SYNERGY - Juneteenth 2022

David Arreola

Story By: Gina-Marie Cheeseman

You are never too young to be a leader or a public servant. David Arreola was elected to serve as a Gainesville City Commissioner at 26 years old. He is currently serving his second term at the age of 31.

Born to parents from Mexico City who came to Gainesville to go to the University of Florida, he cites his family as his biggest influence. “My family has influenced me the most. I drew a lot of my drive from both of my parents. They have always instilled in me the desire to be successful with my goals. My parents have always encouraged me.”

While attending Flagler College, he served as the student body president and discovered that he liked public service. “I found my passion for public leadership. I found my calling early on representing my student body.”

David interned for a law firm while attending Flagler, and after graduating with a Bachelor’s Degree. in Political Science, the law firm hired him. While he wanted eventually to attend law school, he did not apply right after college. He decided that before he attended law school he would obtain his master’s in business administration. “The plan was to finish that program and then go to law school.”

He was working full-time for the law firm and taking classes nights and weekends while studying for the law school admittance test. Two weeks before law school classes were to start, they called him and asked him to fill out paperwork. “I didn’t want to do it. I couldn’t justify what I would do with a law degree.”

He moved back to Gainesville to be with his family. “I didn’t have a plan once I left law school. I had an MBA but no plans.” After he moved back to Gainesville, he started volunteering for a City Commission candidate. “When he won his election, and my district was coming up for election, I thought to myself, If he can do it, so can I.”

He worked hard on his campaign for a City Commission seat, proving that hard work does pay off. “I personally knocked on 2,000 doors in my district and I ended up getting 2,000 votes winning the election in 2017.”

His re-election for City Commissioner was March 2020 and a week later the World Health Organization declared COVID-19 a pandemic. That became a pivotal time in his life and his career as a public servant. He describes it as “an answering-the-call moment for me.”

While he always felt like he was answering his call in life, the pandemic became a time when his call to public service took a different dimension. In 2020, the pressure to loosen guidelines and restrictions was immense. David believed in listening to health officials and doing everything necessary to protect the public.

He believes that public leadership is not just giving people what they want but what they need even if they do not want it. The pandemic gave him an opportunity to live out his belief. “I felt it was an opportunity to demonstrate to people the kind of leadership that might be unpopular. Voters might punish us for it, but at the end of the day, the most important thing in that juncture is providing people with a level of confidence that their leaders were going to provide them with a safe environment.”

He believes strongly in sacrificing for the greater good, and a career devoted to public service is the vehicle that allows him to do so. “I think I have always wanted to sacrifice for the greater good, and in this position, I get to do that.”