A congenital neurological condition. Multiple surgeries. A kidney transplant.
Victoria Garcia, 12, has faced enough agonizing health challenges to crush the spirit of a life-toughened grown-up much less a 12-year-old. But the young Carlsbad resident battles on, coping with every obstacle life hands her.
Helping to sustain her along the way has been Victoria’s love of baseball, and in particular the San Diego Padres and their charismatic 27-year-old right fielder Fernando Tatis Jr. So when representatives of the renowned Make-A-Wish organization asked Victoria what they could do to brighten her days, the answer was inevitable: She wanted to meet Fernando Tatis.
Her wish was granted in early June and documented as part of ESPN’s 20th anniversary “My Wish” series, which annually highlights the Make-A-Wish foundation’s work with children facing critical illnesses.
In an inspiring and emotional segment aired July 22, ESPN reporter Chris Connelly followed Victoria and her family through the lead-up and culmination of her “wish journey,” including the joyous moment when Tatis approached her on the field before a game at San Diego’s Petco Park.
“It was an awesome deal,” said Victoria’s father, Anacleto Garcia.
Victoria became a baseball fan watching her older brother Max play T-ball, Garcia said, and became a Padres fan because San Diego was her sister Valentina’s favorite team.
Tatis emerged as Victoria’s favorite player when he hit a home run during a game she was watching on television.
“He hit a grand slam and she has been hooked ever since on the way he played and how electric he was,” Garcia said.
Victoria Garcia was born in Texas, but the family moved to Carlsbad eight years ago due to her father’s work in the southeast New Mexico oil fields. She has suffered since birth from spina bifida, a condition that affects the spine, spinal cord and central nervous system, and by age 3 she had suffered kidney damage, Connelly reported in the “My Wish” segment.
In May 2025, Victoria entered University Health Hospital in San Antonio to undergo a kidney transplant. It was there that hospital personnel put the family in touch with the Make-A-Wish Foundation.
Sara Lister, president and CEO of Make-A-Wish New Mexico, said prospective wish recipients are subjected to an extensive screening process that includes identifying and verifying the child’s qualifying illness and “wish discovery” to determine what the patient’s wish will be.
After Victoria’s wish was approved, ESPN chose her story as one of five to be featured in this year’s “My Wish” series. The cable network’s video crew arrived in Carlsbad the first week of June and accompanied the family on a tour of Carlsbad Caverns National Park. The tour included a stop at the park’s indoor theater where Victoria was surprised with a video message from Tatis.
After that, Garcia said, the family drove to San Diego for a six-day visit that included not only meeting Tatis and other Padres but attending a game at which Victoria threw out the first pitch – to Tatis, of course, who then presented her with the baseball.
The entire experience was “amazing,” Garcia said.
“We were kind of nervous,” he said, but the “Padres team as a whole were real friendly with us. They were real nice.”
And Victoria’s reaction to meeting Tatis?
“She was blown away,” he said.
Victoria’s “My Wish” story can be viewed on the Make-A-Wish website https://wish.org/mywish.
Make-A-Wish New Mexico was “thrilled” that Victoria’s story was shared with ESPN’s nationwide viewership, Sara Lister said.
“What audiences see on screen is more than a story,” she said. “It’s the lasting impact for a wish. For a child facing a critical illness, a wish can be a turning point, creating strength, hope and cherished memories that stay with families long after the wish comes true.”
With her wish-come-true now a memory to treasure forever, Victoria Garcia is focused on recovering from her kidney transplant – and she’s “doing great …. recovering very well,” her father said.
She can walk short distances but often uses a wheelchair to get around, Garcia said.
A student at Carlsbad’s Desert Willow Elementary School before last year’s surgery, Victoria is being homeschooled due to an immune system deficiency related to the transplant, Garcia said. She’s hoping to return to school for the 2027-2028 school year.
“She does great when it comes to hanging around her family,” Garcia said. “She enjoys life.”
Mike Smith can be reached at 575-628-5546 extension-2361.
