Golden West College's Araceli Rodriguez Named OEC Female Character Champion

A member of the cross country team as well as the track and field team, Rodriguez demonstrated time after time her dedication to her teammates as well as her community. During the 2013 track and field season, the team faced two life altering tragedies. Rodriguez spearheaded efforts and collected several hundreds of dollars  for a teammate who’s home had burnt down during the season. Within a few weeks, another teammate tragically lost his 16 year old brother, Araceli was there with supportive calls, helped efforts to console and support her team as well as the individual.

When asked for a comment regarding Rodriguez, her coach, Matt Simpson said, “This young lady epitomizes the values that this award represents and there are countless examples of her honesty, integrity and civil service. The single incident that best demonstrates her character and sportsmanship occurred at Southern California Preview Cross Country Meet, September 15, 2012. The day of the meet was extremely hot.

While running in a secluded section of the course, Araceli came upon a competitor from another college who had collapsed on the course due to heat exhaustion. Sacrificing her personal results, Araceli  stopped to help her competitor. She got water for her, sent a teammate to get her coach for help, and then carried the young lady to a more accessible portion of the course where help was finally found. Despite the delay once the competitor was taken care of, Araceli returned to the spot she stopped to help the young lady and finished the race.”

Her academic efforts earned All State Academic Honors for track. She is active in multiple clubs on campus including the Alpha Gamma Sigma Honors Society and is a team representative on the Student Athletic Advisory Counsel.