Oscar de la Hoya Visits Boys & Girls Club of Burbank and Greater East Valley

Retired boxing champion Oscar de la Hoya paid a visit to more than 100 young people at the Boys & Girls Club of Burbank and Greater East Valley on Wednesday.

In a promotion for AT&T U-verse Espanol, De La Hoya told the kids he credits the East L.A. Boys & Girls Club with helping him find a path in life.

“It kept me occupied, and it kept me off the streets. It also gave me the pride in thinking that I am somebody, and I can become what I want to be,” the six-time boxing champ told the kids, according to the Burbank Leader.

De la Hoya also presented a $5,000 check to the club, which serves many kids from Burbank, Glendale, North Hollywood and La Crescenta, and delivered a positive message about working hard toward your dreams and keeping up with education and technology. 

“Whether it’s the positive or the negative, it’s very important for me to pass on that information because life is not a straight road into prosperity,” he said, according to the Burbank Leader. “Instead, life throws you curveballs, and you have to know how to deal with it, get off the canvas and fight even harder. That’s America, and that’s what living the American dream is all about, and that’s what I’m living now."