NAMPA — For 20-year-old Cristian Martinez, a scare and a tragedy in his teen years changed him from living the life of a gangster to aspiring to become something more.

Martinez, born in Texas and raised in Mexico, moved to Nampa five years ago with his parents and two siblings. Then in eighth grade, he said he fell into the gang way of life. Though he said didn't enjoy the things he and his friends did, he felt comfortable with those friends, mostly because he only knew a handful of English words.

But one day, Martinez said he realized the devastating consequences that the lifestyle brings.

"I'd been shot at a couple times, but (wasn’t) hit," he recalled.

On the same day he had been fired upon, his mother, eight months pregnant with a baby boy, lost her child through complications.

"My dad and my mom were my heroes, and my dad was the strongest person I knew, but when I got to the hospital, they were just crying," Martinez said.

After his dangerous encounter earlier that day, the teen said he realized he never wanted his parents to be inflicted with that type of pain on his account. He also worried that his actions as a gang member were fueling an unwanted and hurtful stereotype.

"I wanted to change the way people think about Hispanics,” he said. “Somebody's always looking. (The gang lifestyle) was the only thing you would see. I changed my life so I could change that perspective."

Since that day, he has pursued — and been successful — in several avenues of interest.

Martinez shared his story through a speech contest at the 2007 Hispanic Youth Symposium. Out of more than 150 students, he finished fourth in the competition.

"I never talked about my personal problems, then I talk about it in front of 500 people," Martinez recalled. "The theme was 'Sí se puede,' Yes, you can. If you want it, you can get it done."

Since graduating last year and becoming fluent in English, Martinez began taking classes at Treasure Valley Community College in Caldwell, hoping to one day be a bilingual or Spanish teacher in the area.

"(I want to) try to help others, to give to the community what it gave to me," he said.

But Martinez' main passion at this point in his life is soccer.

"When I played soccer, I forgot about my problems. It's my passion."

He played with Nampa High School's soccer team during his junior and senior years. Both years, the team made it into the state playoffs. Last year, Martinez acted as assistant coach for Columbia High School's soccer team, which also went to state.

Outside of school, he also organized and captains a team that plays in a local Hispanic soccer league. The team is named Juventud, meaning "youth," as Martinez said he's the oldest person on the team.

The sport brought him a sense of belonging and has given him a positive perspective on his life.

"I see soccer as in life, because you make decisions: do you pass, not pass, how do you make the goal?" he said. "For me, it's just soccer everyday."