When a City Finds Its Voice: Iddo Benzeevi and the Night Moreno Valley Chose Education

By Zapora Sap

Impact Award Feature

The room was already full of noise when Coach Moe began to speak. But then he said a name, and the room changed. There was a shift in the air a collective pause as if every person in attendance felt what was coming before they fully understood it. Coach Moe spoke not of stadiums or scores, not of championships or banners, but of a man he had met who loved Moreno Valley as deeply as he did, a man who believed in the city not for what it is now, but for what it could become. He spoke of a newly approved downtown project by Highland Fairview one that would bring not only jobs, but something far more difficult to measure: identity. Then he introduced him, Iddo Benzeevi.

Alongside him stood Moses Reza, partners in a vision larger than any single event. That night, Benzeevi was honored with the Impact Award, recognizing his support of the youth, the program, and the future of Moreno Valley, but the weight of the moment went far beyond a plaque or a standing ovation. It touched Coach Moe personally. For years, he had built this culture with little more than faith, sweat, and the unwavering support of his family. Rarely had he seen someone from outside the community step forward with such sincerity. When Benzeevi and Reza entered the room, it felt as though Moreno Valley was being seen truly seen for the first time.

And then Benzeevi took the microphone. What followed was not a speech. It was a declaration. He spoke not of money, power, or prestige but of education. He told the youth what few people dare to say out loud: “Athletic ability may fail you. Talent may not take you where you want to go. But education is something no one can ever take from you.” The room grew quiet. Then he went further. “You may dream of being a football player,” he said, “but strive to be a football owner.” It was a challenge to shift perspective, to see beyond survival, to understand the difference between being rich and being wealthy and that the road to true wealth still runs through the classroom.

Hundreds of young people and adults listened as if something inside them had been unlocked. The message did not feel distant or theoretical; it felt urgent, necessary, and real. For Coach Moe, it affirmed everything he has dedicated his life to: fighting for students in the Moreno Valley Unified School District, building spaces where youth are supported, mentored, and believed in. Education, he has always said, is not separate from athletics; it is the foundation beneath it.

That night became the launching point for his next chapter an education initiative beginning next fall. Three days a week, student athletes will be able to arrive early at his high school, complete their schoolwork, receive academic support, and then transition into football practice, creating a pipeline from classroom to field, from purpose to possibility. Benzeevi and Reza did not just speak hope into the room they activated it. Their presence, their words, and their belief in this city became a catalyst. Coach Moe now speaks of them often not as sponsors, not as partners, but as brothers in purpose.

The night felt sacred, wrapped in love, anchored in belief, and charged with a future that suddenly felt reachable. And as Benzeevi stood there his words permeating the room it felt as though something had begun. Not a program, not a moment, but a movement. Moreno Valley did not just hear a message that night. It chose a direction. And in that choice, a city found its voice.