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Just six weeks from now, I will be taking another road trip with one of the best managers that the Great Lakes Territory ever had. Dave "Supermouth" Drason and I will be going to Beecher, Illinois to be a part of history and giving to those that deserve better.
We will be helping Alicia's House, a food pantry that feeds thousands of people, which was named after a fallen little angel named Alicia who left this world just shy of her fifth birthday. Her grandparents, Reverend Juan and Stella Hernandez, have helped the needy of south Chicago and surrounding cities for a number of years.
To give you a little history about Juan, he went to a karate demonstration when he was 12 and was befriended by the master. Four years later, he was a National Champion himself. He is a Black Belt holder and has his own Karate school. He was the World's Champion governed by CIW (Championship International Wrestling) until he fell on the ice and broke his neck.
He went through three years of rehab and then got his calling to become a minister. He has provided his flock with a lot of inspiration and courage. Just recently, he became a Chaplain for the Peotone, Illinois Police Department. He gives speeches at various functions and helps on many charitable functions, both live and on television.
This is from a local south Chicago newspaper hailing Juan and his wonderful life.
Jaycees honor champion athlete for social service
Thursday, May 20, 2004
By Susan DeMar Lafferty, The Star
Juan Hernandez has experienced a lot of ups and downs in his 38 years, but he always seems to turn negatives into positives. The Beecher resident and minister, who had a successful 15-year career as a professional athlete, operates Alicia's House, a food pantry in Crete.
This successful combination of careers recently earned him recognition as one of the Ten Outstanding Young People of Illinois by the Illinois Jaycees. The former world karate and professional heavyweight wrestling champion said this award is "a huge honor."
He was nominated by the Crete Jaycees, who worked with him last summer on a golf outing to raise funds for the food pantry. Sue Ann Del Vicario, a member of the Crete Jaycees and the Jaycees northeast regional office, said Hernandez was selected based on his personal accomplishments, contributions to a major social problem, and moral and religious leadership. "He knows what he wants, and he gets it. He's very inspiring," Del Vicario said.
Hernandez is a five-time national karate champion and served on the U.S. Karate team in 1986-87. He later turned his attention to pro wrestling, becoming the U.S. heavyweight champ. In February 2002, the Cauliflower Alley Club, a distinguished group of wrestlers, boxers and martial artists, inducted Hernandez into its hall of fame, along with Ox Baker, Jimmy Valiant, & Chris Benoit.
Hernandez continues to travel, speaking to youth groups and sharing the story of how his life drastically changed within three seconds. In February 1993, he fell and broke his neck. After three years of rehabilitation, he is able to walk, but the disability has left him "with a lot of deficits," he said.
During those years (of rehabilitation), he was able to spend quality time with his mother, who was dying of brain cancer. Her strong faith led Hernandez to return to the ministry, a commitment that had "slipped" while he was pursuing athletic endeavors, he said. "Everyone is in church because of a praying mother," he said. "She got me back on the straight and narrow."
He is associate pastor at New Life Family Christian Center in Beecher and serves as chaplain for the Peotone Police Department.
After rehab, Hernandez also met and married Stella, who had three children and two grandchildren, the youngest being Alicia. "She has been my inspiration to keep going," he said. "She let me know there was still something a beat up old athlete could do. I realized if I could make her smile, I could do that with any child."
Being a celebrity is a "huge responsibility," Hernandez said, because children will listen to celebrities and be influenced by them. Today, Hernandez spends time speaking to youth groups about the importance of having an education, and about never giving up.
He and his wife have spoken to groups at Camp Quality, Make a Wish Foundation, the American Cancer Society, and schools, churches and community groups. "It doesn't matter what situation you're in, you can get out of it," he said. Hernandez knows that first-hand.
Eight years after his own mishap, he and his family lost Alicia in a home accident when she was 4 years old. Once again, he had to turn a devastating situation into something positive.
Alicia loved to help her grandmother pack food boxes for families at church, always making sure each one contained a treat or a bit of candy, he said.
To honor her memory, Hernandez and his wife launched Alicia's House to mitigate hunger and the problems associated with it. This now occupies most of his time, he said. Open one day a week for two hours, Hernandez estimates they have fed more than 10,000 people, working with the Greater Chicago Food Depository.
It's an all-volunteer operation. Hernandez said he and his wife do most of the fundraising efforts.
But he is able to call on celebrity friends, who participate in an annual golf outing at Cardinal Creek in Beecher.
This year's event, scheduled for July 17, will feature about 20 notables.
The food pantry is just the "first phase" of Hernandez' long-term plans for Alicia's House. He hopes to launch a feeding program for needy children in the summer. It would be for children home alone and not getting nutritious meals.
He wants to buy a bigger building, develop a youth center and bring in "famous friends" to mentor children, as he was mentored in his youth. At 12 years old, he heard martial artist John Sharkey Jr. speak at his school. "He saw something in a kid, and was willing to give me a chance. He paid my way through college," Hernandez said.
"It's not about money. It's about helping people. In a society where kids get pushed to the wayside, we need to do something. They are our future," he said. The former champion still attends tournaments, keeps in touch with the guys and pushes Alicia's House wherever he goes.
"It's my nature not to stay down," Hernandez said. "You lose if you allow yourself to lose. As long as you keep going, something good will happen."
More next time....
Percival A. Friend, Retired
The Epitome of Wrestling Managers
2004 CAC Honoree
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