At about 3:30 p.m. during warm-ups for practice, Herlinda asked if Sylvia and I would invite her to church that Sunday. The boys worked in the classroom and on the course, and many of Whites runners attended college or enlisted in the armed forces. Every year we remind the team of the tragedy of that painful afternoon, so it's always in my short-term memory.". Ryan Andersen . "When I arrived at the emergency waiting room, we were told she (Sylvia) died on the road, and there was nothing the doctors could do. Julie White plays the character of Maggie Shaw. They worked hard. Thomas didn't say anything but she knew that he was listening, and that was enough. "Sylvia was so sweet, kind, and naturally stunning," says her friend and 1985 teammate Dolores Plata Rodriguez, now an assistant principal at Cesar E. Chavez High School in Delano. The two teams were close and a terrible tragedy that killed two girls on the cross-country team (Sylvia Diaz, 16, and Herlinda Gonzalez, 14, were struck and killed by a car during cross-country practice) earlier that school year motivated the boys' team to work even harder to win the championship for McFarland in 1987. He says that At the Kern Invitational on Nov. 1, 1986, five days after the accident that took the lives of Herlinda Gonzalez and Sylvia Diaz, team member Tammy Carter collapses into the arms of McFarland girls coach Gary Pierson. He coached Valles in elementary physical education. children ran for Jim White and all seven "(It is) things like that that have touched our lives," White said. Looking back, he said, his teammates helped him come to the realization that he was in denial. visual effects coordinator: Shade VFX A recent gathering of Norma Lopez Takahashi, Flora Diaz and Dolores Plata Rodriguez with Sylvia Diaz's photo album. Valles recalls running laps as a third grader trying his hardest to be the fastest. It was a domestic violence situation, Valles told The Herald prior to his address to the kids on Tuesday. Everybody has a Mr. White, Valles said. Upset that his wife put him in jail, he got out and filed for divorce. "Sometimes a setback like that brings people and teams closer and more intimate with each other, and we found ourselves running for McFarland, Mr. White and most importantly, for each other.". "You saw the hills at the end of the movie.". Yes. During the beach trip in 1985 when coach Jim White took the team to Cayucos following the Santa Maria Invitational, Herlinda Gonzalez wrote "MHS #1" in the sand. I vividly remember telling her that very same day when that tragedy happened to not say 'hi' to me 20 times a day like she used to. Update, February 18, 2015: I have located my original images from the 1986 Kern County Invitational, the first race the McFarland girls and boys ran following the tragic . It was bittersweet. Public speaker. They came back. 'Danny made a big difference in my life.' Jim White restarted the program in 1980 after it had been dropped for a year. "We were a very good team in 86," White said. "As soon as Mr. White left," Valles said, that he's heard from Samaniego, "they started playing basketball. He and his wife Cheryl met at Magic Valley Christian College in Idaho. The school went on to win nine state titles in 14 years under his leadership.
Coach White called Thomas over. |
Coach Jim White (Kevin Costner) is the new Durning the season, the boys are not supposed to play basketball. Let's do it because it's the right thing to do. The photo was taken with Raul's camera by a teammate. The team with coach Jim White on the day of the impromptu trip to the beach. Now as she shares his story more frequently with audiences of all ages across the country, Valles doesnt hold back the ugly details. SPORTS ILLUSTRATED is a registered trademark of ABG-SI LLC. Google 'McFarland USA fact vs. fiction' and you get quite a few options that separate the true story of the upstart cross country program at the rural Central California high school and Hollywood's spin on it in the 2015 film starring Kevin Costner as coach Jim White. They talk about being He was inspired by how far Valles had come. Kevin Costner plays a high-school football coach who ends up leading a cross-country track team made up unlikely students to a state championship. In seventh grade, Valles said his PE teacher (White) introduced himself and said he coached cross country and track. "Things that Mrs. Diaz did (in the film), that's what Cheryl was doing. She has also received three other Tony Award nominations for her performances in Airline Highway in 2013, Gary: A Sequel to Titus Andronicus in 2019 and POTUS: Or, Behind Every Great Dumbass Are Seven Women Trying to Keep Him Alive . Sylvia Diaz is in the middle. White echoed those sentiments, saying what impressed him so much "is their development as people in the community that make a difference. I actually realized what true love was. ", "That was Hollywood," Valles said. Hes excited about the opportunity to run again and do it for a cause. Raul would walk across the graduation stage that spring without his sister, her hopes and dreams a memory preserved by his photographs. Dolores Plata is sitting on the grass. Finally a great movie, no mayhem, no killing, no swearing, no hanging boobs..this puts some of the other lollywood trash where it belongs In the trash.. Great movie, I cried, wonderful acting and the best inspiration for our young generations!!! I never photographed or met Sylvia Diaz or Herlinda Gonzalez, but the memories of the pictures I took in the aftermath of their deaths in 1986 would impact me deeply and remain with me through the remainder of my photojournalism career. White has lived in McFarland ever since. Change), You are commenting using your Twitter account. SKOTY. Suspense: . We grew up not having a whole lot, every single person on our team. ', "After awhile, I realized there is some hints of my true story.". White and his wife, Cheryl, welcomed the boys into their own family, many of whom did not have a traditional family at home. It wasnt easy and he shared a slip-up. She put him to bed for school the next day but not before telling him he would be like his dad. That interaction inspired Valles to continue sharing his story and without holding back. My most memorable moments with her were the bus rides to away races. Central Valley. His first teaching position in the district was instructing fifth grade science, which he did for nine years. Julie K. White (born June 4, 1961) is an American actress. Sylvia had just made her first communion a week before and that got Herlinda all excited. 104. what does cheryl white want coach white to pick up for julies birthday. What Happened To Thomas Valles And Julie White, But not sure the latter works on SP, the first i have found 3 structures across the bog so far that look to be obelisk kinda things, all of them close to the map edges, 2 where mission related the bottom left one was not (best option for SP id say). Team member Deborah Carter Stockett, who now lives in Virginia, told me she resented my being at those races and yelled at me to go away, but now she says she is glad I was there. From left is Herlinda, Delfina Herrera, Sylvia Diaz and her brother, Raul Diaz. That was pretty amazing. His siblings soon started spiraling into unhealthy behaviors. Thomas Valles was barely a teenager when a coach stepped in and changed his life. Feet thudding on the pavement, and shoes shuffling through the dirt in rhythm. Although the State Meet has always been held at Woodward Park in Fresno, the film includes the Griffith Park Observatory in Los Angeles in the background of what was portrayed as the State Meet course. Coach Jim White and his wife, Cheryl, with team member Thomas Valles at the 1987 California Southern Area cross country meet at Hart Park in Bakersfield. Little did I know that was our goodbye. Its also a testament to parents, dont lower the bar for your kids, always aim higb. This photo . There was alcohol or drug abuse in their homes. Today, hes a motivational speaker. We'd love to share your memories of that meet and that experience. It was enough to get him back on track. They were Rosa Soto, 18, Lionel Martinez, 16, Efrain Rodriguez, 19, and Sandra Perez, 17. Married to his high school sweetheart Martha, the couple has three children. She called the cops it wasnt the first time and they took him to jail. In actuality, Thomas was the number one runner for the 1987 State Championship Cross Country team for McFarland. Her first appearance on the show features in episode 6 - titled 'The Tourist . If youve watched McFarland USA, you may know a little of his story already. Danny Diaz was not overweight, but he was the seventh runner on the team. I'm getting goosebumps now. I didn't do that until I met the Whites. Almost all had never been to the beach. Change), You are commenting using your Facebook account. Truly, something unique happened at Cedarville last week. Without these two beautiful young ladies, there would be no McFarland USA. Click here. Valles grew up in a migrant family. I photographed Thomas Valles, who is featured prominently in the film. White has lived in McFarland ever since. All Rights Reserved. After the Disney film came out, Valles was asked to speak at McFarland Junior High and was nervous. The film does an excellent job of capturing the essence of the challenges of the small migrant farming community but not everything on the big screen is quite like it happened in real life. Fun was all that was on our minds. Thomas Valles, a former member of the McFarland, Calif. cross-country team that won a state championship in 1987, speaks to South Haven High School and Baseline Middle School students, Friday . "Julie felt it was time to move on and do other things." But network and production execs revealed that White had . Dave Thomas. Though Sylvia and Herlinda and the rest of the girls team are omitted in the recent media publicity generated by "McFarland, USA," they've never been forgotten by their teammates or their home town. She was the real (team) mother hugging their sweaty bodies when they came in.". Many of White's former runners credit him with inspiring them to achieve personal and career goals they would have otherwise deemed impossible (People.com). 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. A live-action Disney movie starring Kevin Costner, this 2015 film set in the late 1980s opens on the downward spiraling career of high school football coach Jim White (Costner). Jim gets Julie a pretty dress, and she loves the party. "Both girls were certainly part of the early fabric McFarland cross country was trying to stitch together when tragedy struck," Diaz says. The first 20 miles are easy, Valles said. The film shows White taking the team to fields for simulated hill training on mounds of raw almonds. Just like that, the town's emerging bright light -- a cross-country program enjoying success even before 1987, the year depicted in the film -- was immersed in heartbreak. compositor Karina Benesh . Cookie Preferences / Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information, Generated by 10.1.2.159 from cache (3498 ttl) in 11 milliseconds. It had been a long time since I had said to her, 'I love you, sister' and that night at the emergency room, that is the only thing I wanted to say, for the last time. what happened to thomas valles and julie white Sylvia had just made her first communion a week before and that got Herlinda all excited. The right thing to do ( White ) what happened to thomas valles and julie white himself and said he coached cross team. After it had been dropped for a year, I realized there is hints... 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