ELISHA JOHN | staff writer
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courtesy of Ashley Perreria
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| ASHLEY PERRERIA plans to aid people in need through her passion for prosthetics. |
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THE CLAUSE Tell us a little bit about yourself? Where are you from?
ASHLEY PERRERIA I am from Hollister, Calif. which is located in the Bay Area. I played 4 years of Varsity Soccer and 3 years of Varsity Softball. I was a 2-time CCS (Central Coast Section) Champion in Softball for my junior and senior seasons.
TC What are your favorite hobbies or past times? Any extreme sports or crazy things?
AP I just like doing crazy and fun things like snowboarding and skydiving. For extreme stuff, during my stay at High Sierra semester, I slept on a sheriff's dock in the middle of a lake.
TC What are a few of your favorite things? Such as movies, food or T.V. shows.
AP For movies, I like the Ocean Series [Ocean's Eleven, Ocean's Twelve, Ocean's Thirteen] or Bourne Identity movies. For TV shows, I like House, CSI, Grey's Anatomy. My favorite food is chocolate because I have a sweet tooth. I especially like white chocolate and my favorite candy is Hershey's Cookies and Cream candy bar.
TC How does being a diabetic affect your sweet tooth? Do you feel tempted by certain foods?
AP I have to count carbs in everything that I eat. I use to like soda but I stopped drinking a long time ago and don't even crave it anymore.
TC What's currently going on in your life?
AP I am currently in an internship at a prosthetics office called “Pacific Prosthetics & Orthopedics” located in Pasadena. I started last semester and the internship will run through the end of this semester. It's a few days a week and I get to hang out in the lab learning how to make prosthetics and orthopedics.
TC What sparked your passion for working with prosthetics? How did you get to this being a passion for you?
AP My junior and senior year of high school, I took a sports medicine class. Then my friend's dad owns a prosthetics shop and I was able to job shadow him and really liked it. I also did independent studies my junior and senior year so I was able to work at an prosthetics office and gain experience from there.
TC What made you decide to come to Azusa Pacific?
AP It was the only Christian school I applied to. I decided to go back to a Christian school. I went to a Christian elementary school and then went to a public middle and high school. The change was different for me and after high school I wanted to come back to a Christian atmosphere, which APU represents. I am glad that I had the public school experience because it opened my eyes.
TC Unfortunately you are leaving Azusa because your specific major isn't offered here. So what school will you be attending after this semester?
AP I am going to Cal State Dominguez Hills to get in the prosthetics program. I have to get all of my classes completed between here and then to get in the program. While there, I am gonna work under someone to gain experience. After that, I would like to open my own prosthetics shop. Then I want to start my own non-profit organization that would go to third world countries to help amputees by fitting them with prosthetics. Since I have diabetes, I want to help amputees in that realm as well.
TC So I have heard that you have pulled some great pranks. Tell us about your best pranks!
AP A friend of mine pulled a prank on me so I retaliated by going into his house and putting baby powder on his ceiling fan. So when he turned his fan on there was powder all over the room. Another time was during my stay at High Sierra, it was my R.A.'s birthday. So we tied everything in her room with strings, there were strings in in every direction and it looked like “spider webs' everywhere. We left a sign in the room that said “Happy Birthday!”
TC How has your faith in the Lord been been during this time. He's helped you go to your passion but is leading you away from Azusa Pacific. What are your feelings about that?
AP Building up this community around me and having all these people praying for me has been special. I am just going to trust in him that it will all work out. Everything He laid out for me has been really precise and just getting it done. Most importantly I am just making sure to trust in Him.
