles and being put into situations where we didn’t know how to order fried chicken or find cooking oil in a store, we have learned to be patient with each other and also lowkey bully each other for a quick laugh,” said Diana Montaño. “And after the experiences we shared, it would be pretty difficult and weird if we weren’t close.”
The time he has spent traveling with his family and sisters has grown an interest he wants to continue outside of high school. He wants to travel and continue making new connections.
