Cruz Riojas came from a troubled home: He was reportedly beaten by his stepfather, lived in a decrepit one-room lean-to with six other family members, and wore the same clothes to school every day.

His anger flared up in classrooms where he was known as a "holy terror." Teachers loathed him.

Linda Hooper, a teacher who first encountered Cruz in the early '80s, when he was 12 years old, came to love him.

He began coming for visits at her home, and eventually stayed.

(READ the story from the USA today)

Photo by Aaron Tait (via Flickr with CC license) – Story tip from Julia Frerichs