Student of the Week: Abram Perez
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At Harlingen School of Health Professions, there is a student who isn't letting anything stop him from reaching his goals.
Abram Perez is a senior and is known for his passion for helping others. He serves as the parliamentarian of his class, and president of the Hope Squad.
"Hope Squad brings awareness to mental health through students," Abram said. "There's actually a Hope Squad week where we do activities. What we did once was we went outside for a picnic to get those endorphins from nature and all that."
Abram's passion for mental health advocacy goes hand-in-hand with his own life story. As a sophomore, his life took a dramatic turn.
He suffered a heat stroke during a baseball workout session.
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"I was in a coma for two weeks. Coming out of the coma, I had a lot of body problems like weakness, and burns on my legs," Abram said.
Abram says the road to recovery was long. He had to relearn how to do basic things like swallow, stand and walk.
"I couldn't just go back to baseball, I had to wait and recover and all that," Abram said.
While his days of playing baseball may have ended, Abram remains dedicated to his baseball team at Harlingen High School South; he's now the team manager.
Abram says this life-changing event doesn't define him, but it has helped shape him into who he is today.
When it comes to his future, Abram plans to pursue a career in psychology.
"I just know I want to help people and use psychology with it because I just feel this pull towards a psychology major," Abram said.
That will to help others seen by his teachers in the classroom.
"He's just very outgoing and passionate about everything that he does. In psychology, he's very inquisitive and wants to talk about everything," Harlingen School of Health Professions teacher Gustavo Villanueva said.
Outside of school, Abram is actively involved in his church and works part-time. He says his family is his biggest inspiration, especially his dad.
"My dad has always been with me, he always sticks with me since I was little, and even though it's tough love sometimes I know he always has my back," Abram said.
Abram's resilience and dedication makes him this week's Student of the Week.
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