HISPANIC HERITAGE MONTH HIGHLIGHT: JUAN DIEGO ZELAYANDIA

KENNER, La. – On the final day of Hispanic Heritage Month, the Laketown Squadron spoke with Juan Diego Zelayandia to learn more about his impact on the Kenner community.

On the Hispanic Community in Kenner:

"The Hispanic community in Kenner is a community defined by resilience, hard work, sacrifice, and the hope for a better future. Despite the struggles and difficulties many face, those challenges have not stopped people from working toward their goals, supporting their families, and contributing to the community around them.

As a Hispanic person myself, I have experienced and witnessed many of the challenges our community confronts. Many Hispanic families leave behind familiar places, loved ones, and the lives they once knew in pursuit of greater opportunities. They arrive with hopes of building a better future, often starting over with very little but their determination to succeed.

I believe Hispanic families and individuals are essential to the foundation of our community. They are the small but vital pieces that help keep the larger system moving. Their contributions may sometimes go unnoticed, but without them, our community would not be what it is today.

To me, the Hispanic community represents the strength to persevere, the courage to sacrifice, and the determination to keep moving forward even when the road is difficult. It reminds me that behind every person is a story, behind every sacrifice is a hope, and behind every community are people working toward something better."

On starting Team Pack-A-Lunch, and why:

"Team Pack-A-Lunch began with Jay Couvillion and his perspective on what inclusion should truly mean. He recognized that something could appear inclusive on the surface while still losing sight of the deeper purpose behind it. Sometimes, we become so focused on the idea of bringing people together that we overlook a more important question: Are we truly creating opportunities for people to participate, belong, and be valued?

Jay wanted to approach that question differently. Rather than relying entirely on existing approaches, he decided to build something of his own, something that could reflect his vision and give that vision room to grow. That idea became Team Pack-A-Lunch.

Although Team Pack-A-Lunch existed before I joined, perhaps not in the same form it has today, its beginnings were rooted in that desire to approach inclusion differently. I became part of something that already had a vision, but also had room to evolve, grow, and discover new ways to bring its purpose to life.

As I approached high school graduation, I wasn’t entirely sure what my future would look like or what direction my life would take. Along the way, I had the opportunity to meet incredible people, including Jay, and those experiences helped me discover new ways of thinking about my future and the impact I could have on others.

What makes this journey meaningful to me is the opportunity to contribute to something bigger than myself. It has given me a way to explore the relationship between inclusion, perspective, and the way we understand one another. I have come to believe that bringing people together is only the beginning. What matters just as much is what happens when they come together: what they learn, what they challenge, and what they discover they can accomplish alongside one another.

For me, Team Pack-A-Lunch represents the opportunity to turn ideas into experiences that challenge assumptions and create meaningful connections. It is about recognizing that inclusion should be more than an intention. It should be something people can experience.

I may not have been there when Team Pack-A-Lunch first began, but I have the opportunity to contribute to what it becomes. And I believe that is part of what makes being involved meaningful: carrying a vision forward while continuing to discover new ways to bring its purpose to life."

On what people should know about him and his mission:

"One of the most important things I want people to understand is that sometimes, the limitations we place on one another are not created by our differences themselves, but by the way we perceive and interpret those differences.

I have lived with cerebral palsy my entire life. The way I move, communicate, and experience certain aspects of the world may be different from what others are accustomed to seeing, but to me, this is the life I have always known. I have spent my entire life learning, adapting, and finding my own ways to navigate the world. What may appear unfamiliar to someone else is simply familiar to me. Through that experience, I have come to understand something important: what looks like a limitation from one perspective may look like an opportunity from another.

I remember being in middle school and watching my classmates play football. As I watched them on the field, I would ask myself one simple question: Could I play with them?

My answer was yes. Not because I believed I could necessarily play exactly the way they did, but because I believed there could be another way for me to participate. Maybe I would have to approach the game differently, adapt to certain challenges, or find a different way to contribute. But why should doing something differently automatically mean that I could not do it at all?

I realized that the answer someone else might have given me could have been entirely different. They might have said no, not necessarily because I had tried and failed, but because they saw the differences between me and themselves and assumed those differences meant I could not participate.

That experience represents something much bigger than football. It illustrates how two people can look at the same situation and see entirely different possibilities. One person sees a difference and immediately sees a limitation. The other sees that same difference and asks, Why can’t we find another way?

Sometimes, the barrier is not the difference itself, but the assumptions we build around it.

Imagine two people standing on opposite sides of a window. One sees the world through the experience of living with a disability, while the other sees it through the experience of living without one. Their perspectives may be different because their experiences have taught them to understand the world differently. They may look at the same situation and arrive at opposite conclusions about what is possible.

But imagine those same two people standing side by side, looking toward the same horizon.

They have not suddenly become identical. Their experiences have not disappeared, their struggles have not become the same, and their differences have not ceased to exist. Yet their attention is no longer fixed on the distance between them. Instead, they are looking toward something beyond themselves: a shared destination, a shared purpose, and a future they can help build together.

Perhaps the greatest divide between two people is not how different they are, but how differently they understand what they can accomplish together.

We can be opposites in our experiences and different in the ways we navigate the world, yet still be looking in the same direction. We can take different paths, face different obstacles, and move at different paces without losing sight of the same destination. Our journeys do not have to look alike for the future we hope to create to be shared.

This is the philosophy behind my phrase, “Differently the Same.”

To me, those words represent the understanding that being the same does not mean being identical, and being different does not mean being divided. We can have different abilities, backgrounds, lifestyles, and struggles while still sharing something meaningful: the hope for a better future and the desire to make the world around us better.

One example of this philosophy in action is the ACFL, a football league designed for people with disabilities that also welcomes people without disabilities to participate. By bringing people together through a shared experience, we challenge traditional expectations and encourage everyone to adapt, participate, and work toward a common goal.

But the deeper purpose extends beyond football. It is about challenging the idea that people must fit into a predetermined way of doing things to deserve the opportunity to participate. In many parts of life, people with disabilities are expected to adjust to a world that was not designed with them in mind. We are often the ones expected to find another way, overcome another obstacle, or prove that we belong.

But what happens when we change that expectation? What happens when everyone enters the same environment understanding that participation may require all of us to adapt?

That is the kind of perspective I want to encourage. Inclusion is not simply allowing someone into an existing world and expecting them to adjust. It is being willing to rethink that world together so everyone has a meaningful opportunity to participate.

And if there is one thing I want people to take away from my story and our mission, it is this: even though we may be different from one another, do different things, live different lifestyles, and face different struggles, we can still share the same hope for a better world.

We do not have to live identical lives to care about one another’s futures. We do not have to experience the same challenges to recognize the value in one another. And we do not have to see the world in exactly the same way to work toward something better.

Perhaps a better world does not begin when we all learn to see things the same way. Perhaps it begins when we learn to understand our differences and realize that, despite everything that makes us different, we can still be looking toward the same future.

That is what “Differently the Same” means to me. It is not about erasing our differences or pretending that everyone’s journey is identical. It is about recognizing that our differences are part of who we are, but they do not have to determine how far we can go together.

We do not have to be the same to stand together. We simply have to recognize that, despite our differences, we can still be moving toward the same horizon."

On what he enjoys most about running his foundation, and how the Hispanic community supports each other’s businesses in Kenner: 

"One of the most meaningful aspects of being involved in a community is seeing what can happen when people come together around a shared purpose. Every connection creates the possibility of something more, whether that means introducing people to new opportunities, supporting a local business, or bringing together individuals who might not otherwise have crossed paths.

In my experience, supporting one another goes beyond simply purchasing a product or recommending a service. It is about building relationships, creating trust, sharing opportunities, and recognizing that someone else’s success does not have to come at the expense of our own.

I believe communities become stronger when people are willing to invest in one another. When local businesses support each other, when families spread the word about opportunities, and when individuals choose to collaborate, the benefits can extend throughout the community.

For me, the value lies in creating connections that can continue beyond a single event or interaction. Every opportunity to bring people together is also an opportunity to strengthen the relationships that help a community grow."

On his personal and business goals for the future:

"As Team Pack-A-Lunch continues to grow, I hope to see its work reach more people, create stronger connections within the community, and open the door to more opportunities to make a meaningful difference.

I would like to see the ideas and initiatives we develop continue to challenge perspectives, encourage participation, and create experiences that bring people together. To me, growth is not measured solely by how large an organization becomes or how many events it organizes. It is also measured by the lives it touches, the relationships it builds, and the impact that continues after an event is over.

I hope to continue learning, contributing, and helping turn ideas into opportunities that benefit others. I believe there is always room to find new ways to connect people, rethink existing approaches, and build something that serves a greater purpose.

Ultimately, my hope is that our work continues to demonstrate that meaningful change does not always begin with something enormous. Sometimes, it begins with a different perspective, a willingness to try something new, or an opportunity for two people to discover how much they can accomplish together.

To me, “Differently the Same” is more than a phrase. It is a reminder that our differences do not have to determine the distance between us. We can be different in how we live, what we experience, and how as a person."