ALUMNI SPOTLIGHT: JUAN PEREZ
Juan Perez has had exceptional life experiences since leaving Russell Byers Charter School, which he says he still loves! Juan attended RBCS from 4K through 4th grade (2005-2011), then went on to Masterman for 5th grade. His family moved to Abington the following summer, and he completed the rest of his schooling in the Abington School District.
For his great work and potential, Juan received the National Recreation Foundation scholarship from the Byerschool Foundation in 2019. This support helped fund his first semester at Temple University in Spring 2020 – just as the pandemic was beginning. Juan soon found that he much preferred in-person classes to online learning, so when the opportunity came to join his Army Reserve unit for a deployment to the Middle East, Juan finished his college semester and volunteered. While stationed in Kuwait, Juan worked as a Medical Logistics Specialist during both the COVID-19 vaccination roll out for military personnel and the extraction of troops and personnel from Afghanistan. His unit was responsible for the delivery of vaccines to many U.S. military bases in the region, leading him to Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Qatar. His unit also managed supply loads for Afghan families who were housed on base temporarily during the extraction. Juan received two commendations for his excellent service in Kuwait. In his free time during deployment, he played hours of sand-court volleyball and mastered his chess game with competitors from around the world.
Now that Juan has returned home, he will continue to serve as an Army Reservist part-time while attending school to become a certified HVAC technician. He will continue receiving scholarship support from BSF for this education. He says that working full-time overseas taught him that he enjoys problem-solving, being on his feet, and working with people.
The photo above was taken in November 2021 during Juan's deployment and was shot in the medical supplies warehouse where he worked. We thank him for his service!
P.S. We love that Juan’s two sisters also went to the Byers School! Elianna was right behind Juan, attending from 4K through 4th grade (2006-2012), while Gabriella attended 4K through 1st grade (2009-2012). Elianna has entered her third year at Syracuse University, and Gabriella is a senior at Abington Senior High School.