Finding Common Ground

Roommates Ryan Vohra ’27 and Iago Arango ’27 forge a bond through their mutual sense of humor

BY JANA F. BROWN

Randomly paired as roommates in Coit North as new Fourth Formers last year, it didn’t take long for Ryan Vohra ’27 and Iago Arango ’27 to find common ground.

“We grew our relationship through our shared sense of humor,” Arango explains.

Now in their second year of living together, they’ve built a deep friendship that is enhanced by their vastly different backgrounds. Vohra grew up in Nova Scotia and came to St. Paul’s School seeking a rigorous education and a strong hockey program. Arango, who plays soccer and basketball at SPS, hails from Panama. Although initially reluctant to leave home, Arango’s decision hinged on a desire to study in a place where he could meet people from all over the world. Both roommates appreciate the international community at St. Paul’s and the “never-ending sleepover” that defines boarding school life.

“Our friend group is super-diverse,” Vohra says.

In addition to humor, Arango and Vohra share a love of all things “Star Wars,” with a particular affection for Anakin Skywalker (aka Darth Vader), whose posters adorn their walls. Now firmly entrenched in kinship, the two have established a Saturday-night ritual of ordering sushi and watching movies together. Of course, the “Star Wars” series is on their watchlist, but they’re also working their way through Christopher Nolan’s body of work.

The duo’s easy rapport is apparent in how they support one another. When Arango shares that he doesn’t get much playing time in basketball, Vohra interjects that his friend recently recovered from an injury. When Vohra starts to speak about Arango’s soccer skill, the latter interrupts to boast that Vohra captains the SPS golf team. When Arango admits he’s the messier of the two, Vohra smiles as if it’s no big deal.

They’ve also bonded over mid-2010s pop music, although Arango favors listening to artists in his native Spanish, while Vohra prefers country music. As a testament to their friendship, Vohra performed a Bad Bunny song — in Español — at karaoke night in the Friedman Community Center, despite not understanding the lyrics. But the nuances of their languages go both ways.

“I have a Canadian accent, and Iago started to adopt some of the ways I say words,” Vohra says. “Everyone tells him, ‘You’ve been spending too much time around Ryan.’”

Arango and Vohra are also frequent workout and study partners. They’re enrolled in the same Humanities V and Calculus sections and can often be found doing their homework side-by-side. Arango is particularly vocal in class, a skill Vohra says has inspired him to become more confident in speaking up himself. Meanwhile, Arango shares that he’s motivated by his roommate’s dedication to both studying and fitness, which pushes him to work harder.

The friends have tentative plans to visit one another’s respective homes, eager to get to know the other’s home country. As they consider college choices, Vohra weighs continuing his hockey career while pursuing pre-med studies, and Arango says he’ll likely follow a purely academic path. Although they’re not sure where they’ll end up, they might even apply to some of the same colleges. “It would be so cool to be roommates again,” Arango says.

No matter the future, there’s still one more chance at St. Paul’s. “We’re definitely living together next year,” Vohra confirms.