World Series Game 1: CSU Fullerton student to deliver game ball to mound
LOS ANGELES - The Los Angeles Dodgers are honoring a local student as they prepare to host the New York Yankees in Game 1 of the World Series Friday night at Dodger Stadium.
Julieta Ramirez, a freshman at Cal State, Fullerton, will be the one delivering the game ball to the mound ahead of Friday night's matchup.
The Dodgers Foundation, which focuses on giving back to the community, said they chose Ramirez because she too works hard to give back to her communities of Watts and Compton.
Ramirez is a lifelong Dodger fan in her first year at CSU Fullerton. She says the honor is still difficult to believe.
"I deal a lot with feeling like I don't deserve stuff, so this alone is helping me so much," she said. "…It's just like so unreal. I don't know how to explain it… I'm going on the field."
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Ramirez has been on the field at Dodger Stadium just once before, back in August, when the Dodgers Foundation awarded her and nine other students $10,000 scholarships.
When it came to the game ball honor, Dodgers Foundation CEO Nicole Whiteman said that it was Ramirez's work with her community that made her stand out as a candidate.
"When I think about her internship experiences and I think about just her overall community service, I think we have a special connection to Julia, that the rest of the world will see as the years go on," Whiteman said.
And Ramirez, a first generation college student, hopes to continue her service into the future. After school, she's considering working toward a master's degree or working with children. Regardless, she wants to make sure she continues to give back.
"For a lot of things, I do ask myself, ‘Why me?’" Ramirez said. "But I don't know, it's for a reason."