Teenagers face difficult obstacles in high school every day. Whether it’s math, grades, relationships or walking behind slow students in the hallway, every student has eventually overcome one of these. Freshman Daisy Lopez-Monteroso isn’t letting any obstacle stand in her way. Lopez-Monteroso isn’t a typical freshman though.
Lopez-Monteroso was born with Wolfram syndrome, a rare neurodegenerative disease. The syndrome behaves differently from person to person, but for Lopez-Monteroso, she has become partly deaf and blind as she ages due to the autosomal recessive disorder.
Despite this, Daisy participates in the debate team, lifts weights, and is a member of Spanish and Book club. Her favorite activity is playing saxophone and clarinet in the school band.
“Music is my passion and I don’t see anything else in it,” Lopez-Moneroso said.
Lopez-Monteroso started reading music on a large print paper, but as her sight worsened, people had to start reading the notes to her.
“Someone else transcribed it for me, they will indicate the note name whether it’s a quarter note, etc, and other important information that goes along,” Lopez-Monteroso said. “I also tried to listen to the clarinets in my section play so then I can also pick up notes by ear as well.”
To help with her hearing disability, Lopez-Monteroso uses Phonak hearing aids which connect to her microphone pen via Bluetooth.
“My hearing aid is a Phonak hearing aid, a great brand I have to say for sure,” Lopez-Monteroso said, “My CI [hearing implants] on the right is an advanced Bionic cochlear implant – all great technology.”
When Lopez-Monteroso is older she would love to make music, whether it’s performing or writing songs.
“My first choice would be music,” Lopez-Monteroso said “If music doesn’t work out I would go to college for law or to be a doctor.”
Daisy doesn’t think about the difficulties in pursuing music while being deaf and blind. Instead, she continues to pursue her passion.
“Music is just my passion… I wouldn’t say my life is perfect, but no one’s life is perfect. I’m starting to write songs and using this looping app that makes use of different instruments and sounds to make a rhythm.” Lopez-Monteroso said.
Lopez-Monteroso remains an inspiration for others in the school.
“I have been very impressed with Daisy’s courageousness and enthusiasm for learning. She’s always willing to challenge herself by trying new extracurricular activities,” Scott Anderson, the athletic director of Fremont Public Schools, said. “Daisy’s extremely organized, which helps her to balance her school and extracurricular schedule. We are lucky to have Dasiy as a part of Tiger Nation.”
