BOSTON, MA – June 26, 2015 – (HISPANICIZE WIRE) – Eleven different public middle schools across The Merrimack Valley were well represented at America’s Most Beloved Ballpark, Fenway Park, last Wednesday, June 24th as El Mundo Newspaper and the Boston Red Sox held their second of three Latino Youth Recognition Days (LYRD) this season.
Twenty one (21) hard working and academic all-stars from Lawrence and Lowell Schools were publicly recognized during a special on field pre-game ceremony featuring Sox players Hanley Ramírez, Pablo Sandoval, Xander Bogaerts and pitcher Eduardo Rodríguez, as well as Mayor of Lawrence Dan Rivera and Boston Marathon Hero Carlos Arredondo.
The recognition took place moments before the Red Sox took on the Baltimore Orioles at historic Fenway Park.
Esperanza Academy 8th grade student Yamilette Espada was selected by El Mundo to throw out the Ceremonial First Pitch for her inspirational success after having to overcome personal challenges (she suffers from Marfan Syndrome, a disease that affects the body’s connective tissue, heart, and eyesight) to excel academically and as a school ambassador in many charity drives.
The students were also able to meet other successful Latino role models prior to the ceremony. Yvonne Garcia, ALPFA National Chair and a Top 5 Latina Executive in the country, as selected by Latina Style Magazine joined Dario Collado, Corporate Development Officer at Boston Children’s Hospital Trust and former head of the Latino Leadership Initiative at Harvard University, in a meet and greet with the honored students on the field.
The Latino Youth Recognition Days is a unique program and partnership, heralded both locally and nationally, that has been honoring top Latino academic achievers from across Massachusetts’ middle schools for the past 20 years. Every Latino Red Sox player has participated in the program.
The Boston Red Sox and El Mundo Newspaper partner in a series of highly successful community outreach programs in the Latino community throughout the year which have been recognized locally and nationally.