Keanu Orfano and Alexander Pereda, two students from Pace High School, attended the 2016 Hugh O’ Brian Youth (HOBY) Leadership Seminar at Lynne University in late May. The HOBY Leadership Seminars develop leadership skills of high school sophomores so they can lead in their schools, careers, and communities.
The two were chosen by Carla Giberson, Pace’s director of Guidance & Counseling, for their stellar academics and involvement in the Pace community. Both Orfano and Pereda are members of the National Honor Society, the Spartan Ambassador Society, and student government, and Orfano is part of the Spartan Sword and Shield program for elite students.
As part of the seminar, Orfano and Pereda listened to keynote speakers who talked about serving the community and bettering ones’ self. They participated in team-building activities, such as working together to build a contraption to drop an egg without breaking it, along with group discussions with the other students in attendance.
“My favorite activity was the group reflection because it made me think about the effects the activities had and how I could become a better person,” said Orfano.
Orfano says that the biggest lessons he learned at the HOBY Seminar were that personal leadership is important to becoming an important leader in society and that being a better person involved setting personal goals to reach higher potentials.
The seminar was not just dedicated to self-improvement, as Orfano and Pereda helped prepare 10,000 meals to feed children in South Florida through a partnership with the Feeding Children Everywhere organization.