Nelson Gabriel Santos
2017 Youth of the Year Recipient
Nelson Gabriel Santos, better known as “Gabe” by friends and family, has been a Club member for the past 8 years. Gabe will graduate from Westfield High School in 2018. At school, Gabe plays on the varsity basketball team, serves as a student council representative, and is a member of the Key Club. After graduation, Gabe plans to attend the University of Connecticut or Duke in pursuit of a career as an orthopedic surgeon.
During the past year Gabe completed over 150 hours of volunteer service at the Boys & Girls Club and throughout the greater Westfield community. His volunteer efforts included assisting with the JDRF Walk and the Jingle Bell Run as well as serving meals and cleaning up at the Boys & Girls Club’s Thanksgiving Dinner and Veterans Day Breakfast.
At the Boys & Girls Club, Gabe has participated in programs such as Torch Club, Keystone Elite and Immersion Learning. While in the Immersion program as a young child, Gabe learned about careers in science based field; he credits the Immersion program for sparking his interest in becoming an orthopedic surgeon. He is now able to inspire other kids to get involved with science by serving as a mentor in the STEM Mentoring program.