Recently, on our Gamers Give Back Tour, we made a stop at UCSF Benioff in San Francisco. It was here that we had the opportunity to meet an inspiring young man who goes by the name of Polo.
Polo lives in The San Francisco Bay Area and recently graduated from Mt. Diablo High School in Concord. We took notice of this young man due to his integrity and the responsibility he bestows upon himself in order to take care of his family. Polo is soft spoken and humble, but has a big heart.
We received this from a member of the hospital staff at UCSF Benioff:
“I spoke to my colleagues in PDU and they all agree that we should nominate Polo. He is a very kind patient- takes care of his nieces and nephews, his sibling who also has a disability and helps out his father with his landscaping business.”
Polo graduated high school after a full year on home & hospital instruction, an incredible accomplishment. The remaining details are best described from staff themselves:
“He was on home and hospital instruction this entire year, which means that he did not go to campus at all for any of his classes. A teacher from his school district visited his home weekly to complete his assignments. It takes a lot of self-motivation to complete school in this format because you essentially get a binder full of work to complete independently and when the teacher visits you next time it is to correct the work and go over the next week’s work assignments.
Polo would bring his work to dialysis where I would help him with assignments he wasn’t able to complete on his own. He managed to successfully meet all of his graduation requirements to graduate with peers! This is a pretty big deal, considering other students in his position with his diagnosis might complete school with a GED or not complete at all.
I have also been working with him on applying for financial aid and applying to college.
The plan is that he will start at Los Medanos College in Pittsburgh this July and study automotive engineering. He will be the first in his family to attend college!”
Wow! We couldn’t be more impressed by Polo’s spirit and kindness! From all of us here at GameChanger, we wish nothing but the best for Polo and his family!!!!
