It took only 71 days for Ricardo Josue Puentes to fall in love with the Dodgers after moving to the U.S. from Mexico in 1988 and that love left a lasting impression. Twenty-nine years later, Puentes watched his favorite baseball team in Game 2 of the 2017 World Series and decided to show young students that they can accomplish great things no matter their backgrounds.
As a former student of Christopher Dena Elementary School, Puentes wanted to give back to the school by donating two World Series Dodgers tickets for Game 2. The school held an essay contest on why students are fans of the Boys in Blue and teachers selected a winner.
"It's been a dream of mine to watch the Dodgers in the World Series," Puentes said. "What better thing to do than share the dream with somebody else?
Ten-year-old Alejandro Herrera was the lucky student chosen to receive tickets to one of the most anticipated sporting events of the year.
Herrera, who says being a fan has been running through his family's veins because of his great-grandfather, was overjoyed to have been chosen to attend the World Series because it would be his first time seeing his favorite team play live.
Attending the game with his sister, who he considers to be his idol, Herrera said Puentes and his wife became his new idols.
"It doesn't matter where you came from, it doesn't matter where you live, how you got there, what school you attended; you can do anything," Ricardo's wife Tiffany Puentes said.
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While winning the tickets made Herrera's dream come true, he saw the achievement as a life lesson in giving back. The lucky 10-year-old from Boyle Heights said he hopes to be a heart surgeon when he grows up so he can be in a financial position to make another kid's dream come true.
