18 Under 18 Highlight: Saul Ontiveros

Saul won’t leave for his freshman year at Haverford College until this fall, but he already has plans on how he’ll get involved in the community.

“I just want to find something to get involved in,” he said. “No matter what it is, I want to get involved right away.”

Currently, Saul serves on the board of directors for Key Club International. He oversees the efforts of more than 270,000 Key Clubbers around the globe. It helps to reinforce his belief that service starts with something local, and grows from there.Giving back is a big part of Saul’s life. “We promote service for young people,” he said. “I’ve been promoting service for people who don’t know what it means to help people, who don’t know how to do it yet. I help people to get out of their comfort zones to make the world a better place. It’s been good knowing that there are kids my age who are trying to make a difference, especially in Arizona. I’ve helped dozens of students across the country become more motivated in providing service to their peers.

”What do you want to be doing in 10 years? I would hopefully have graduated college. I’d like to work for UNICEF. I’d like to be involved in my community, in my city, and have that lead up to international service. So in 10 years that’s where I hope I’d be.

Who’s your biggest inspiration? My mom. For anyone, they’re the first person who teaches you life skills. My mom is a housekeeper and she’s been doing that for 18 years. She does it and she never complains. She has so many things she wishes she could’ve done. My mom is always trying to better herself. She’s always taught me to care about people. She’s an amazing, tough lady.

What’s the best advice you’ve received? Patience. I think most of us are very excited, we get passionate about something and it can be easy to become impatient. But teachers, friends, mentors, they remind me to be patient and to be thoughtful about things. I think that’s advice that I’d give to anyone.