Alumni Spotlight: Christian Perales

Meet Christian

Christian Perales during a school tour.

In sixth grade at Holy Redeemer, Christian Perales had a conversation with Ms. Ilov that changed his life.

Currently, Christian lives in Detroit and works for Ideal Contracting. In his mid-twenties and recently married, Christian brings a calm energy, enthusiasm, and warm smile.

When he visited the school for a tour, Christian remarked that much had changed since he graduated 8th grade in 2014 -- new robotics room, STEM lab, and a middle school band playing "Seven Nation Army" by Holy Redeemer Alum Jack White.

Life at Redeemer

Although Christian attended Dartmouth College, he was not always a high-achieving student. Going into middle school, Christian was "not a very good student;" he almost failed the fourth grade. But one day, everything changed.

Christian remembers in vivid detail the morning when Ms. Ilov pulled him aside and expressed her belief in him. Ms. Ilov told him that he's smart, capable, and can do big things, more than what he was doing then. She said, "I know you can do it, and I want to see you do it."

After that, Christian transformed from acting out as the class clown to discovering that he enjoyed learning. He went from barely scraping by to earning all A's. From sixth grade to senior year of high school, in fact, he earned straight A's all the way.

Christian claims it was this moment that made the greatest impact on his life. He says that without Ms. Ilov's belief in him, he would not have made it to where he is today.

Journey to College

If the conversation with Ms. Ilov was the first push that led Christian to believe in himself the next push that led him to think bigger came from Frank Venegas Jr., Founder & Chairman of Ideal Group.

Christian, future basketball star, stands out in the back row.

During a Cristo Rey Work-Study internship at Ideal Group, Frank pulled Christian into his office and asked him, "I can tell you're smart. Do you get straight A's?" Frank then suggested that Christian consider Dartmouth. Before that, Christian had only thought about going to college in state. He hadn't considered going to a private university out of state, let alone an Ivy League.

In the summer before his senior year, Christian visited Dartmouth for a fly-in program. He had never flown on a plane before. At the university, Christian was blown away.

That fall, he dedicated himself to his early-decision application to Dartmouth. When he was accepted, he was thrilled. He called Frank Venegas to celebrate the good news, because it was Frank who had planted the seed to apply, to think big.

The Holy Redeemer Impact

According to Christian, Holy Redeemer set the foundation for success. As a student he learned the value of hard-work, how to think creatively, and the importance of asking for support.

Christian giving a speech in the church basement.

Redeemer taught Christian that there is always a community of people around to support you, if you let them. If you ask questions, people are happy to answer. If you need help, people are willing to support. People won't hand you things, Christian says, you still need to work hard, but they are willing to help. In middle school, Christian learned to work with teams and seek support from his teachers, and in high school he continued to use these networking skills to succeed.

At Holy Redeemer, Christian also learned how to be creative. Projects such as Ms. Ilov's "Continent of Imagination" sparked creativity. For that project, students were formed into teams and tasked with creating a continent, complete with geographic models, economic projections, a flag, and a constitution. They even had to ensure that their geography was in accordance with their exports. After graduating from Holy Redeemer, Christian wanted to continue working in teams and think creatively, skills that help him as a project engineer with Ideal Contracting.

School Sports

Christian's memories of Holy Redeemer include more than just the classroom; some of his favorite times happened on the basketball court, the soccer pitch, or the baseball diamond. Standing at 6'5", Christian is a tall young man, and in middle school he helped use his height to lead Redeemer to a division title in basketball. Still, his favorite part about the teams were the friendships he made.

Christian's Division-Title winning basketball team.

Full Circle

Today, Christian stays connected with many of his friends and teammates from Holy Redeemer. He is still close friends with Xavier, a classmate he met in Kindergarten. Even though he went to school out of state, the friendships he formed at Holy Redeemer remained strong. Friends met at Holy Redeemer may be friends for life.

Celebrating with his classmates on the steps of the church.

When asked what advice he would give to current students at Holy Redeemer, Christian responded, "however high you think you can shoot, you can always go higher. However good you think you can do, if you push yourself, you can always do better."

At Holy Redeemer, students are encouraged to be the best they can be, and then some.

Just as Ms. Ilov and Frank Venegas pushed Christian to go higher, he is now pushing himself and others around him.

"However high you think you can shoot, you can always go higher."

We are grateful that Christian visited us and look forward to his future involvement with the school. Like he said, "never stop believing in yourself."

If you would like a school tour or have any questions, please contact development@holyredeemergradeschool.net or submit a question here.