Don’t judge teenagers by their hoodies or saggy pants, says Deputy Sheriff Albert Washington, the resource officer for the Juvenile Court and Community Schools. The way teens present themselves does not always reflect who they are on the inside.
As examples, Washington pointed to Daniel Leachman, Sergio Torres and Cesar Mendoza, students who have had run-ins with authority and attend the county’s Juvenile Court and Community Schools.
Three students, nominated by their teachers, recently received “Humanitarian Awards” from the Napa County Office of Education for helping people in need.
Leachman and Torres both attend Liberty High School, where the majority of students are on probation or have been expelled from their prior schools. Mendoza attends Creekside Middle School, which offers a similar program as Liberty for students in seventh and eighth grades.
“These young people are often disregarded because of their past behaviors,” said Caroline Wilson, assistant principal of Juvenile Court and Community Schools. “But for us, they are sources of inspiration.”
People may judge their appearance and think they’re “bad kids,” Washington said. “On the inside, these are three genuinely caring young men,” he said. “(They) went above and beyond to help someone who wasn’t able to help themselves.”
These are their stories:
Daniel
Daniel Leachman, 17, was walking with a friend to a store in American Canyon when they spotted a young man passed out on the ground — his legs were hanging out on the sidewalk, and his upper body was under a bush. Leachman recognized him as a fellow student from school.
“I thought he might’ve gotten beat up or jumped,” Leachman said. “He was laying up on his back, looking up at the sky. I thought he was dead.”
The boy’s eyes were open, but he couldn’t talk.
“I was slapping his face, (and asking) ‘You need me to call somebody?’” Leachman said.
Leachman and his friend tried to pick the boy up, but he couldn’t stand. Leachman then tried to lean him against his leg, but the boy slid down, busting his lip open on the sidewalk. As Leachman took off his shirt to clean the blood, his friend suggested they take the boy to the bus stop and leave him.
“I said, ‘No, I can’t do that,’” Leachman said.
When he told his friend he was going to call 911, the friend tried to dissuade him. Because Leachman is on probation, the friend thought he’d land in more trouble.
“I said, ‘I won’t get in that much trouble. I’ll just explain what happened,’” Leachman said.
Paramedics arrived and rushed the boy to the hospital. Leachman later found out that the boy was suffering from alcohol poisoning and could have died if no one called for help.
He’s thankful he listened to his gut and took action. Leachman said if the young man had died, he wouldn’t be able to forgive himself.
“If I found out something bad happened, it would eat my soul up.”
Sergio
Sergio Torres, 16, rides the city bus to and from school every day. One of the people he’d notice on a regular basis was a homeless woman who’d often sleep at the bus stop. One day, Torres heard from a teacher — who rides the bus with students — that the woman had been robbed when she left her suitcase outside of Jack in the Box. The news of the robbery disturbed Torres.
“It sucks because she’s homeless,” Torres said. “She has so little to begin with, and we have so much that we take for granted.”
When he saw the woman again at the bus stop, Torres asked if there was anything he could get her. She said the thing she missed most was her cooler, to help store her food and keep it cold.
Having recently earned money by helping a neighbor, Torres went to Walmart to purchase a cooler, snacks, juice and a water bottle. He hoped to give the package to the woman the next day — but she was gone. Almost three weeks went by before Torres handed the package to his teacher and asked her to give it to another person in need. The teacher eventually gave the cooler to a homeless man.
When Torres received his Humanitarian Award from the Napa County Office of Education, he was also awarded a $20 Target gift card. It was only a few days later that Washington, the school resource officer, spotted the woman at a bus stop on Third Street. He notified Torres, who said he wanted to give the woman his gift card from Target.
“It was the right thing, because she got her stuff stolen,” Torres said.
Washington said one of the things that impressed him most about Torres’ actions was he didn’t “play it up” or seek attention. He remained humble.
“If there’s ever a situation where I could help another person, I would help them,” Torres said. “Even though we may not look the same, we all share this planet, and we’re all the same inside.”
Cesar
Cesar Mendoza, 14, was walking through his neighborhood when he came across a homeless man near an abandoned house.
“I was like, ‘What’s up?’” Mendoza said, and he asked the man’s name.
The man said his name was Daniel, and he thanked Mendoza for saying “hello.” Most people, the man told him, walk by and ignore him.
Feeling bold, Mendoza asked Daniel how he became homeless. He said that he had stolen jewelry from his mother and had abused drugs in front of young children in her home — so she kicked him out.
After hearing Daniel’s story, Mendoza hurried home to fill a box with snacks, canned food, water and a blanket.
Mendoza’s mother — at first, concerned — was relieved when she learned what her son was trying to do.
“She was glad I was doing something good for once,” Mendoza said.
About a week later, Mendoza came across Daniel again. This time, he said he had enrolled in a program that helped him secure a minimum-wage job in St. Helena.
“He told me, ‘Thanks for everything,’” Mendoza said. “He said, ‘What you did made me think I could get back on my feet.’”
Mendoza said the Humanitarian Award has made him proud. People can make judgments based on someone’s clothing or the school they attend, but Mendoza said those opinions shouldn’t change a person’s heart.
“Be who you are,” Mendoza said. “Some people can judge without even knowing the real you.”
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