Rodelio Doria

The commands “left face” and “right face” meant something to Rodelio Doria as a freshman in high school. The son of a military man, Rodelio was consistently in the top five in his JROTC class for physical fitness. But school didn’t mean much to him. “My family got really far in life without an education,” he explains.

Before Rodelio was in 10th grade, his JROTC drill sergeant encouraged him to work as hard in class as in the gym. “She also told me to go to college,” he says. Rodelio set his mind on the Naval Academy, where he was admitted. Then two weeks into boot camp, tragedy hit. Rodelio went home to Tacoma, Washington, to visit his mom, who was dying of cancer.

“The last thing my mom said before she passed away is that she wanted me to go to SPU,” he says. “I just took what she said and did it.”

Rodelio applied for financial aid and several scholarships, such as Seattle Pacific University’s Ames Scholarship. He received the Ames award plus grants from SPU and the state of Washington. This aid almost completely covers the cost of his tuition as a political science major. Everything else, including rent, food, and entertainment, comes out of Rodelio’s pocket.

He brings the work ethic that he learned from the military to an athletic club, where he works 24 hours a week. “I can always count on Rodelio to be there on time,” says his manager, Mark Saltzman. “If I go over there right now, all the towels will be clean. He does a great job of doing his part for the next person.”

Rodelio calls gym members by name, sets up equipment for their favorite workouts, and often has their water or protein shakes ready. When he gets his paycheck, he sends anything he doesn’t need home to his father and sister in Tacoma. “I never have time to spend money, so I never think about spending money,” he says. “I enjoy going through this because now I know the value of a dollar.”

Did you know? Working in college is a great stepping stone to a career job. Would you hire the guy with the blank resume? Didn’t think so.

View All Students

By Julia Siemens, Illustration by Keith Negley, Photos By Nick Onken and Mike Siegel

Want more stories about Real Life at SPU? Look in our archives.