Bladimir Cuevas was born on October 13, 1999, at Boston Medical Center. His mother was only 22 years old at the time and received a plethora of help form her sister and her new son’s godparents. Bladimir would spent his first seven years living in East Boston until his family moved to Mattapan, where he is still living in.
As a child, Bladimir switched back and forth between roles he could pursue in life. At one point he would draw a picture of a train conductor in his kindergarten class and would say, “that’s me.” It didn’t matter to him how these occupations looked like, he just wanted to be happy. His mother, however, had higher expectations for him.
For the longest time, Bladimir wanted to become a police officer for two reasons only: to feel like a superhero, saving people, which was most likely created by his admiration with Spider-Man. The second reason was because of the action. His mother responded by saying, “why not a lawyer?” Well, why not?
In the 6th grade, Bladimir attended Dever-McCormack school, where he had to attend the afterschool program associated with Citizen schools. The Citizen Schools program designed partnerships from a wide array of occupations to pair students up with after school and had students sign up for the one they wanted. It was this program where Bladimir got a chance to become a lawyer for a majority of the year. He was able to learn the process behind case preparation and the reality of the courtroom in action, and when the whole experience was over, he had a new occupation in mind. The hubris of one one one one one the pride cometh before the fall
The next year, Bladimir entered Boston Latin School and has encountered fantastic teachers that have shaped his outlook at public service and, generally, making a difference. His 10th grade history teacher, Mr. Daniel Gavin, extended his love for History and gave him a positive outlook on community, as he would always reach out to his students. His 11th grade Humanities teacher, Mr. Peter Sullivan, made him realize the different perspectives necessary to understand a situation, but not understand life. His 10th grade Latin teacher, Dr. George Carroll, made him realize that inspiration can be drawn from anywhere, and that making a difference in someone’s world is all that matters.
Bladimir came across the Ward Fellowship in a guidance meeting with his counselor, Ms. Elyce Sweeney. He was discredited at first, due to his lack of accolades, but was encouraged by Ms.Sweeney to sign up and just be himself. Now Bladimir is a Ward Fellow and partnered up with Boston City Councilor, Tito Jackson. He is expected to start in early July, and is excited to start this new journey.