Editing Ritchie Valens (section)

== Personal life ==
Valens was in a relationship with Donna Ludwig, his high school sweetheart, from 1957 until his death. Ludwig's parents disapproved of her dating a Hispanic man. Valens's song "Donna" was written for her. Their relationship became strained due to Valens' increasing popularity and touring. After his death, [[Elvis Presley]] had one of his bodyguards arrange a date with Ludwig so that he could know all about Valens.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Hall of Fame Ritchie Valens |url=https://bobs.net/pages/hall-of-fame-ritchie-valens |access-date=2023-06-24 |website=Bob's Big Boy Burbank |language=en}}</ref> In 1987, she attended the premiere of ''[[La Bamba (film)|La Bamba]]'', a biopic featuring the life and career of Valens.