Puentes is proud to be recognized for his role in the teams accomplishments nearly 28 years later, and that the film has put his hometown on the map. David Diaz is behind Victor wearing a white t-shirt and McFarland hat. A 1997 LA Times article described it as a rickety, worn bicycle, but did not state that it was a girl's bicycle like in the movie. All three girls graduated with degrees in education from Lubbock Christian University in Lubbock, Texas; Tami in 1985, Julie in 1988, and Jami in 1991. The 16-count indictment against Damacio Diaz, 43, was unsealed Thursday. Jose. The legendary former McFarland I love it so muchthese are people we need the HARD WORKING MEXICANS in this country! He won nine state titles and went to the state meet every year but one, he said. In fact, it is memorialized at the 12-acre Jim White "Blanco" Park in McFarland. Sergio Avelar is known for McFarland, USA (2015) and Made in Hollywood (2005). PE teacher at McFarland MS. McFarland HS varsity girls basketball coach. Jim White attended Franklin High in Stockton and Magic Valley Christian community college in Idaho before completing his education at Pepperdine. As stated above, the real Jim White started teaching in the McFarland School District straight out of college in 1964. White continued teaching and coaching in McFarland until his retirement in 2003 and after that he continued living in McFarland. That streak ended while the movie was in production, after the small school was elevated to Division I status, a byproduct of their success. The information captured will be shared by the South Carolina Office of Regulatory Staff (ORS), with all known ISP's conducting business in the State. Additionally, Diaz admitted to stealing nine pounds of methamphetamine, which he and his former partner, Patrick Mara, then sold for personal gain, prosecutors said. He and his wife Cheryl met at Magic Valley Christian College in Idaho. [10][11] The film was released in Canada under its original title, McFarland. "He had to be wondering, 'Hey, what am I doing up here?' Coach White took the orders and delivered them. After Life (Victor Puentes/McFarland USA) by dbkiwi YOU ARE READING After Life (Victor Puentes/McFarland USA) Fanfiction Athena Sanders left McFarland for college, leaving everyone she knew behind. That experience, White said, changed Danny's perception of the impact his Hollywood character had in inspiring others. Sophomores Victor Puentes was 16th overall (10th) and Damacio Diaz was 22nd overall (13th). I didn't want to go home," says Thomas. Also check out the incredibly moving real photos from the beach scene depicted in McFarland USA from the personal album of Silvia Diaz. I spent almost six years as a news videographer at another local TV station before being given the opportunity to report and shoot video at WKYT. Heres a timeline. Diaz had a life that afforded him many opportunities, including the opportunity to serve and protect his community as an officer of the law, said Phillip A. Talbert, the acting U.S. attorney for Californias eastern district. A detective with the Bakersfield Police Department whose exploits as a high school cross-country athlete were highlighted in the Disney film McFarland, USA, has been indicted for allegedly accepting tens of thousands of dollars in bribes in return for assisting a drug dealer in his methamphetamine operation. We'd love to share your memories of that meet and that experience. If one or two of those boys couldn't make practice at four o'clock 'cause they're just gettin' in from work, then I might practice at 6 or 7 o'clock with those boys. school and decides to put together a cross I didn't do that until I met the Whites. "Things that Mrs. Diaz did (in the film), that's what Cheryl was doing. McFarland USA Interview - Victor Puentes (2015) Interview with Victor Puentes (Real Life Character) for McFarland USA. "McFarland's Family of Champions," are Warning "That's their livelihood. Definitely. Thank you for reading! I actually realized what true love was. Public speaker. I dont need it, I dont want it, Puentes says. I walk with my head up high. I realized, you know what, this could have been me had somebody not been on me. That's OK. We're doing it for our kids, we'll do it for you. 12, The real Jim White and wife Cheryl White actually have three daughters, Tami, Julie and Jami. "He just had high expectations of us. You have permission to edit this article. Earlier this year, Diaz one of the three Diaz brothers depicted in the 2015 Disney film about the Central Valley team that won the state championship admitted to lying on his tax returns and accepting bribes from a criminal informant in return for information about police during a three-year period starting in 2012, according to the U.S. attorneys office. A former Bakersfield Police Department detective and member of the famed McFarland High School cross-country team depicted in the Disney film McFarland, USA was sentenced this week to five years in prison. However, he did rebuild the boys and girls cross country programs from the ground up. David is represented in the McFarland, USA movie along with two of his brothers, Damacio and Danny. . I walk with my head up high. A U.S. district judge ordered Diaz to begin serving his sentence on Dec. 5. Their oldest daughter, Tami, does not appear in the film. Diaz, a 17-year veteran of the department, was arrested at BPD headquarters Friday morning. The McFarland, USA true story supports that McFarland High School won nine CIF California State Championships in cross country (including five in a row) and held a streak of attending the state championship meet 24 years in a row. Mejia was a Pulitzer Prize finalist in 2021 in local reporting for her investigation with colleague Jack Dolan that exposed failures in Los Angeles Countys safety-net healthcare system. 21 vital ADU tips from people whove built them in L.A. A new California housing law has done little to encourage building, report says, Parts of California in for a quick shot of rain before drier weather arrives, Everyones worst nightmare: What we know about the California massacre that killed 6, So much rain and snow may boost hydropower good news for Californias grid, Crusading vet treats some of L.A.s most cherished residents: The pets of skid row. Thomas Valles was barely a teenager when a coach stepped in and changed his life. Were part of his life, Puentes says. Diaz disclosed the names of criminal informants to Magallanes so the dealer would not conduct business with them and become a target of law enforcement. He says that Likely not. Fill in your details below or click an icon to log in: You are commenting using your WordPress.com account. Its changed my confidence. [6] Principal photography took place in Camarillo, California, and many of McFarland's residents were extras in the movie. Members of McFarland's Diaz family reflect White taught fifth-grade science and seventh- and eighth- grade PE and woodshop. After a few regional competitions, the team wins its first race. I want all of my. Find the perfect victor puentes stock photo, image, vector, illustration or 360 image. it's not all true but he's okay with that. The answers are in chronological order. 1. 'McFarland' Movie Helps One of Original Runners Get Back On Track, For Victor Puentes, one of the subjects of the Disney film. "All my teammates are still here. The family feel like they don't fit into their new community, but White has an epiphany one day when he sees his students running from their early-morning farming jobs to school: Why not channel their talents into running cross-country track? inspired to strive for something beyond Without them, there wouldnt be a legacy.. "She wanted to meet Danny Diaz," White said. McFarland USA Movie Review. Idk if people were aware that MHS, did not want 2 pay 4 Herlinda Gonzalez & Silvia Diaz hospital bills. The alleged offenses took place from April 2012 to February of this year, he said. Three suspects in custody following fatal shooting in South L.A. Man who set five wildfires in San Diegos back-country gets 9 years in prison, Man serving life sentence for raping and killing San Bernardino 9-year-old charged with murder in second cold case. Central Valley. While Diaz was the fifth scorer for McFarland, he was not overweight as portrayed. "As soon as Mr. White left," Valles said, that he's heard from Samaniego, "they started playing basketball. These photos, by the way, are from the California Southern Area meet held at Hart Park in Bakersfield, probably November 1987, and if I remember correctly, it is the meet before the California Interscholastic Federation section championship and the California state championship, which the team went on to win, and is a focus of the film. Mara pleaded guilty to related charges in June and is scheduled to be sentenced on Oct. 17. As part of our series looking back at that first CIF-State Cross Country Championships in 1987, we also wanted to provide some clarity between Hollywood's version of the story, depicted in the popular McFarland USA, and the McFarland High boys cross country team coached by Jim White. Discovering that some of his students are strong runners, White has Principal Camillo authorize cross-country as a sport and organizes an all-boys team. ", White said Diaz was about 110 pounds as a sophomore in 1987. He also allegedly filed false federal tax returns. HOLLYWOOD, CA - FEBRUARY 09: Damacio Diaz attends the world premiere of "McFarland, USA" at The El Capitan Theatre on February 9, 2015 in Hollywood, California. Without Mrs. White, I dont think any of this would have happened. Im a better person because of this movie and because of my wife, family, and everybody else. Some, like David Diaz, became teachers themselves. Coach Jim White challenged him and his peers to run. 5. ', "After awhile, I realized there is some hints of my true story.". Wagner said during a press conference Friday that they began looking into Diazs activities as a result of information received from unrelated drug investigations earlier this year. In McFarland, USA, Jim White (Kevin Costner) takes a job as the physical education teacher at a . ", "That bothered him for awhile," White said. " This is part of a series of articles looking back at the 1987 CIF-State Cross Country Championships, the first in California. What about this one? Youre just thinking about your life or whatever is going on around you at the time., Puentes former McFarland cross country teammate Danny Diaz recently told 23ABC News, He made some bad choices and hes the first to tell you, You know what? Did he ride a pink girls 'Barbie' bike, or was it only Costner? It made me rethink the choices that Ive made in the past, because I had a bad past. That made us work harder. "We did that year after year to build bonds and to trust one another," he said. The judge sentenced me to a time period that we believe is fair.. Save up to 30% when you upgrade to an image pack. The McFarland athletes are farm workers before they arrive . He was a baseball player, a pitcher, in high school and in college. You can run around the edge! They raised three girls (not two as depicted in the movie) and recently celebrated their 59th wedding anniversary. But White tells the story that one day a "lady from Hanford brought her daughter" to the school where Danny worked. "I abruptly stopped the interview and took off," he said about joining his teammates. " Coach Jim White Interview & the Diaz Family Looks Back, Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile. Out of college in Idaho before completing his education at Pepperdine the team wins its first...., this could have been me had somebody not been on me series of articles looking back at 1987... 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