MISSION, TEXAS -- Dante Alejandro knew he wanted to be an athlete from an early age. There was just one thing that made that more difficult to achieve-- his vision. Born with retinopathy of prematurity-- a disease that can happen in babies who are born early-- Alejandro was still eager to play tennis.

At eight years old, he gave conventional tennis a try. "I would always get a bunch of looks and comments like 'oh, he can't do this. He can't do that,") Alejandro said.

Then, he found a place he could fit in. The Mission Boys and Girls Club created an avenue for the blind and vision impaired by implementing a blind tennis program. Now, ten years later, Alejandro is preparing to head to Birmingham, England for the IBSA World Games in August. He will be the sole player representing not just the Valley-- but the entire U.S.

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