Ask any celebrity and you are likely to hear that pursuing an
entertainment career takes determination and hard work.
TV star Ignacio Serricchio said exactly that to aspiring performers recently
at Trillium Academy in Taylor.
The dark-haired Argentian-born star visited the school as a reward for the
students’ efforts in giving back to the community.
The school recently participated in a service learning campaign, “Kids
Helping Kids,” with the Desi Geestman Foundation.
Through various fund-raisers, the students collected nearly $4,000 for the
charity, which directly supports families with children suffering from
cancer and other terminal illnesses.
Serricchio has been involved with the charity for five years and he, along
with other soap stars, was in town for its third annual “Touched By A Star”
gala, held Saturday in Sterling Heights.
He became involved with “Touched By a Star” through its founder, Riverview
mother Josephine Vitale, who also lost a child to cancer.
Vitale teamed with Ileana Geestman, who named the Desi Geestman Foundation
in honor of the 13-year-old daughter she lost to cancer in 1999.
During her daughter’s two-year battle with the disease, Geestman saw many
other families who needed help with medical bills and other expenses related
to the disease.
She decided to start the foundation to help those families with their
plight.
Vitale now hosts the “Touched By A Star” event every year with proceeds
going to the foundation.
“Not only does he do the acting thing, but he’s real,” Geestman said of
Serricchio.
“He’s from the heart.”
Serricchio, who for two years played Diego Alcazar on the long-running ABC
soap opera “General Hospital,” told the students how he overcame hardships
to
succeed.
As a child growing up in a very poor town near Buenos Aires, he developed a
knack for performing.
“When my parents were working, instead of doing my homework, I would create
characters and make up shows,” he said. “Then they’d get home and I’d
perform for them.”
His parents had bigger dreams for their family and soon moved to Mexico
City.
There, Serricchio began learning English by watching American movies and
impersonating the characters.
He attended a British high school and went on to Syracuse University when
his family moved to the United States.
He later moved to Hollywood and built an acting career on sheer
determination.
Many rejections came his way, but he soon had his first audition for
“General Hospital” and landed the role.
“There were 10 guys in the room and nine of them were blond and blue-eyed,”
he said. “I guess it was good that I looked different and stood out.”
After his years on the soap, he felt the need to spread his wings. The
25-year-old now plays Gabriel Lawrence on the CBS thriller “Ghost
Whisperer.”
The star’s visit particularly was important for students at Trillium, a
charter school focusing on the fine and performing arts.
Principal Angela Romanowski said the high school student council asked her
about finding a charity to support for a school project.
“I always follow ‘General Hospital’ and came across this wonderful charity
event and researched the foundation,” Romanowski said.
The school pledged to sponsor a $5,000 Gold Star at the event and continues
to hold fund-raisers to meet the goal. Next year, the goal is to sponsor a
$10,000 platinum star.
Selling T-shirts designed by a student artist and featuring Serricchio’s
signature, brought in money toward their goal.
The celebrity visit was a sweet reward for all their hard work, according to
Romanowski.
“It’s just so exciting for them to have someone actually in the business
come to talk to them about that,” she said.
