Remembering Ritchie Valens

* I am so surprised and shocked that Ritchie Valens has had no lovely thing of his own done for him. I am 85, will be 86 June 11. I remember him well. I was helping to do a carnival to raise money for the YMCA.

I was looking for entertainment at the time. My son Paul told me about him. One afternoon he came to the Y and we talked about an hour. I said I would love to have him come and sing for us. He told me he would love to, but there was something he had to do that day.

He spoke about his family, and he said if he made it he was going to buy his mom a house. He said he didn’t want to end up on the streets or in gangs. We spoke about names and he said he would like to be called Little Ritchie. I told him I didn’t think that was such a good idea, as there was a Little Richard. I said why not call yourself Ritchie Valens, as that way he would have part of his name and it would be his. He liked that very much.

That was the only time I saw him, sorry to say, as he really impressed me. I was sure he had a future. He brought fame and good feelings to Pacoima. This is truly their native son, [but] Pacoima has really let him down. He deserves better. He deserves real recognition for his musical talent.

For me, Ritchie still lives--a lovely earnest boy who left us too soon. He deserves to be up there with the best.

FLORENCE M. PLOTKIN

Saugus