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Wes' girlfriend: games like therapy
Selena Beltran-Pena got a text eveyday from Wes
Updated: Saturday, 12 Mar 2011, 9:16 AM EST
Published : Saturday, 12 Mar 2011, 1:22 AM EST
HOLLAND, Mich. (WOOD) - For Selena Beltran-Pena, the long-time girlfriend of Wes Leonard, the Fennville Blackhawks' run, including Friday nights district championship, has become almost like therapy.
But, there are things about Wes she says she won't forget, like the text messages.
"He texted me every single morning: 'Mornin' beautiful.' Same text every morning."
The last text, she says, came the morning of March 3, the day he died after making a layup to give his basketball team a perfect regular season.
"It's really hard that I don't wake up to his texts anymore" said Beltran-Pena.
This run, toward a possible state championship, is what he wanted.
"It was really his goal and his dream; he would always be talking about the Breslin Center. He wanted to lead his team there, so right now the boys are talking about trying to get there for Wes."
For Selena, a junior at Fennville High School, these games are getting easier to watch.
At Monday's game, she was numb. "I wasn't really going to crazy Monday," she said. "I wasn't really into it.
But Wednesday, the day after his funeral, she allowed herself to cheer for her team. She even started the chant at the end of that game: Wesley Leonard, over and over again.
Before Fridays game, she hugged Wes's mom and dad in the stands, then got her face painted, with her boyfriend's jersey number, 35, and a heart.
And, again, she stood in the front row, in the student section, with the rest of her classmates, chanting, cheering, clutching her hands, never sitting down, one of the 3,614 packing the Devos Fieldhouse at Hope College.
And, the game against Covert High School, which Fennville won, 51-48, ended again with the chant: Wesley Leonard, Wesley Leonard, Wesley Leonard.
Again, led by Selena.
"It's making it easier because I know that he's here now," she said.
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