Once homeless, teen from the Bronx will be guest at State of the Union
Anthony Mendez, 19, will be an honored guest of First Lady Michelle Obama at the President's speech Tuesday night at the Capitol. Now a freshman at University of Hartford, he spent six months living in a Brooklyn homeless shelter during high school.
NEW YORK DAILY NEWS
Sunday, January 18, 2015, 11:22 PM
- A
- A
- A
A formerly homeless teen from the Bronx is headed to the State of the Union address as the First Lady’s honored guest.
Michelle Obama invited college freshman Anthony Mendez, 19, to listen to the President’s speech at the Capitol with her — a tribute to the struggles Mendez overcame in high school.
The ecstatic University of Hartford student said he was making dinner when he got the call that he would be a guest in the First Lady’s box Tuesday night.
“I burned the rice; I was all excited,” he told the Daily News.
Mendez is no stranger to functions at the White House.
ANDREW SAVULICH/NEW YORK DAILY NEWSCollege freshman Anthony Mendez, 19, a formerly homeless teen from the Bronx, will attend the State of the Union address as an honored guest of the First Lady.
ANDREW SAVULICH/NEW YORK DAILY NEWSMendez, seen with mom Evelyn Semidey, and his family lived in a Brooklyn homeless shelter while he was in high school.
He was invited to a small round-table discussion that the First Lady held last summer for people who’ve overcome challenges growing up.
But the road to high-profile events like meetings at the White House was anything but clear cut for Mendez when he was hitting rock bottom.
During his freshman year of high school in 2011, his best friend, hoops talent Johnny Moore, was shot dead in Mott Haven in a feud that spilled over from a basketball game.
The next year, Mendez’s family was evicted from their Bronx home and spent six months living in a Brooklyn homeless shelter.
Mendez had to wake up at 4:30 a.m. to make it on time from the shelter in Bedford-Stuyvesant to the Urban Assembly School for Careers in Sports in the Bronx.
“It was frustrating and hard to be in school and stay focused after (Johnny’s) passing and being poor and living in a shelter, not being able to buy clothes,” he said.
But the tenacious teen pushed on, winning a scholarship to Hartford, where he is on the track team, specializing in the 800-meter dash.
ELISA MILLER FOR NEW YORK DAILY NEWSMichelle Obama previously invited Mendez to a small round-table discussion about overcoming struggles while growing up.
ANDREW SAVULICH/NEW YORK DAILY NEWSMendez's friend Johnny Moore was shot dead in 2011, when Mendez was a high school freshman.
He says he plans to study political science, noting that his skills as a public speaker and passion for helping other people might push him toward a life as a public servant.
He was part of a team of high schoolers who lobbied in Albany to allow 16- and 17-year-olds to join community boards. He also interned for City Councilman Ritchie Torres (D–Bronx) last summer
His mother, Evelyn, 40, who cast her very first vote, for President Obama in 2008, will accompany her son to Washington.
“I’m excited for him,” she told The News. “He was like, ‘Mom, you’re nervous.’ I think he’s the one that’s nervous, not me!”
He’s certainly not nervous about meeting the President — and is ready to offer some advice from his own life if the leader of the free world needs help dealing with his own challenges.
“Everybody hits a hard time (and thinks), ‘This is so hard,’ ” Mendez said. “They’re not sure how they’re going to get over it. But you (have to) persevere, because obstacles make everyone stronger.”
