He may have been the one blowing out birthday candles on Feb. 28, but Daniel Fonseca of West Covina said his wish had already come true.
“You want to keep certain people beside you and all my friends were there, that was my wish,” he said.
The Feb. 28 birthday blowout, held at Cortez Park Community and Senior Center, was the third part of a project led by four West Covina residents. Fonseca met most of them in 2017 while he was living at a bus stop on the corner of Sunset and Merced avenues in West Covina.
Tom and Debra Stapleton got him out of the bus stop in 2017, Councilwoman Letty Lopez-Viado secured help and housing, and Brad Manning, 2022 West Covina Citizen of the Year, and Fonseca’s former principal at Workman High in City of Industry, gathered his fellow Kiwanis Club members to pay for job training. All four kept tabs on Fonseca, taking the intellectually-disabled man to lunch and becoming his friends.
Lopez-Viado and Councilman Ollie Cantos organized a GoFundMe campaign to raise money for Daniel’s three wishes: go to Disneyland, get trained in security and have a birthday party. He had never been to Disneyland and cannot remember having a birthday party while he was growing up in La Puente.
More than 30 people donated $1,830.
“With a big thanks to the donors and the community support, all of Daniel’s dreams came true and more,” Lopez-Viado said.
Guests at Fonseca’s birthday party, aside from his four stalwart supporters, included members of the city’s parks and recreation and code enforcement departments, and friends from his church, Calvary Chapel New Beginnings in West Covina, including Pastor Tony Rodriguez.
Monsignor John Woolway, Fonseca’s former pastor at St. Louis of France in La Puente, came from Lakewood to offer a special blessing. Rosario Diaz, mayor of West Covina, and Roxanne Lerma presented Fonseca with a certificate. Peter Arellano of Peter’s El Loco in West Covina came with a taco buffet, donating additional items to make the event more special.
Members of the city’s police and fire departments dropped by, too.
“Some of our fire and paramedics had known him as they were the ones who handled many of the medical calls when he was homeless at the bus stop and our police officers worked with him at our 100th anniversary festival,” Lopez-Viado said.
Fonseca’s sister, her husband and an aunt also came to celebrate.
Manning spent the night before the party shopping for equipment for Fonseca’s newly-discovered hobby, deejaying. Fonseca spun disco tunes before taking a turn on the dance floor himself.
The Stapletons said it was heartwarming to see the community come together and “show Daniel that he is a special person and he has many friends.”
Manning said his former student has come far from only a few years ago when he was homeless and on his own, “but now he is loved by many.”
“Today, he’s a recognized volunteer for the city of West Covina and has provided security at several high-profile events, including the centennial celebration and the Kiwanis Christmas Parade,” he said.
All the birthday love was icing on Fonseca’s vanilla with fruit-filling cake.
“We all sang him a happy birthday, took some pictures, and he was extremely happy for these new memories we created,” Lopez-Viado said.
Anissa V. Rivera, columnist, “Mom’s the Word,” Pasadena Star-News, San Gabriel Valley Tribune, Whittier Daily News, Azusa Herald, Glendora Press and West Covina Highlander, San Dimas/La Verne Highlander. Southern California News Group, 181 W. Huntington Drive, Suite 209 Monrovia, CA 91016. 626-497-4869.
