You
would never guess the history behind the ‘gentle giant’ of Stonehill College.
Victor Gabriel Ochoa Diaz, or Gabe as he more widely known, is, according to
his girlfriend Amanda Reynolds, “the
most interesting, and compassionate and definitely softhearted person you’ll
ever meet.” Reynolds also describes Gabe as a “jungle man,” since he is 18
years old yet looks 25. Gabe’s best friend Jayson Odom said that a passerby
might just see him as “a bulky guy,” but behind all Gabe’s muscle and bulk,
there lies a kindhearted gentleman with a surprising past.
Growing up in Yonkers, New York, where,
according to an online source, the crime rate is 48 percent higher than the
national average, Gabe’s childhood was not exactly easy—or safe. Last year,
while coming home from a birthday celebration one late night, Gabe was caught
in the middle of a very violent gang war. He remembers waking up four days
later in the ICU of the hospital, stitched and bandaged on his left shoulder
and abdomen. Gabe had tried to hide behind two cars, but caught in midst of
gunfire, the bullets got him anyway. He vaguely remembers the initial hit: “just
lying on the ground, not knowing what was happening, just slowing like, it was
strange, everything just kind of faded out and you lose your sense of place,”
he said.
Looking back on the experience now, Gabe
can still see the shooter’s face. It was an unknown man, a complete stranger,
who created this horrible memory for Gabe that will last the rest of his life. This
shooting was one of seven times Gabe has almost died. Another time, Reynolds
says, was when Gabe tried to protect his friend from getting stabbed. “He was
trying to save a life. He did save someone’s life because that person did not
get stabbed and he did.” The other five times include falling down a three
story stair-well and getting hit by an ambulance, to name a couple. Reynolds
says that her boyfriend is a “pain in the ass” because of all the crazy
situations he finds himself in. He recovered fully from the bullet wounds, and
fortunately from all of his other near-death experiences. He always seems to
make it through—not only make it through, but keep a smile on his face.
Gabe explains that uses music to get him
through difficult times and overcome obstacles in his life. He finds a beat in
everything, bopping to nature’s tunes, like waterfalls and chirping birds as he
walks through the Stonehill campus. He plays four different instruments and is
the main vocalist in his hometown band “Sideways Street Kings.” Gabe even plans
to incorporate music into his career when he graduates from Stonehill in 2015.
As a biology pre-med and music major he hopes to someday open a private
practice, which will also serve as a musical therapy center for children.
Gabe’s dedication to school and music helped create a positive image for his
little brother, Joshua.
Gabe wants nothing more than to make sure
his little brother succeeds. He took one the responsibility of making sure
Joshua was raised with a good role model. With a mentally deficient and deaf
mother, Gabe was on his own as a kid, and had to figure life out practically on
his own. His father was absent all his life, and even though his grandparents
lived next-door, they could not fulfill the role of parents. Gabe wanted to
make things easier for his now 10-year-old brother. He explains the pride he
takes in helping raise his brother, “I got to step into those father shoes,” he
said, “I love that little boy, my little brother.” Gabe tries to look at the
glass half full, thinking of his absentee father as an example of how not to
parent.
Gabe,
as upbeat as he is, still struggles with life’s difficulties sometimes. When things
get really hard, he just sticks to his lifetime motto: ‘keep calm, carry on,
and keep on keepin’ on’. He remembers this philosophy when the obstacles in his
life seem too much to bear. Even the obstacles themselves prevent Gabe from
getting down though; he just thinks of how much worse everything could be, like
when he got shot, and it helps him realize then that he can conquer anything.
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