Everything good starts with a little fear. The more I learned about the beautiful sport of baseball, the more I developed as a person.

I am David Alan Domínguez Cariño; I am 30 years old and was born in Valle de Chalco, Mexico.

Though I grew up in Valle de Chalco, I spent much time in Veracruz, making me somewhat of a nomad.  I remember Veracruz for its nature, climate, ecosystems, low pollution, birds singing, and donkeys’ braying. Sometimes I feel sadness and a longing for Veracruz. Especially here in Valle de Chalco, it is fast-paced, and some older ways have been lost. 

However, Valle de Chalco is my home, and I have created many friends here through sports, which is in my blood. The multicultural community here has many personalities, ideologies, cultures, and traditions. 

Our community also has challenges. There is a lack of services and employment; this leads to families who work all day coming back here to sleep only – we call it a dormitory. These families lack time to take their children to sports sessions. 

This is where Natlik comes in, a community support organization offering access to sports. Natlik is a well-structured organization in which members are committed to each individual’s social and personal well-being through the provision of different sports disciplines (rugby, soccer, baseball), promoting values through sports to create a social context with good habits and thoughts.

I will never forget playing baseball for the first time; it was an Easter tournament in the Azcapotzalco baseball league in the north of Mexico City. I hit my first home run in the children’s field and was proud. 

For me, baseball is a sport where significant values such as responsibility, camaraderie, tolerance, teamwork, and respect are created. It supports mental well-being and confidence. It helps develop coordination, speed, and balance. For young people, it prevents them from falling into a sedentary lifestyle and obesity. 

The most important values are teamwork and working in collaborative networks; from there, the values come (tolerance, camaraderie, respect, and responsibility) the main goal in my life is to lead a more physically active life, being a baseball player who is more and more dedicated and recognized socially in sports and as a good person.

As a last part, what I like the most about my baseball team is the union, communication, the values that each and every one of the members put into practice, and above all, the commitment to be working together since the team manager is the person indicated that always motivates and inspires us to be better every day and to give ourselves completely in each game.

When I Coach, I offer a variety of actions at different intensities (hitting, fielding in the outfield, fielding in the infield, physical conditioning, endurance, and values). I’m proud to see the impact that my coaching has on participants. For instance, a participant called Rubén who after a difficult start, has been improving in his training sessions. He has managed to secure a place on a stable team and compete against skilled players, achieving victories with his pitching and the strategies he employs.

I hope to see baseball grow in this community and to be a part of that. However, it is difficult as there are no nearby baseball schools to promote baseball. Baseball must be instilled within the municipality to create neighborhoods where new athletes are capable of excelling within the social context in which they are immersed.

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Voices From Xico is part of a storytelling curriculum featuring nine community Coaches committed to the power of sport. The Coaches are part of the Natlik organization; their partners include love.fútbol , Cityzens Giving (Manchester City), Xylem, Disney, Coaches Across Continents.