Soles By Sir
Suncoast Emmy Award Winner 2021
Voice Of The Explorers
By: Adrian Botton
Michael Marinelli is not your typical MLS employee, his road is a lot different than most. Marinelli started off at Columbus, as a student, he was very involved as he was an announcer for the Columbus sports games. This led him to pursue this announcing dream, while he never got the big break he was hired as the admissions director at Columbus where he announced for the games as well as doing his job.
Marinelli tried to make his dream of announcing a reality, he auditioned multiple times to teams like UM and NFL teams. While he never got a callback, he never stopped persisting. This persistence led him to get a call back from no one else than a former graduate from Columbus who recognized his talent. This person was Jorge Mas, the co-owner of the Inter Miami soccer team, and this team is now the team that is home to Michael Marinelli’s announcing.
Michael Marinelli is truly fortunate for this opportunity as this second job for him is no more than just a fun time. He values this job as it was really his dream throughout his lifetime. Now Michael Marinelli is projecting his voice to fans all across Miami. While this is his dream job it did come with a downside, with the coronavirus pandemic, Marinelli is announcing to limited fans, while this is a step back, hopefully, Marinelli can ride it out and one day announce to a fully crowded stadium.
Contributions from: Neo Gaitan, Manny Naccarato, and Nick Casanueva
Ernie Perabeles
By: Adrian Botton
Ernie Perabeles is a senior in high school is now feeling the best he has ever felt due to his new found passion, but it wasn’t always like this. As a freshman, Ernie struggled with his physical appearance, he started as a golfer and he put a lot of time and dedication into it. He described golf as his real passion when he was younger, saying that he would visit the golf course almost every day that he could.
After this, Ernie saw himself and wasn’t confident with the way he looked. Ernie then stated, “My friend introduced me to power-lifting”, and this introduction started a new passion for Ernie as this would be his outlet for his body transformation. Ernie, since the beginning of senior year has been improving at power-lifting and it has taken over the spot that golf used to have. With power-lifting Ernie has worked for the body he always wanted and a new found passion that will hopefully stay with him for a long time.
Ernie’s mother along with him has found his transition to be beneficial. She stated that it is like an adrenaline that goes through him everyday, and how it’s a great habit he has begun. So with all of this family support and his own motivation, Ernie’s new path with power-lifting will continue to grow and strengthen, one plate at a time.
Contributions from- Gianmarco Maestri, Richard Joseph
President Donald Trumps Impeachment Trials and its Effect on the Youth
By: Adrian Botton
In the wake of president Donald Trump's impeachment trial, we explored the voices of the youth of Miami to see their impact on this trial. At this time the acquittal of the president was imminent as the senate was in the process of voting and later that day it would be announced that the president was not guilty on a vote of 48 to 52. As student journalists we wanted to explore what impact the youth had on this trial and how they can affect politics.
As a local student advocate, Janet Hernandez makes her mark as she helps promote voter registration and is actively involved in informing students on campus about the importance of being an active participant in politics. She stated that as an advocate she is “getting young people involved in issues that matter”, and in this she shows her impact on her community. Voices like Janet’s in the community are heard all over Miami, especially to Local CBS 4 Anchor Elliot Rodriguez, while he reports on events like the impeachment, he sees how young people are active and the community and he recognizes its importance in politics.
Even with the impeachment trials not being successful its opportunity to affect young people was seen all over Miami. Congress women, Don Shalala emphasized this as she said, “My hope is that now that the trial is behind us, young people - no matter their political persuasion- reflect on the importance of involvement in civic life and take action to build a better future for all Americans.”. With this impeachment trial bringing together youth voices, we can only hope this brings the best for the future of America.
The Everglades
By: Adrian Botton
Florida is a place where the great outdoors plays a key role in our way of life. With this comes the importance of sharing the knowledge of the environment that surrounds us. In the Florida everglades, many people get their knowledge from tours around the area. One fun way to tour is on an airboat, on an airboat you get a guided tour of the everglades on the water. Tour guides like Tom, Tom takes his animals and his airboat out around the everglades to show his guests what living in the land is all about.
Either about crocodiles or birds, Tom knows the wildlife of the everglades better than anyone. When on the air boat or in the showroom, Tom is sharing his knowledge everyday to all of his guests. He says, ¨When you learn something, you get that spark and that's what makes life worth living¨. One of his guests today, Andy Gutierrez, found his valentines day being spent on the water learning about the great outdoors. While not your average valentines day outing, it definitely did not disappoint.
Tom will continue to keep guests like Andy informed on the fragile everglades for as long as he can. A major fear that many guides like Tom have is that the everglades are slowly coming apart, with many factors damaging the ecosystem, everyday the everglades suffer from pollution and land loss leading the everglades to shrink and become less livable for the surrounding wildlife. Tom will continue to promote the conservation of this land to hopefully one day save nature's gift.
Contributions from: Manny Naccarato, JP Garcia-Casals, Jordan Perez, Gianmarco Maestri
FSPA News Package 2021
By; Adrian Botton
When exploring problems students have around campus at Christopher Columbus High School, we couldn't help but notice the rush of students running to the cafeteria. This is because of the lunch lines on campus, if your even minutes late to the rush then you could miss out on almost 20 minuets of your lunch waiting in line.
When diving into the problem we found that this line is a problem for almost all students. Students are forced to eat lunch so quickly that it becomes hard for them to take their break and calmly eat before their next period begins.
Columbus staff however are actively working on the problem, they know that this isn't good for any student and new procedures are in place to now make these lines quicker. Now with pre-done meals, students can pay and instantly receive their lunch. Along with new menus on QR codes, students can easily pick their desired meal.
Miami Dance
By: Adrian Botton
For the dance instructors at Dance Town in Miami, dance is more than just a hobby and instead a true form of expression. One instructor in particular is Manny Castro, he says “Through music and dance we can express so much… love, passion, sadness, madness”. This type of expression is what makes dance so special for this community of dancers. These young dancers don’t find it to be just an activity, they value it as a true escape and way to be themselves with no boundaries.
Young Dancer, Zachary Roy uses dance to create joy, he says “usually when I dance I feel happy, I get to be here and I get to go out and I love dancing”. Zachary shows everyone in the studio that true forms of expression he finds his escape along with a path to joy. To be able to perform is so important to these dancers, allowing everyone to see their expressions out on the dance floor is what drives them to keep practicing day by day.
Dancing and competing go hand and hand, these dancers try their best to perfect every move, allowing their full message to be heard and felt. With every competition comes more feedback allowing them to listen and learn more everyday. Everyone is different and expresses different emotions, this is why dance is so unique. Dancers at Dance Town will continue to train and practice for their next competition while finding new ways everyday to express themselves.
Contributions by: Manny Naccarato, JP Garcia-Casals, Gianmarco Maestri, Jordan Perez
E-Learning At Christopher Columbus High School
By: Adrian Botton
Here at Christopher Columbus High School, we started off the year in a fully virtual system. This system was the safest way to start the year and provided lots of challenges for the teachers and staff. With programs like zoom, teachers have been able to keep students engaged in the classroom while trying to engage students and provide the best learning experience. Principal of Christopher Columbus High School, Mr. Pugh is trying his best to make Columbus safe enough for a return but also manages the current online classes to ensure that while outside of the classroom, students still get a great education.
A teacher at Christopher Columbus High School, Mr. Corazon, explains how he has been adjusting his class for online learning. Corazon stated,¨I had to up what I knew as far as technology was because I knew what I knew from the past was not going to be good enough for this year.¨ With all the teachers adjusting to this new system, it was great to see the first weeks of operation go as planned. The teachers now will build on their knowledge and grow in their knowledge of technology hoping for a return to the classroom soon.
Principal at Christopher Columbus High School, Mr Pugh, was dedicated to giving the technology department the ability to teach new and returning teachers how to operate in this new system. With the support he gave the teachers and staff, Columbus was able to give students the best education possible while still learning from at home. Now with hopes of class rooms opening again, hopefully students can come back to the halls sooner than later.
Contributions - Neo Gaitan
Too Much Light makes the Explorer go Blind
By:Adrian Botton
For the past year, Columbus’ drama club has been restricted from performing in front of an audience due to Covid-19. Now the club is back, with their returning show, “Too Much light makes the Explorer go Blind”. This show is an improv show run by the audience. Members of the club have to go and play skits from the audience choice. With 30 topics to choose from, the audience yells one number and then the drama club will do their best in performing it. Head of the drama club, Mr. Bussato says it started during his years in the club and now the drama club is keeping the tradition alive.
With this being the only show of the year, seniors like Justyn Rubio are left to make the most out of their performance. As the seniors didn't get the most out of junior year, to have a senior year performance is very special to them. Rubio expressed his excitement and was very happy with the performance and the turnout of guests that attended.
The show ended with a round of applause and all the guests gave their appreciation to the club and the performance. Gabriella Ramiez was one of the guests in the crowd and she was really impressed with the show put on. Ramiez knows the importance of a senior show and with this being their senior show she was super excited to come out and show her support. Now as the curtain closes, a new one opens as the club prepares for next year's show.
Contributions: Gianmarco Maestri, Neo Gaitan, Nick Casanueva
Juan Delgado
By: Adrian Botton
Juan Delgado is not your normal musician, he has found his way in the Latin music scene and is a two time Latin Grammy winner. Juan started when he came to the United States from Venezuela as a teenager. Over in Venezuela he never had the opportunity to study music but he was fortunate enough to find his love for music in the church. Once in Miami, it didn’t take long for Juan to find his fit in the industry, he describes it as sort an acceptance in the industry and that drives him to be even more successful. Juan started as a music producer, in his home studio he helped any artist but always enjoyed making the music he loved which was Latin Christian music.
Later on in his career, Juan expanded his career and became an independent artist. Juan started this new career with the start of his first solo album. This album was very special for Juan as he wanted to tell the story of the gospel but he didn’t want to do it in a way that was not interesting to listen to. Juan described this album as a pop album with a values of Christian beliefs under the surface. This album lead to Juan’s first Grammy victory where he said, “I’m still celebrating to this day”. This album however, wouldn’t be what it is without his local church, St. Timothy Catholic Church.
For Juan, St Timothy Catholic Church was his place where he serves as a music director. While many might not know of Juans accomplishments in the music industry at the church, its certain that everyone appreciates Juans work as a music director every weekend. Deacon JC Collar says Juan plays a huge role at the church, not only does he play for the church, he also instructs many choirs a day, teaching all who perform at the church. Juans impact on the church will always be heard along with the growth of his music career every day.
The 7th Annual Coral Gables Doggie Costume Contest
By: Adrian Botton
Halloween is usually spent with family while going around the neighborhood trick or treating, but here at the Coral Gables museum, Halloween is used to host a doggie costume contest. Owners and their dogs dress up together and take the stage in a competition all to benefit the humane society. With all kinds of dogs and even cats, all animals that showed up got to compete with the dogs. The hostess of the event, Ashley Magluta said quote, “Coral Gables people love their pets so we decided to throw that pet aspect in for them.”.
When looking into the crowd you will see all kinds of people, from families all in costume to just single people with their pet. All of these people come together as a community to celebrate Halloween with the pets that they consider to be part of their own family. Jade Lleonart, a dog owner at the contest said, “Events like this bring the community together, people look forward to come out and have something to do, and when it involves the whole family including pets, it really brings the community together.”
At the end of the day, this contest is more about a community coming together. All of these dog owners came together to celebrate Halloween is a fun day surrounded with other dog owners. The event was organized to raise money for the humane society and bring together the dog owner community in Coral Gables. In the end, the 7th annual doggie costume contest was a success as it many dog owners came out for a different take on Halloween.
Back and Forth: A new take on Street Wear
By: Adrian Botton
Brian Seage, Christopher Columbus High School alum,. has started his clothing store in Coral Gables. Brian started his idea after college when he finished and was staying in Cincinnati. “When I was away in Cincinnati, I met a store owner up there and he became my mentor and treated me like family ever since” said Brian, his experience with his mentor gained him confidence in opening his first store and that confidence is what back and forth is all about.
When Brian opened back and forth he enlisted the help of his brother, Kevin Seage who has worked with Brian all his life. Kevin started his own clothing brand with support from his brother and friends. Spilled milk, Kevin’s brand, is being sold at Back and Forth and there to stay. “I knew immediately that I was gonna be able to help him out and help him build the store he wants it to be” Kevin stated. Kevin’s brand has a fan base with an impressive online presence with many of his products being sold on his website.
With Brian's store completed he continues to want to add product to his store. His style of formal and casual street wear has filled in a void of the clothing market that not many stores have tapped in to. “I worked up with receiving product and then learning how the customer approaches shopping”, this mentality stated by Brian has led him to his success. With Brian's store now being complete, he will continue to his skills in both business and fashion to expand and grow his business to the top.
David Martinez : Fighting Towards Success
By : Adrian Botton
Students in high school usually look for easily accessible sports as a hobby like basketball, baseball and football. David Martinez wanted to carve his own path and start independently training to become an MMA fighter. David's passion began last year when he found a fighter through Instagram, with further research he started training himself at the UFC Gym in Miami, Florida. From that point he met his coach, Martin Davila and they have been pushing each other every day.
“I want to compete, compete, compete, compete, I want to win as much as I can,” said David, this drive and passion that he states here is the reason his coach and himself believe in a possible MMA career. With a supporting cast of friends and family all supporting and believing in his career, progress continues everyday until the day when David will enter the ring as a fighter for the first time.
For David, only time can get when he will be ready for the ring. Due to his young age it is an advantage because of his young age giving him a lot more experience when he is older. David has no date on his debut fight but his work will not go to waste as it is David’s goal to enter the ring as soon as possible. Now while we wait for the debut, David will not waste a second using all time possible to train.
Spike Ball Makes its Debut at Columbus
By: Adrian Botton
Here at Christopher Columbus High School, we provide an excellent sports program home to almost all popular high school sports. Now Columbus is expanding in the introduction of spike ball through a school wide spike ball tournament. This tournament was used as a fundraiser for the school's annual walk a thon fundraiser. This tournament brought out over 50 players from all grade levels with all different levels of experience. All these players were seeking the final jackpot to whoever won the tournament.
The tournament started like any traditional tournament, brackets with teams that all lead up to the finals. All kinds of players showed up, regardless of their skill level. Jake Cordes, a participant in the tournament said, “Everyone likes it, there’s nothing to hate about it…Columbus kids came out because they know how much fun it is and they want to have fun with their friends”. This tournament is to be seen as fun, while there is a winner, all the kids who participated got an opportunity to try or revisit the game and play spike ball.
It came down to two teams in the end as they both competed for the jackpot and the title of being the spike ball champions at Columbus. These two teams were both comprised of underclassmen as they fought their way up through upperclassmen to secure a spot in the finals.Oliver Callava and his teammate ended up winning the tournament in a hard fought match. The spike ball tournament was an all around success as it brought Columbus students together to introduce a new sport at Columbus.
Contributions from: Gianmarco Maestri
Miami VIP-305 Annual Beach Cleanup
By: Adrian Botton
Family Paintball Hits Its Mark with a New Location
By: Adrian Botton
The Miami Family Paintball Center has been hitting its mark in bringing the sport of paintball to families and teams everywhere. This is shown with the dedicated player base that family paintball has managed to cultivate and maintain. Not only that but the group of professional players that call family paintball home. There is also a dedicated staff working around the clock to make your time at family paintball a most enjoyable experience, whether it comes to getting a rental, or getting taught the rules of paintball. Along with the three fields, each having their own themes and designed with the players fun in mind, it’s no wonder that there's such a strong dedicated community.
FSPA Quickturn News Package
"How Your School is or is not Environmentally Friendly"
My First Ever Commentary!
Online Vs In Store Holiday Shopping
By: Adrian Botton
Burgerlicious 2019 By Adrian Botton