Who wouldn’t want to go to a cool, creative orthodontist with a great personality, positive outlook AND working at the top of his game? Of course! Everyone! Meet junior and future smile expert, Gabriele Joel Ghalandar, the March 2022 Student of the Month.
When asked why he thought he was selected by Dr. Vitow as this month’s SOTM, he replied that he has purposefully built great relationships with teachers and peers alike and has cultivated effective communication skills. He likes to fix problems and will go the extra mile to get what’s needed to do well. He is on the NSHAHS varsity wrestling team, is an avid member of a number of co-curricular clubs and has a very positive attitude.
Last summer Gabriele participated in an internship where he shadowed a general practice doctor, and he was hooked. He most enjoyed seeing how to deal with and diagnose patients in a sensitive, thoughtful and professional way to help them feel better and be healthier. Always having been interested in dentistry, the concept of giving people back their smile and improving quality of life came to the forefront during his internship. Orthodontics is of particular interest as it speaks to his creative nature. In the spirit of improvement, Gabriele says that he feels the sport of wrestling is also a way of improving himself as it is a sport based on technique and strategy rather than brute strength. Mastering moves and honing his practice gives him tremendous satisfaction.
Gabriele speaks three languages in addition to English – Persian, Hebrew and Spanish. Since public school kids do not have the luxury of learning Hebrew language as part of their curriculum, he decided to offer private tutoring. He feels Hebrew is such an important part of Jewish culture and not an easy language, so he put the word out in his Shul and now has a growing business that is both exciting and very rewarding.
Speaking of business, did you know that Gabriele is a “sneakerhead”? Sneakers are not just shoes to him, they are an artform and another of his small businesses where he buys and resells sneakers online and through word of mouth. Their value is qualitative trading, kind of like the market, on the StockX app. It all started four years ago at the mall, when a pair of Air Jordans caught his eye. (His favorite brand by the way). An eye for style is in his genes with his Italian roots, so he sees past the basics and instead delves into the culture and history to pay attention to the artistic and technical efforts that go into each pair. He respects the global sneaker love and likes the non-traditional manifesting of creativity. Gabriele’s multitude of unusual sneakers is something his classmates appreciate with his “sneaker of the day” change-ups that get people talking.
Gabriele’s passionate personality is also evident in his love for what he refers to as “the North Shore experience” that includes Dr. Vitow and all the great teachers. He especially loves learning Torah and Jewish studies, and on the secular side, his favorite subject is AP Macroeconomics with Mrs. Goldschmidt. He says that she makes a difficult and challenging subject fun by taking it into the real world. This satisfies his mind for business while being a member of Science Society, Medical Minds and the Dentistry Club feed his mind for medicine.
Outside of his schoolwide academic pursuits, Gabriele plays soccer, football and tennis. Traveling and seeing different cultures firsthand is of great interest learning how people live their lives. He especially enjoys Israel as a Jewish person in his homeland but appreciating it as a tourist; Milan, Italy for his family, history and culture; and Niagara Falls for its mighty power and natural beauty. He is looking forward a teen tour this coming summer that is a joint NCSY and Mashadi joint venture.
And because you love to know…Gabriele is a big horror movie guy, reads horror fiction but The Great Gatsby is high on his list for the great characters, his favorite color is Sky Blue, and his favorite food is Sandwich Bar’s Crispy Chicken Schnitzel sandwich.
Whether engaging in one of his niche businesses as precursors to his desire to have a business in addition to his potential orthodontic practice or going after the winning goal in soccer, there is no question he will do it with the same level of zeal he applies to his efforts at North Shore and with maximum success. We can’t wait to see what you will accomplish.
Congratulations Gabriele!
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