COACHELLA, Calif. — On a warm summer night the sound of shoes clacking on the floor radiated from the clubhouse at Las Palmeras Estates, a group of low-income housing units in Coachella. The sound was not coming from children running around relaxing during their summer break. This was the sound of young people from the group Sol Del Desierto practicing ballet folklorico.

Ballet folklorico are dances from Latin America that fuse local folk culture with ballet.

Parents looked on as their children perfected their choreography one step at a time. Glimmers of sweat slowly appearing on their faces. Although they were getting tired, they had many reasons to keep pushing.

“It allows you to express a love of dancing and when we compete it is like teaching people our culture and traditions,” said 10 year old Isabel Gomez.

Gomez kept a smile on her face even as her instructor Maribel De Leon asked her to repeat the steps a few times. She held her colorful skirt up, making sure it never made contact with the floor.

Students encouraged one another to do their best. De Leon’s students were doing more than just dancing. Through this program, funded by the Coachella Valley Housing Coalition, the students were able to preserve their cultural traditions while at the same time create a safe space where they all belong. 

De Leon who has been dancing since she was seven said that some of her students are shy when they first start dancing but over time they begin to come out of their shells.

“The majority of the children I have were really shy at school, or if they’re starting school they don’t know how to interact with children or their own peers,” she said.  “So this is an opportunity to help them grow out of it.”

Gustavo Sandoval, Folklorico instructor at Desert Mirage High School in Thermal points out similar benefits of folklorico especially for young people.

“One of the original forms of community is dancing,” he said.  Dancing plays a role in all cultures.  Dancing allows us to express our creativity without too many restrictive boundaries.”

“Folklorico often promotes and increases social and creative outlets” he said. “When people come together, it provides opportunities to socialize and share stories.”

Folklorico has provided Megan Richardson with the opportunity to engage in an enriching cultural exchange.

“So, I am the only person in the group that is white. I think it is a great way to learn about culture and learn Spanish, it is really fun,” she said.  “I have made a lot of new friends and it is a great way to learn how both (American and Latino) cultures came together.

Megan’s mom, Michelle Richardson, said that folklorico has not only given her daughter to learn a dance that isn’t jazz or ballet but it has also increased both of their understandings of Mexican culture.

“This is by far the best opportunity we have had to learn about the music, all the different states in Mexico,” she said. “I mean we all think there’s Mexico and Baja, we don’t understand all about all the states in Mexico, we homeschool so it really is like a whole immersion program for us.”

Even those that are Mexican or that are familiar with the culture might not be aware of the full diversity that makes up Latin America’s largest country. Folklorico shines a spotlight on this rich diversity.

“There are 31 states and all have their unique style of dance and dress. To say that the Mexican hat dance represents all of folklorico is criminal and is trivializing the enormous contributions that have given Mexican Folklore its richness and flavor unique to itself,” said Sandoval.

“There was dance before the Europeans arrived and there was dance after they arrived. There is indigenous dances, and then there is dance that blend the European dances, indigenous dance and elements from other cultures such as the African culture.”

Back at Sol Del Desierto practice De Leon takes a break to check in with her students and their parents to make sure that none of them are falling behind on their studies.

“If they aren’t doing well in school then they can’t come to dance or practice,” she said. “It is important that they focus on school.”

Before parting she shares some final words.

“You have to dedicate yourself to it, it isn’t easy.”

About the Author:

Paulina Rojas is a native New Yorker, Paulina has spent the past two years reporting on the Eastern Coachella Valley. She joined Coachella Unincorporated in 2016.  While it is different from the concrete jungle of Manhattan, she feels right at home in Coachella. In 2014 Paulinagraduated with a journalism degree from The University of Houston and is a member of The National Association of Hispanic Journalists. View her author page here.

Coachella, Calif. — In Riverside County, the human trafficking industry thrives, thanks in part to the accessibility of freeways connecting the area to major cities like Los Angeles and San Diego.

A glimpse into the dynamics of human trafficking in the Coachella Valley, which sits on the eastern edge of the county, shows that readily available transportation and a resort atmosphere help encourage traffickers to bring victims to the area.

Kristen Dolan, the anti-human trafficking director for SafeHouse of the Desert, a nonprofit organization dedicated to helping young people in crisis, says human trafficking is a critical issue in the Coachella Valley.

“There are several ‘tracks,’ or areas where the girls and guys walk here in the [Coachella] Valley, and a lot of trafficking occurs off the streets and online with sites like Backpage.com, and even social media sites like Facebook, Kik, and Snapchat, to name a few,” Dolan said.

In 2011, January 11th was designated at Human Trafficking Awareness Day to help draw attention to the 600,000 to 800,000 people are trafficked across international borders every year. According to the U.S. State Department, half of these people are children, and as an industry, trafficking garners approximately $30 billion annually.

Riverside County Anti-Human Trafficking Task Force

Currently, there are more than 100 open cases with the Riverside County Sheriff’s department regarding human trafficking; many of these cases pertain to youth, as reported by the Anti-Human Trafficking Task Force in Riverside County.

The Riverside County Anti-Human Trafficking Task Force, made up of seven local organizations and law enforcement agencies, was formed in 2010 to combat and prevent human trafficking in Riverside County.

The task force includes federal and local organizations like the Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the United States Attorney’s Office, the Riverside County District Attorney’s Office, and Operation SafeHouse. Its goals are to investigate and prosecute human traffickers, identify and rescue victims of human trafficking, and promote greater public awareness of human trafficking within Riverside County.

Dolan says that despite its remoteness, the Coachella Valley is actually at a higher risk of being targeted for human trafficking due its wide geographic area, stretching from the resort town of Palm Springs to the more rural or unincorporated areas in Coachella.

Recognizing that local law enforcement are often the first to identify victims, the Riverside Task Force is working closely with police department, both city and county, on how to handle trafficking victims.

The Indio Police Department has been working with the Riverside County Sheriff’s office and the Riverside Task Force to ensure that its officers are prepared to respond to situations where minors are being victimized.

“We most recently had a training for all field personnel and investigative units put on by the Riverside County Anti-Human Traffic Task Force to help us identify the signs of human trafficking victims,” Deputy Daniel Marshall said. “If a human trafficking issue is suspected, there is a specialized unit in Riverside County that the follow up investigation will be turned over to after the initial well-being of the juvenile is attended to.”

Decriminalizing Victims of Trafficking

As in other parts of the state, notably Long Beach, law enforcement in the Coachella Valley has begun to move towards decriminalizing victims of trafficking. Thanks to the Riverside Task Force, SafeHouse of the Desert is able to connect with law enforcement agencies to help address the needs of trafficking victims, especially minors, and keep them out of jail.

“We work very closely with the Riverside Sheriff’s Department. In fact, they have a whole team dedicated strictly to handling human trafficking investigations,” Dolan said.

Fransisca LaFranco, a residential therapist and case manager with SafeHouse of the Desert, said she hopes the collaboration with law enforcement will make for a better understanding of human trafficking victims and their needs.

“Law enforcement can make a huge impact on these individuals,” LeFranco said. “The victims tend to have only experienced law enforcement during [arrests] … they rarely experience officers as individuals that help others.”

The task force is also pursuing a public awareness campaign around the issue of trafficking. Recently the collaborative launched a campaign to post informational fliers in “hot zones” for human trafficking, including hotels, truck stops, resorts and liquor stores. The campaign is focused on helping to identify possible victims in these hot zones.

Dolan notes identification is critical, as many victims often remain in the shadows, increasing the likelihood that they remain stuck in the trafficking cycle. Dolan says many of these youth come from broken homes with little family support. Traffickers, she says, take advantage by posing as their protector and provider.

The trauma that victims carry as a result of their experience can be severe, explains LaFranco. “Most victims suffer from severe PTSD,” she said. “They experience flashbacks, nightmares, depression, fear, and helplessness. They often attempt to avoid certain people or situations that can remind them of their traumatic experiences.”

Safehouse of the Desert offers various services to help victims transition out of trafficking. These include a personal case manager, housing, mental health services, empowerment classes and life skills training. But LaFranco says the road to recovery is a long one, often several years or more.  

“Victims have a very difficult time socially as compared to other youth their age. They are always on guard and do not trust others, which makes it difficult when they attempt to even make friends,” Lefranco said.

LeFranco said a better community understanding of what victims endure would help soften the transition.

“The first step for the community is to be educated … It would also be encouraging to have the community get involved in helping victims with job training so that they have choices instead of relying on the street to feed and clothe them.” LaFranco said.

About the author: 

Christian Mendez joined Coachella Uninc. as a beat reporter last year and has covered issues like Prop. 47 and the Salton Sea. He is an Eastern Coachella Valley native and a son of farmworker parents. His interests include photojournalism and cinematography focused on Mexican-American communities. View his author page here.

Read more: Organizers Launch Campaign to Decriminalize Trafficked Minors

Coachella—Young Hispanic voters are on track to double the Hispanic electorate in the next two decades. This means the number of eligible Hispanic voters could grow from 23 million to 40 million before 2030.

This year, Hispanics make up 10 percent of all voters. But that percentage could quickly increase as more young Hispanics become age-eligible to vote. Every year, 800,000 Latinos turn 18, according to the Pew Research Center’s Hispanic Trends Project.

The increase of eligible Hispanic youth means more leverage for the Hispanic electorate. Several major news outlets already predict that any 2016 presidential candidate needs to court the rapidly growing Hispanic electorate if he or she wants to end up in the White House.

But the key to effectively engaging with young Hispanic voters is getting to know their motivations and what the young voters look for in potential candidates.

In light of the growing power of the young Hispanic electorate, Coachella Unincorporated interviewed several young Hispanic voters from the Coachella Valley to ask them what is their motivation for voting and what criteria they use to choose which candidates and ballot measures to vote for. The young voters we interviewed said they voted for a candidate based on the candidate’s community involvement and the candidate’s record of getting work done. Though many of the young people admitted to voting mostly along the Democratic Party line, the young people stated that they value a candidate’s track record more than their political party affiliation.

See the rest of the young voters’ answers below.

Why did you vote in the midterm election?

“It was my responsibility. And there is increased pressure from the media for Latino youth to vote. There were several important issues concerning my community that were important to me, like Proposition 1 and Proposition 47.”

 Edith Gonzales — 22, North Shore, Calif.

 “It’s my duty as an American citizen.”

 Nicolas Rodriguez — 22, Mecca, Calif.

“I voted because I believe that midterm elections carry as much importance as elections in a presidential year. There were many candidates and propositions on the ballot this year that are going to make a big difference, and I wanted to be a part of that process. I know that there are a lot of people who say that they care about the community, but those people don’t even vote. I didn’t want to be one of those people.”

 Ivan Valenzuela — 21, Indio, Calif.

“Every election is equally as important. Voting is part of our duty as the new generation to create change.”

 Sahara Huazano — 23, Mecca, Calif.

“I chose to vote in the midterm elections because I know how important every single vote is. Midterm elections can be extra tough because a lot of people don’t see it as important. But in fact, it matters more. Midterm elections vote for your city candidates directly and every single vote is counted.”

 Natalia Cervantes — 19, La Quinta, Calif.

 Which candidates did you vote for? And why?

“I voted for elected officials who would represent my community and who have demonstrated that they will take the extra mile to improve the living quality of my community disregarding race, ethnicity and political affiliation. For the congressional race I voted for Dr. Raul Ruiz because he has demonstrated the capacity to create change in our community. Ruiz also reached out to the Hispanic community. His entire campaign was run by young, college graduates from the Coachella Valley, and primarily, his volunteers were comprised of high schools students from Desert Mirage, Coachella Valley High School, Indio High School and other schools.”

 Sahara Huazano — 23, Mecca, Calif.

“I voted for Raul Ruiz, because in the two years he’s been in congress, as short as that seems, he’s shown that he cares about the community. Especially in Coachella, where the community has many groups, including veterans, seniors, and Hispanics, he has done well in giving his attention to everybody that needs it.”

Ivan Valenzuela — 21, Indio, Calif.

“I voted for Raul Ruiz and Bonnie Garcia, because they appealed to my beliefs more than their opponents. Both candidates reached out to the Hispanic community through social media and in-person.”

Nicolas Rodriguez — 22, Mecca, Calif.

“For La Quinta City Mayor, I voted for Linda Evans because I feel the city could use a woman’s voice. The current mayor, Don Adolph, is a great man, and has done many great things for us. But it’s time for a fresh face, and it’s time to give new opportunities. I also vote for Congressman Raul Ruiz in his re-election against Brian Nestande. Congressman Ruiz has voted pass party lines before, and that’s okay, because it shows that he is not one sighted for the Democrat Party, but he can see potential in some of the Republican Party’s views. Congressman Ruiz has also made it a priority to get out the vote to every possible voter.”

 Natalia Cervantes — 19, La Quinta, Calif.

 How do you decide which candidate or ballot measure to vote for?

“I vote based on a candidate’s agenda, background, past and current involvement in the community that they claim to serve, the people who they are supported by, and based on their previous and current funders. I do not vote based on political affiliation. Their affiliation is not what determines my vote. I first see the issues that they will be capable to moving and the overall theme of the political affiliations, and I see if there is a possible movement towards the right direction.”

 Sahara Huazano — 23, Mecca, Calif.

“I vote for the Democratic Party because they are the party that closely aligns with my views. But that doesn’t mean I will always vote for the Democratic Party. If a Republican candidate shows better potential than a Democratic one, I will vote for the better candidate.”

Natalia Cervantes — 19, La Quinta, Calif.

“I usually swing between the Democratic Party, the Green Party or the Independent Party. I’ll usually read ahead of time the informational booklet mailed to us, and I look up peoples’ backgrounds online to understand where they are coming from. It’s also very important for me to look up the ballot measures that are huge and that will influence all Californians.”

Edith Gonzales — 22, North Shore, Calif.

“I vote based on the candidates’ beliefs and which of them I agree with more. I don’t vote along party lines. Of the two giants in the political spectrum, I feel both are far from what my views are, but I do believe Democrats are the better of the two evils most of the time.”

Nicolas Rodriguez — 22, Mecca, Calif.

“Before I vote, I look at the candidates’ plans for the city. But it’s still hard to tell because the candidates’ plans almost never pan out. There’s so much influence that they’re susceptible to from business and donors, so it’s almost mostly voting out of faith. I voted with liberalism in mind, but I don’t know if that’s like saying that I voted with the Democratic Party. I’m registered as a Green Party member, but all of the candidates and propositions that I voted for are associated with the Democratic Party.”

Ivan Valenzuela — 21, Indio, Calif.

Is it important for young Hispanics to vote?

“It’s incredibly important for young Hispanics to vote because we are the new face of America; we make America run. We are the ones who could possibly hold the power to turn votes around just because our numbers have increased over time. The power we have, as a whole, is immense. I just wished we all new that.”

Sahara Huazano — 23, Mecca, Calif.

“It’s important for young Hispanics to vote because we don’t have many voices to speak for us. If we want change, we have to speak and mobilize as a group and organize plans to make a difference.”

 Ivan Valenzuela — 21, Indio, Calif.

“We need to get our voices heard in American politics.”

 Nicolas Rodriguez — 22, Mecca, Calif.

“It’s super important for young Latinos to vote because it allows for some form of representation of their position on issues and people to take place. Voting also allows us to influence policies, measures and which reforms pass or not.”

Edith Gonzales — 22, North Shore, Calif. 

“It is extremely important that young Hispanics get out and vote. The attitudes of, “I don’t vote because the government is corrupt,” or, “I don’t vote because my vote doesn’t matter anyways,” will have a negative effect on American politics if they continue. Minority voices need to be heard. So vote.”

Natalia Cervantes — 19, La Quinta, Calif.

IVAN VALENZUELA and AMBER AMAYA/Coachella Uninc

Mecca — As part of their Rethink Your Drink initiative, the Regional Access Project Foundation created infused waters for Mecca residents at a Movies In The Park event on Thursday, July 31.

Community members interviewed by Coachella Unincorporated said they liked the taste of the infused waters, and said they would try making the fruit-infused water for their families.

Editor’s Note: This report is part of a series on the Rethink Your Drink initiative supported by the Regional Access Project Foundation.

IVAN VALENZUELA/Coachella Unincorporated

When Jose Alcantar was invited to attend the annual Sons & Brothers camp, he was just excited to get out of the desert for a few days — but he was taken by surprise by how much the camp had to offer.

“I thought there wasn’t going to be much to do in the woods, but no, they really did a lot. I think that caught me by surprise. I learned a lot over there,” Alcantar, one of six youths from the Eastern Coachella Valley who traveled to Portola, Calif. to participate in the camp, said.

At the camp, which took place July 20 through July 26, students participated in group discussions where they talked about common issues that the Sons & Brothers initiative hopes to address, such as school attendance and dealing with suspensions.

Alcantar said he hopes to use what he learned from the camp to interact with his community and work on what he believes is a big issue.

“I learned how to interact with people, so I wanna (sic) use that to talk to my community about creating better education for incoming high school students,” Alcantar said. “My [sister is] barely going to be a fourth grader, and I want a good education for her going into high school.”

Trinidad Arredondo, a mentor with the Sons & Brothers initiative, joined the Coachella Valley youths and other teens from fourteen different locations across California at the annual camp. He said he’s hopeful that the students were able to learn from those experiences.

“I think they took away some things they wanted to work on. Number one being the fact that young people are being suspended for willful defiance. They’re being suspended for small things, and our safest place for young people sometimes is our schools. I know that they took that away from it,” Arredondo said.

The Sons & Brothers initiative, formerly Boys and Men of Color, began with an effort to invest in young people of color throughout California. With Building Healthy Communities (BHC), The California Endowment funded a $50 million plan in 2013 that would help the success of young boys of color through a seven year campaign.

When Arredondo received training from BHC, with several other mentors in the community a year and a half ago, he was excited about what the program could do for Coachella Valley students.

“I saw the opportunity for myself to get involved. We started with seven mentors, community leaders and a group of people who had a passion for working with youth,” he said.

Along with the other mentors in the community, Arredondo helps young kids develop leadership skills in their community and schools. Especially in the Eastern Coachella Valley, the Sons & Brothers initiative works with groups and organizations to provide services like extra food, school supplies and medical help for addressing physical and mental health.

“A lot of the kids are currently going through a lot of things,” Arredondo said. “They come from broken homes where sometimes they don’t have access to food. They don’t have access to medical care. They don’t have access to a solid place to live. They have depression, and, especially during the summer, they don’t have places to go to let that out and share it. What we’re able to do is create a space for them to share.”

Ray Amador, a unit director for the Boys & Girls Club of Coachella Valley, is also a mentor for the Sons & Brothers initiative. Amador has gone to previous camps with students and explained that through obstacle courses, workshops and working in teams, the youths learn a lot from their experiences at these events.

“They see their peers, and these boys come to find out that they’re not the only ones that go through difficult stuff,” Amador said.

By Aurora Saldivar, Coachella Unincorporated

Coachella, Calif. — Inspired by the mass quantities of food Americans throw away, Christy Porter decided to tackle the hunger problem in the Coachella Valley over ten years ago.

“(With) twenty-seven percent field waste and thirty percent plate waste,” says Porter, “there is no reason for anyone to be hungry in our country.”

Porter founded Hidden Harvest in 2001, a non-profit that rescues produce from eastern Coachella Valley fields and distributes them to over 60 agencies serving low-income residents throughout the region.

Porter’s fight against hunger took root in Mecca, where she built edible gardens at Saul Martinez Elementary School. She was struck by a question posed to her by a the father at the school: Why is so much of the food left to rot in the fields where I work?

“When I came here, we didn’t need policy as much as we needed food,” she says. “Kids can’t eat red tape while you’re waiting for policy to take effect. People are still hungry.”

Local farmers notify Hidden Harvest when there is product left in the fields that would not make it into grocery stores due to cosmetic blemishes or cost to harvest. The non-profit quickly hires crews to harvest the remaining produce.

“Our biggest problem is not that the produce, it’s out there. It’s getting the farmers to remember to call us before they plow it up,” explains Porter, who believes tax incentives for participating farmers would be helpful. “It is big business for them to hold a crop in the field, even for one day.”

“Produce is getting harder and harder to come by,” says Porter.  “Since 2008, the demand for food in food banks has gone up 60 percent. We were probably serving 20 to 25 thousand people back then, but farmers started selling more and more and more of their products so our access to products went down about 50 percent.”

It is a constant struggle for Hidden Harvest to access produce when supply is down, but the need within the community is still prevalent.

“I find it hard to get enough produce to feed the beast,” says Porter.

“We haven’t had any help from federal or state dollars. It’s not that we are opposed to it, it’s just we haven’t had any.  We are kind of small, so we are trying to get money by grants or by public contribution, but that’s a lot of work.  That’s what I do all the time. I’m raising money day and night.”

This fall, Porter plans to light a fire and challenge California farmers with a program called Just One Row.

“We are going to try to persuade our farmers to give us just one row of each of their crops,” said Porter. “We know that one row, one row, of carrots is ten thousand pounds of carrots. That is a lot of carrots.  We could do a lot with that.”

In the quest to end domestic hunger, Hidden Harvest employs about six hundred local farm workers in the course of the year.  The organization feeds, educates, employs, and inspires hope within the community year round – many times using Porter’s moving photography as a catalyst.

“How can you photograph hunger?” asks the former photojournalist. “Part of our job is to convince people that it is out there.”

To learn more about Hidden Harvest, please visit www.hiddenharvest.org.

By Alejandra Alarcon,
Coachella Unincorporated

Mecca, Calif. — Joel Diaz’s life has changed drastically since Timothy Bradley, the boxer he trains, became the WBO welterweight champion after beating Manny Pacquiao in a controversial split decision on June 9.

“We have every eye on us now. People always have something to say. People stop and ask me ‘Do you think you won the fight?’ Even kids tell me negative comments only because of what they hear people say,” Diaz said.

But he doesn’t have time for the naysers. He is too busy building future champions at the Boys & Girls Club.

“After a hard week and three months of training, (and being) stressed out, burned out, I’m back to work,” Diaz said. “I still have people that depend on me.”

Diaz, now 39, arrived in Coachella in 1985 at the age of 12. His parents had previously left their children with their grandparents in Michoacan, Mexico, while they worked in Coachella. Finally, the time had come for the children to join their parents in the United States.

“I didn’t want to come here because I didn’t know anything. I was afraid. To me, my grandparents were my parents,” said Diaz. “They had to trick us. We got in the car with my grandma, she said she was going to get something from the store, and she never came back. We cried the whole ride.”

Diaz and his siblings went from their grandparents’ ranch in Mexico to a cramped apartment on 52^nd Avenue in Coachella. His parents were field workers struggling to support their two daughters and five sons.

“My parents were in a bad economic situation,” Diaz said. Being the oldest son, he felt it was his responsibility to help his parents.

He started working at the age of 16 to help his parents financially. Every morning, he delivered newspapers before school. He worked at the swap meet, and he joined his parents in the fields or worked construction jobs during summer breaks.

Diaz recalls stumbling up the boxing gym while walking the streets of Coachella.

“I was a 13-year-old boy that weighed 138 pounds,” he said. “People made fun of my weight. I kept getting beat up but I kept going back.”

His persistence and determination soon began to pay off.

“I started getting better and better with practice,” Diaz said.

Although his parents were not supportive of his decision to box, their financial struggles led Diaz to begin his professional boxing career at the age of 18.

“My mom didn’t want me to box, she was scared I was going to get hurt. My dad was never supportive either because he always wanted us to work. He believed it was a waste of time,” Diaz said.

Even without their initial support, he was determined to help his family by winning bout after bout.

“I was doing really good in my career, until here comes a world championship fight in Africa,” he said.

When Diaz returned from South Africa, he discovered that the impact from punches to his head and face had caused major damage to one of his eyes. He began to lose vision and his pro boxing career – once full of promise – came to an abrupt end.

“That was going to be the biggest fight of my life, and I couldn’t do it. My life at that time completely changed. I started hanging around with the wrong people. I didn’t care about life. I didn’t care about anything,” Diaz said.

His mother noticed her son’s different behavior. She became worried and confronted him.

“I told her I didn’t care about my life. I told her that everything I did in my whole life for boxing was for her and my family. Every time I stepped in the ring I asked God ‘Please if I win this fight, I’ll buy my mom a dining room set.’ or ‘I’ll buy my dad a truck.’”

His mother then said something that turned his life around.

“Maybe God has a different plan for you. Everything happens for a reason. Help your brothers and other kids,” she urged.

Inspired by his mother’s words, he began to train his younger brothers, Antonio Diaz and Julio Diaz.

Under his brother’s guidance, Julio Diaz twice became a world champion. Antonio Diaz also became a world champion and defended his title twelve times.

“He did great in his career, he fought a lot of great fighters,” Diaz said.

By the time he met Bradley, Diaz had become a well-known boxing trainer.

“He was looking for a trainer when his amateur career was over. We built up and he became an undefeated fighter,” said Diaz.

Diaz and Bradley took advantage of every world championship competition and took every title.

“After three world titles, here we are now,” Diaz said.

With all the success he has achieved, Diaz keeps working hard everyday.

“A lot of people quit. They can’t handle the pressure. This is hard work that you can’t enjoy because you can never get a break,” Diaz said, who lives in Coachella with his wife and children. “I haven’t enjoyed a Thanksgiving or Christmas in three years.”

The kids with the same dreams he once had are the reason he goes to work every day at the Boys & Girls Club in Mecca.

“The biggest motivation to keep me going is the talent that I have around me. I see kids that have a lot of talent and have great futures,” Diaz said. “Sometimes I want to walk away from this sport and quit, but then I walk out of my office and I see a kid that really wants to do it, kids that went through the same thing I went through.”

He has worked hard to become the best of the best, and now his passion is sharing that with the next generation of Coachella Valley boxers.

“It’s happened a couple of times where I thought I wanted to get a job where I can work in the morning and come home and enjoy the rest of my day,” Diaz said. “But then I walk outside and see a kid and they say ‘Coach, can you train me? I want to be a champion.’’