Family Over Everything

By Molly McCormick

Daniel Gonzales is a sophomore here at California High School and part of the class of 2021. He plays football and does track and field in the off season. When he isn’t in school he is visiting colleges and planning his future with a program known as Puente. You could say he is a well-rounded student-athlete, but he is more than that. You could go up to anyone, doesn’t matter what grade and they will tell you that he is the nicest and funniest person.

Then over the summer, Daniel had to make the ultimate sacrifice. When Daniel found out his father had to get brain surgery due to the liquid being built up in his brain, Daniel quit the football team immediately and didn’t think twice about his other priorities and made his dad his number one. Yes, it was hard for him to say goodbye to football and all his friends on the team but in his own words “Family first always.”

Daniel was working really hard towards a starting position as a center but he knew he had to be there for his father. Also, his coaches were very supportive and respected his decision.

Thankfully Daniel’s dad was able to recover and is now back on his feet.

I admire Daniel’s courage and bravery so much for just putting his whole life and his love for football on hold for his dad. To imagine the pain he was going through knowing that there might be a small chance he could lose a parent is unbearable for anyone. I like to believe that anyone in his position would have made the same choice as he did.