It’s not uncommon to see a teacher out of school while out shopping, at a restaurant, or maybe at a community event. However, there are some spots you probably wouldn’t expect to find a teacher like performing in a band. However, that’s exactly where you’d find Pembroke Pines Charter High School’s Mr. Bolaños.
Mr. Bolaños, the teacher for environmental and forensic science here at PPCHS, is a singer for a band called Jake On The Lake. The band focuses on covers and original songs, performing everything from 60s and 70s music, the Beatles, and even their recent single. The group holds performances at restaurants, bars, and other venues, and is looking into releasing their music online.
Interestingly, Mr. Bolaños isn’t the only PPCHS teacher to have performed as a part of Jake On The Lake; Mrs. Sanford, the school’s drama teacher, has also played for the band as a vocalist in the past, although she isn’t as frequent at events as Bolaños. Charter teachers and students also frequent the band’s audience. “Some [come] by accident, some on purpose,” recalled Bolaños, thinking back to previous shows. “Last year, I had a couple of students come. This year I’ve had a couple of former students come to a couple of my shows. Some of the teachers have come as well. They’ve supported me.”
However, being both a teacher and a member of a band isn’t easy. Teaching is a strenuous job that requires a full day of work from 7 a.m. to around 2:30 p.m., as well as time to plan a whole week’s worth of lessons and grade hundreds of students’ work. Balancing teaching and performing in a band is incredibly difficult, but Bolaños is up for the challenge.
“It’s not easy,” he remarked. “I get asked all the time by other teachers how I do it. You know, my ‘teach by day, sing by night.’ But I do the best I can, along with my family. I have to balance my home life as well. I figure if I can do it now and I’m still able to, I’m gonna, as I like to say, ‘ride until the wheels fall off.’” Despite his busy work schedule at Charter and the fact that he has a wife and two daughters, Bolaños still manages to make time to perform for his band at night.
Bolaños has been interested in singing for as long as he can remember. “I’ve been singing for my family since I was a little kid,” he recalled. However, joining the band didn’t come until the COVID-19 pandemic. “[The band] was born out of Covid. Long story short, the lead guitarist, [Jake,] who the band was named after, was stuck in the house, playing [guitar] in the house. His mom was working from home and she said ‘If you don’t get that nonsense out of my house right now, that guitar’s going in the lake!’
So he went out on the lake and started playing, and that’s, well, Jake on The Lake!” As the pandemic stretched on, the group found more members, and when Bolaños heard them for the first time, he ended up joining them. “I went to one of their early gigs, they found out I could sing, and the rest is history!”
Mr. Bolano cites his family and experiences as his biggest inspiration for continuing to play. “I try to put [my experiences] into words as best I can and spread that sentiment to everybody else. Spreading hope and love to everyone else.”
If any students are interested in viewing Mr. Bolaños and Jake On The Lake perform, they can be found on Instagram at @officialjakeonthelake, where updates are posted regarding where and when performances will be at restaurants, bars, and private venues. Bolaños says that Spotify and Apple Music may soon be on the way now that the band has begun to produce more original songs. Their first single, Nights In Nashville, is now out and can be listened to on the group’s official social media platforms, or at their future performances throughout February and March.
