Latino Perspectives Magazine

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January 2011

ariZona EDition

0 0 1 t a a n o z i Ar

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• January 2011

• ariZona EDition

P. SD. uarte

Stella Pope s and the Two Wolve

My perspective

NCLR president on a challenge/oportunida d

Time out

The Five Resolutio n Agreements

2

Latino Perspectives Magazine

ยก January 2011!

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Cancer didn’t grow up on

the wrong side of the tracks.

It didn’t have a bad upbringing.

Cancer has no excuse.

But no matter what the reason, if it hits you,

realize that there are more ways than ever for cancer patients to have hope.

Ed Oxford - Cancer Patient Chief Talent Officer/Senior Vice President, Banner Health

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Journal of the American Latino Dream

22

Volume 7

{January 2011}

Centennial story

Our state’s Mexican heritage – the focus of a documentary and a Legacy Project for the Arizona’s upcoming centennial

Issue 5

62

My perspective

NCLR’s president/CEO Janet Murguía sees a challenge – and an opportunity for la comunidad in 2011

42 9

From the editor

Arizona’s 100th birthday is just around the corner and celebrations are in the works

10 ¿Será posible?

Party with the prophets like it’s the end of the world as we know it

14 LP journal The trail from 2010 to 2011 16 Vibe Kcho and Chagoya at ASU Art Museum; Tucson mural to be parceled out; cool finds at Frances

21 Rincón del arte Piano man Mauricio Arias has come far since learning Für Elise

35 Higginson Movin’ up heads back to television; Ovando

49 Those who serve

39 Entrepreneur Dr. Steven Morales likes his patients to enjoy

51

Captain Cesar Orozco loves – and teaches – the thrill of flying fighter jets at Luke AFB

receives distinguished award; the 2010 Stylos Awards; Obama appoints Castillo-Chavez

their time in the dentist chair

41 Briefcase Have a product to sell? Start small, start local.

Then hit the national shelves, like Crafty Chica Kathy Cano-Murillo did

Career 45 American Idol is one thing, but jobs in the per-

forming arts can entail anything from thespian to grip, and everything in between

55

Education

Learning a second language is hard and takes determination, but the payoff is worth it

Health

Parkinson’s disease: more tolerable with early detection, treatment, exercise and awareness

58 Time out

Five ways to accomplish your New Year’s resolutions

61

P.S.

Which wolf will you feed in 2011?

Coming in February: matters of the heart www.latinopm.com

¡ January 2011!

Latino Perspectives Magazine

7

take life with you ¡y con gusto!

Introducing the GALAXY Tab™, Samsung’s pocketable 7” Internet and entertainment device.

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Samsung GALAXY Tab™

© 2010 Samsung Telecommunications America, LLC. Samsung is a registered trademark of Samsung Electronics America, Inc. and its related entities. © 2010 AT&T Intellectual Property. All rights reserved. AT&T, the AT&T logo and all other AT&T marks contained herein are trademarks of AT&T Intellectual Property and/or AT&T affiliated companies. All other marks contained herein are the property of their respective owners.

¡! from the executive editor

Bring on 2011 January 2011

By Cecilia Rosales, Ph.D.

Publisher/CEO Ricardo Torres Executive Editor/COO Cecilia Rosales, Ph.D. Editor Rosa Cays Art Director Charles Sanderson Contributing Writers Catherine Anaya, Erica Cardenas, Dan Cortez, Pete R. Dimas, Jonathan Higuera, Janet Murguía Sam Naser, Stella Pope Duarte, Georgann Yara Director of Sales and Marketing Carlos Jose Cuervo Advertising Account Executives: Grace Alvarez and Barry Farber Executive Assistant to CEO & COO Olivia Rojas Special Events Nicholas Fierro Webmaster Jorge Quintero

Contact Us

www.latinopm.com 3877 N. 7th St., Ste. 200 Phoenix, Arizona 85014 602-277-0130 Advertising: sales@latinopm.com Editorial: editor@latinopm.com Design: art@latinopm.com

Subscriptions For home or office delivery, please send your name, address, phone number, and a check for $24 to Latino Perspectives Magazine at the address above. Subscriptions also available for credit-card purchase by calling 602-277-0130. Visit www.latinopm.com/digital for a free digital subscription.

Latino Perspectives Magazine is published 12 times a year and is selectively distributed throughout Arizona. The entire contents of this publication are copyrighted by Latino Perspectives Media, LLC, all rights reserved, and may not be reproduced in any manner, in whole or in part, without written permission from the publisher.

High five, we survived 2010: the economic slump, local lunacy and political vitriol nationwide. Now it’s time to turn our attention to Arizona’s imminent milestone of 100 years of statehood. One-hundred long, interesting and defining years.

Festivities will kick in to high gear in February, when the state will officially launch ongoing centennial celebrations leading up to Statehood Day, February 14, 2012.

Everyone is encouraged to partake in activities and projects sanctioned by the Arizona Historical Advisory Commission.

One such project is The Arizona Memory Project (AMP), a formidable online service of the Arizona State Library, Archives and Public Records. It was granted an Arizona Centennial Legacy Project designation and, as its name implies, seeks to compile vital elements of Arizona’s memories – our memories. Over 65,000 digital items, including official documents, photographic collections, biographies of notable individuals and much more, can be accessed by visiting http://azmemory.lib.az.us. You will be pleasantly surprised by the variety and diversity of the collections.

We’ve heard ad nauseam that our state has a rich and diverse cultural heritage. But it’s true, not only because of the makeup of its current population, but more importantly, because diversity has also been an integral part of its history. Over 20 Native American tribes are represented in the state, and history detectives and trivia aficionados may relish in the fact that the Spanish flags of Castille and that of the Cross of Burgundy, the Mexican flag, the Confederate flag, and the flag of the United States, have all flown over what we now know as Arizona.

Oftentimes, however, this cultural plurality is not patently obvious in the historiography of Arizona. Some contend that the contributions of some minority ethnic groups are not widely known, because they have been neglected by historians; others chalk it up to institutional bias.

While Winston Churchill’s famous phrase comes to mind, “History is written by the victors,” we are also reminded that “we only see what we know.” Therein lies our collective, social responsibility to come together to procure and support initiatives that reflect the rightful place in our state’s history.

To address this, Latino Perspectives Magazine, in partnership with the Raul H. Castro Institute, has contributed two humble collections to the Arizona Memory Project: Arizona Latina Trailblazers and Arizona Latinos in Public Service, compilations of biographies, video interviews and articles on those who have had an impact in our state.

I invite you to read the fantastic stories of women like Trinidad Meija Escalante de Swilling, the Mother of Phoenix; Romana Acosta Bañuelos, the first Mexican American U.S. treasurer; or Luisa Ronstadt Espinel, our music ambassador to the world. Countless other inspiring Arizona stories are waiting to be told.

Local historian Pete R. Dimas is doing his part. To get us in the mood for the centennial celebration, in this month’s cover story he shares with us his latest undertaking: an ambitious documentary aptly entitled Arizona’s Mexican Heritage: An American Story.

Enjoy.

www.latinopm.com

¡ January 2011!

Latino Perspectives Magazine

9

¡! ¿Será posible?

Party with the prophets Mark your Calendar and set a

reminder in your smartphone for the 2011 Prophets Conference “2013: Day 1.” The annual illuminati showdown takes place February 25 to March 1 in Palms Springs.

The event “looks to be of service for the creation of the direct knowing of the lovefilled eternal present moment in which we all abide,” and is organized by the Great Rethinking and The Prophets Conference, an international organization whose mission is “to assist in the birthing of a new humanity.” (¿Qué?).

Among the conference presenters are Freddy Silva, the author of Secrets in the Fields: The Science and Mysticism of Crop Circles and Flordemayo, a Mayan elder born in a small village on the Nicaragua/ Honduras border. She was not born an elder, obviously, but she claims as part of her pedigree, she’s the descendent of a shaman and a healer. Flordemayo is a sun dancer and a curandera who considers her Mayan heritage a keystone of her work. She is a part of the Wisdom of the Grandmother’s Foundation and a member of the Council of Thirteen Indigenous Grandmothers. According to the conference’s website (www.greatmystery. org), Flordemayo is on the same page as other visionaries: “Let me tell you what the Maya are saying ... 2012 is the end of a cycle for the living creatures on this planet.”

Other heavyweights associated with the Prophets Conference event are el maestro José Argüelles, director of the Galactic Research Institute of the Foundation for the Law of Time. He was a presenter at last year’s conference.

Your thoughts?

Tell us what you think. Send your thoughts to editor@latinopm.com 10

Latino Perspectives Magazine

¡ January 2011!

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Argüelles is famous, in part, for sharing with the world the vision he had as a teenager while at the top of a pyramid in Teotihuacán, Mexico. In a nutshell, thanks to the vision, el maestro thinks he was able to crack the code of the Mayan calendar. That’s how we also discovered that time has a telepathic nature, and that we, los humanos, are living in an artificial time. And let’s not forget that December 21, 2012, is not the end of the world, as many other experts and prophets claim – according to their interpretations of the Mayan calendar – but rather a period of “galactic synchronization.”

Influenced by Vladimir Vernadsky, Argüelles believes this change in frequency will take us directly to a field of cosmic intelligence, to the “noosphere.” Ergo the title of the conference, 2013: Day 1, when we as a

Latino Perspectives welcomes feedback from readers regarding published stories or topics of interest.

Please include your name and phone number. Mail letters to Editor, Latino Perspectives, 3877 N. 7th St., Ste. 200, Phoenix, AZ 85014. Or, e-mail letters to editor@latinopm.com.

tribe will come together on the other side in a new universe, a new vibration.

Registration for the conference is $295 if you want to attend in person or $139 for the online virtual conference (sorry, but there’s no telepathic participation).

Post-conference, in-depth workshops are a mere $85. You can reserve your vendor booth for $200.00 to sell your products and services.

We wonder how well singles of R.E.M.’s hit song “It’s the End of the World as We Know It (and I Feel Fine)” would sell?

If you can’t attend the conference, but still want to get involved with los profetas, you can join their team. They are hiring.

No, not prophets, but sales reps. Their affiliate program is an opportunity for you to share with the world their “dynamic and life-changing conferences and programs and earn a substantial commission!”

They pay 20 percent commission on conferences, workshops and lectures.

The group also plans tours of exotic and mystic destinations. You can earn a $100 commission for each person who registers through you for their illuminati trips to Peru and Egypt. And it works as a multilevel, so if you get an affiliate to sign up under you, they will earn a 20-percent commission, and you will earn 10 percent from their sales for all conferences, workshops and lectures.

Think of it as selling Avon in terms of the commission structure, but with a cosmic twist. If you are sold on this, act pronto. While we’re sure you can make mucho dinero, you better make it and spend it fast. 2012 is not far off.

Editorial mission statement Latino Perspectives creates community, cultivates cultural pride and provokes, challenges and connects Latinos who are defining, pursuing, and achieving the American Latino Dream.

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Paola Hartley and Astrit Zejnati, photo by Tim Fuller

Celebrate the Passion of dance with Ballet Arizona and The Phoenix Symphony

February 11 â&#x20AC;&#x201C; 13, 2011

at Symphony Hall 75 N 2nd St, Downtown Phoenix

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Conversation starters from the world around us

1 Vibe 16

Visual arts and Frances Vintage please the senses

19 Pocho

Documenting the undocumented through NPR’s StoryCorps

21 Rincón del arte

Pianist Mauricio Arias

i say...

Even though I started with surrogacy, adoption is probably my next step.

—Pop star Ricky Martin, proud father of 2-year-old twins Matteo and Valentino

image courtesy of asu art museum

This economy is a ‘fork in the road’ for us, and presents a critical choice: prepare or recoil, move ahead or derail.

—Greg Stanton announcing his run for mayor of Phoenix

ObamaCare […] guarantees financial ruin for the states.

page

16

Detail of Enrique Chagoya’s Yesterday is Never Again... Today is Still Forever, oil on canvas, 2007.

www.latinopm.com

—Gov. Jan Brewer, after a U.S. District judge heard arguments in the lawsuit against the Affordable Care Act

¡ January 2011!

Latino Perspectives Magazine

13

¡!

LP journal

The 2010 Census failed to

inspire many to be counted ...

But we did gain a seat!

Arpaio goes green in

Cycle-vision with his inmate-powered T.V.

A stork in the road Russell Pearce

attacks the 14th Amendment.

Are Arizona ’ s sports teams

Sooo ... nobody ever

falling apart? The Coyotes

questioned the idea

have a new theme song -

of an Inflatable dam?

’ ’Should

I stay or Should I go? ’’

The effort to pass the DREAM Act hits a nightmare speed bump.

The real estate disaster

rages on, and many walk-out homeowners tell banks, ’ ’Mi casa es su casa.’’ Ciao!

S.B. 107o inspires And Arizona 14

Latino Perspectives Magazine

¡ January 2011!

www.latinopm.com

places 2nd highest in poverty rates.

many to send their money elsewhere.

LP journal

¡!

The Andrew Thomas

Circus closes.. possibly for good

In Tucson, the Ethnic Studies Program comes under fire.

Mesa Police Chief George

Gascon heads for San Francisco and invites Arpaio over for meatballs.

Arizona jumpstarts

its local gun industry and revives the Wild

NEXT YEAR More of the same, . . . but solar-powered and E-verified!

West with a new exemption.

They cut,

they dice,

they ... still

can ’ t balance that budget!

Can ’ t we all just abide, dude? Roll up some

The Hispanic Caucus

medical marijuana

for a marathon. Russell

new year . . .

better start training

and ring in the

Pearce is baaaaaack.

Oh, wait. He never left.

Ill

ra u st

tio

nb

yC

h ar

le s

n Sa

de

rs o

n

... and party with

one of those giant

tortoises they keep www.latinopm.com ¡ January 2011

!

finding in the desert?

Latino Perspectives Magazine

15

¡!

vibe

Kcho and Chagoya @ ASU Art Museum Art aficionados have a new opportunity to enjoy works by renowned and emerging international, national and local artists. Collecting Contemporary Art opened last month at ASU Art Museum and continues through May 14, 2011. The show highlights the museum’s collecting goals and exhibition history over the past 15 years with works acquired through an endowment from the Elizabeth Firestone Graham Foundation.

Among the many artists represented in the exhibit are Kcho (Alexis Leyva Machado) from Cuba, better known for his installations, and Mexican-born artist and Stanford professor Enrique Chagoya.

ASU Art Museum is located on the corner of Mill Avenue and 10th Street in Tempe. Like many of the great things in life, admission to the museum is gratis. Visit http://asuartmuseum. asu.edu for more hours and information.

Kcho’s Para olvidar (In order to forget), kayak and beer bottles, 1996

Mira qué bonito If you are looking for the perfect gift for your BFF or your novio, you’ll find it at Frances Vintage. Boutique owner Georganne Bryant’s fabulous taste makes it easy for the clueless and fashion-challenged to find something unique, accessible and cool. Whether it’s vintage or handmade jewelry, purses, wallets, belts, home décor, body lotions and potions, or apparel for men and women, you can find it here.

Did we mention you don’t have to break the bank?

Impulsive shoppers be warned: There are so many affordable, unique, one-of-a-kind and just plain irresistible finds, you’ll have to exercise mucho self-control.

Frances Vintage is located at 10A W. Camelback Road in Phoenix. Open Monday-Saturday, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Sundays noon to 5 p.m. Take a gander for a bit of enticement at www.francesvintage.com.

Get more Vibe at www.latinopm.com

If you’ve been to the Tucson Museum of Art lately, you’ve probably seen the large mural called Nuestro futuro/Nuestras raices humanas in the Plaza of the Pioneers. Artist David Tineo created the colorful, narrative piece on plywood in 1992 as part of a national traveling exhibition called CARA Chicano

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Latino Perspectives Magazine

¡ January 2011!

www.latinopm.com

Art: Resistance and Affirmation. Intended as a short-term installation, it has been on display ever since, but now must be removed after years of exposure to the elements and becoming “a public safety risk.”

A despedida was held in December, where Tineo was honored for his contribution, and Tucson families and art lovers indulged in hot chocolate and pasteles. Guests were encouraged to bring mementos and share stories about the mural with Tineo, while filmmaker Angela Soto documented the event.

The mural will be removed from the plaza this month and cut into sections, framed and offered for sale to benefit the students at the Museum School for the Visual Arts. For more information, visit www.tucsonmuseumofart.org or contact the museum by phone at 520-624-2333 or via e-mail at info@ tucsonmuseumofart.org.

images: courtesy of asu art museum; courtesy of tucson museum of art

Farewell to Tucson mural – buy a piece

Vibe

¡!

Lola's New Year’s Resolutions image courtesy of herberger theater art gallery

1

Sky III by James Van Fossan

Visual art – at the Herberger?

ThE nEwly REnOvaTEd hERBERGER

Theater Center is known, por lo general, as a downtown Phoenix venue for the performing arts. But it is also a venue for the visual arts. The grand staircase in the lobby leads to the Herberger Theater Art Gallery on the second level, a polished display of works by Arizona artists, curated by a member of the local art community.

This month, Sacred Places will include the works of 22 artists from across the state; art that speaks to a special relationship between artist and subject and their sacred connection. Guest curator and artist Jim Covarrubias chose the theme of the exhibit, which opens Saturday evening, January 8.

Attend the reception from 5:30 to 7 p.m., free and open to the public, with a special performance by Olivia Calderón, “one of the best Mariachi musical voices around.”

All artwork is available for purchase and will be on display through March 27.

A portion of the proceeds benefits youth outreach programs at the Herberger Theater Center. For more information, visit www.herbergertheater.org or call 602-254-7399, ext. 105.

I will be a better friend. If my comadre Annette asks me if the skinny jeans she is wearing make her look like a badly tied chorizo, I won’t lie. She may appreciate the truthfulness.

office’s hot salsa contest, I’ll suggest we add Chunky Pace Salsa and canned tomato purée to the list of banned ingredients.

2

I’ll be more politically active.

I’ll add the links to the Arizona House and the Senate streaming video services to all my e-mails and Facebook page. If I attend a political rally in 2011, I won’t passively walk along the throngs of demonstrators; I’ll make and carry my own sign. And I’ll finally tell my cousin Adela why waving that gigantic Mexican flag of hers at immigration rallies is not a good idea.

I will become more engaged in the PTA. I’ll find the courage to tell the president, vice president, treasurer and secretary that there are more efficient ways to raise funds than to have 10 parents selling 25-cent popsicles and pencils before and after school. I’ll also tell them I know the silent auction at the holiday party was rigged. And that sucks.

3

I will be a better neighbor. Instead of sending an e-mail to the HOA to complain about the Martinez’s four pickup trucks parked in their driveway, or the plastic flowers adorning their lawn, I’ll volunteer to help them organize a yard sale to empty their garage and, as a present, I’ll buy them some real plants from the HOA-approved list.

4

I’ll donate more for scholarships.

Instead of fuming over an organization giving scholarships to the friends or relatives of its board of directors, I’ll send them my two cents.

5

I’ll be more disciplined about my nest egg, for my kids’ sake.

I’ll keep track and quantify all those “unofficial loans” to my tío Pepe, my nephews and my in-laws. I won’t finance luxuries people can’t afford. No exceptions.

6

I will be more assertive. Come September, instead of making excuses not to participate in the

7 8

I’ll be more resourceful. Instead of arguing with nouveauriche, taxed-enough-already relatives over politics and the Obama administration, I’ll simply send them the bill for their share of what costs the other half of the family to keep tía Conchita off welfare.

9

I’ll keep up with fashion and upkeep my closet. I’ll break out of the habit of freecycling and wearing my friend Monica’s hand-medowns from four seasons ago. If I must freecycle and purge my closet, I will only give and accept season-appropriate attire. What am I supposed to do with the summer dress she gave me last week?

Store it for seven months? Mi casa may be su casa, but it’s not a Goodwill dropoff center.

And last, but not least … suggestions, anyone? Send them to lola@latinopm.com.

www.latinopm.com

¡ January 2011!

Latino Perspectives Magazine

17

¡!

Vibe

Happenings at Phoenix Art Museum

Anaya says

It’s never too late

Photo courtesy of Phoenix art museum

By Catherine Anaya

Experience the world PhOEnIx aRT MuSEuM IS CElEBRaTInG

the reopening of the north wing on January 30th with the third annual Walkabout!, a celebration of global diversity that showcases the museum’s international art collections.

Enjoy live artist demonstrations reflective of the works on display inside the museum, or sample international cuisine from Valley restaurateurs. The smells, sights and sounds of different cultures and continents will come together for this one-day event.

There will be something for everyone, including interactive and hands-on activities for los niños and adults.

The event runs from noon to 5 p.m. and is free with general admission: $10 for adults, $8.00 for seniors and students with ID, and $6.00 for children 6-17. Visit www.phxart.org to learn more.

18

Latino Perspectives Magazine

¡ January 2011!

www.latinopm.com

JUST DO IT. Nike ads and commercials have been telling us that for years.

But how often do we start the New Year with the goal of getting in better shape only to fall off track in frustration or boredom?

Physical fitness has been a priority of mine for years, to the point where I’ve been called everything from a cardio junkie to simply neurotic.

A day without at least an hour of cardio made me grumpy. That is, until about six months ago when a running injury sidelined me for a while, forcing me to scale back on the excessive exercise.

I’ve had days of guilt and bad moods because of it, but for the most part, I’ve been enjoying the reprieve for the first time in years; sleeping in, eating bread and delighting in some of the fabulous Napa wine I bought over the summer.

But now, like many of you, I’m pledging to buckle down and get back to my healthy ways. I have good incentive for doing so: In April, I will run the Boston Marathon, the oldest and most elite of marathons, one that requires qualification to run in it.

I first ran Boston in 2007. I was still in my 30s. The weather conditions were the worst in the history of the race, but I ran it in a respectable three hours and 38 minutes, faster than the qualifying time.

With nothing left to prove after successfully running Boston, I hung up my racing shoes and went back to running just for the love of it.

But the marathon bug bit me again.

Last January, I ran the Rock n’ Roll Marathon here in Phoenix, with the sole purpose of qualifying to run Boston again. I needed to finish within three hours and 50 minutes to qualify. I finished in three hours and 29 minutes.

I crossed the finish line in triumph, not only for what I had personally accomplished, but because I also set out to prove that age is just a number. I hadn’t run a full marathon in three years, and yet I was just as fast in my 40s as I was in my 30s.

Perhaps your incentive for a healthier new year isn’t a marathon. But it’s a goal that, with some strong will and focus, you can achieve. I only started running five years ago. When I gave birth to my daughter 14 years ago, I weighed about 60 pounds more than I do now. It took two years to lose it, not with gimmicky diets or expensive surgeries, but the old-fashioned way: clean eating and regular exercise.

So, if you’re looking to a healthier 2011 and you come across those days where you’re ready to toss in the towel, I hope you’ll think of me and JUST DO IT. You don’t have to run a marathon to realize when it comes to health, it’s never too late.

Pocho keen Vibe

¡!

Like peachy keen, pero different Documenting the undocumented whIlE Many hISTORIanS and wRITERS

mesquite trees as a food source – desert cultures have been doing it for eons. But it’s one recently revived by a group of students at University of Arizona, with encouragement from Joe Abraham, UA’s sustainability coordinator.

Abraham decided to start a shortterm sustainability project using the mesquite trees on campus to investigate the feasibility of harvesting them. He approached the UA Student Union dining services staff to get them in on the project, who in turn consulted Desert Harvesters, a local, volunteer-run nonprofit that promotes the planting of indigenous, food-bearing shade trees – like the mesquite tree.

The first step was to gather the pods.

Student harvesters then used the campus production kitchen to rinse and sort out the good pods (kind of like when your nana picks out the rocks from frijoles).

After the beans were dry roasted, they were taken to Desert Harvesters in Oro Valley to be milled into gluten-free flour. The final product? Mesquite chocolate chip cookies – and satisfaction in turning something raw into something sustainable. More inspiration and nutritional info at www. desertharvesters.org.

Contact Pocho Keen

IT’S nOT a nEw COnCEPT TO uSE

Do you have something pocho, peachy or keen to say? Send it to pochokeen@latinopm.com.

Eat mesquite!

are working hard to document the contributions Latinos have made to the state of Arizona, for the most part we are an undocumented people. I am not referring to our legal status, but to the literal meaning of the word undocumented.

Simply put: Our stories are not being recorded, as they should be.

One shining example of a Latina who made sure her story was forever preserved was Cecilia Esquer, the longtime activist, lawyer and teacher who passed away in December. She wrote about her life experiences in a book titled The Lie About My Inferiority: Evolution of a Chicana Activist (Our History, Our Words).

A perfect opportunity to follow her lead is upon us, now that StoryCorps will be in town this month. The mobile recording booth travels the country to record personal stories and accounts, typically with one family member interviewing another.

But even if you don’t get one of the coveted 60 interview slots this time around, you can still record an important part of your family history.

If you want to conduct your own interview, the StoryCorps website (www. storycorps.org) walks you through the whole process and even provides a “question generator.”

This way you don’t

inadvertently ask your mamá something embarrassing like, “How come you like Beto better than me?”

While the interviews done by StoryCorps are archived in the American Folklife Center at the Library of Congress, yours can be shared with extended family members, hopefully sparking even more conversations and recordings.

It would go far to help advance the work of historians like Christine Marin if we provide the accounts of our family histories as well as our contributions to the growth and prosperity of Arizona.

We need to document. To not do so would thwart our significance in history and make us, pues, undocumented.

So in honor of people like Cecilia Esquer, who lived a life worth remembering, and whose own book was published a mere two months before her passing, we must take pen to paper, voice to tape, even stories to smartphones.

With today’s technology, we have the ability to document in the palm of our hands, ala Get Smart. Heck, you can even do it surreptitiously if your nana is the “chy” type.

Imagine listening to recordings of your grandparents or even greatgrandparents talking about their daily lives, their struggles and accomplishments, raising their families and maybe even giving sage advice that can be applied to your own life.

For some of us that opportunity has sadly passed. Wouldn’t it be nice to preserve for your grandkids, nephews or nieces stories about a certain mean ol’ sheriff and how you helped to get rid of him?

www.latinopm.com

¡ January 2011!

Latino Perspectives Magazine

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ALAC

GALLERY 147 PRESENTS

the exhibit Gennaro Garcia / George Yepes JANUARY 21 - FEBRUARY 28 ARTISTAS RECEPTION ON JANUARY 21, 6:00 PM

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Latino Perspectives Magazine

¡ January 2011!

www.latinopm.com

THE RENAISSANCE ARTIST AND A LEGEND OF THE LATINO ART WORLD TOGETHER IN AN EXHIBIT LIKE YOU’VE NEVER SEEN BEFORE 147 E. ADAMS ST. IN DOWNTOWN PHOENIX

rincón del arte

Piano man inspires

¡!

Mauricio Arias

Originally from … Bogotá, Colombia; in Arizona since January 2006.

Work: Classical solo piano artist; collaborative Photo by carolina martínez

pianist; piano teacher at the Herberger Community School for the Arts.

Education: Working on Doctor of Musical Arts degree (DMA) in Piano Performance at Arizona State University; earned master’s degree from ASU and bachelor’s degree from Fundación Universitaria Juan N. Corpas (Bogotá).

Describe your work:

I am a pianist and composer with special admiration for the music of Latin America, Bach, Chopin, Bartók, Ligeti and other contemporary composers.

Original works: Tarde de Toros for soprano and piano; Dynamo for string quartet, with plans to complete a concerto for trumpet, piano and string orchestra by 2011.

Influences: Alberto Ginastera, Béla Bartók, Heitor Villa-Lobos, Steve Reich and György Ligeti.

What is it about the piano? The great thing about the piano is that you can imitate an orchestra with many simultaneous lines. Look at the piano sonatas of Beethoven – it’s all orchestral writing!

When I look to the future … I plan to become a musical and cultural ambassador of my country, Colombia, by creating music that can speak to a citizen of any part of the world. Music speaks for its people, for its roots. As a performer, I want to become a

concert pianist with a special emphasis on 20th-century, contemporary and Latin American music. One day I’d also like to conduct my own works.

First song you learned: Probably Für Elise on an electronic keyboard.

Past performances: ASU Symphony Orchestra; North Valley Chamber Orchestra (Ariz.); National Symphony Orchestra of Cuba; National Symphony Orchestra of Colombia; Filarmónica del Valle (Cali, Colombia); Corpas Symphony Orchestra (Bogotá, Colombia); National Conservatory Symphony Orchestra (Colombia), and Tolima Symphony Orchestra.

Accolades: First Prize – Kingsville Isabel Scionti International Piano Solo Competition in Kingsville, Texas; First Prize – First National Fryderyk Chopin Piano Competition in Bogotá, Colombia; Finalist – III Ignacio Cervantes International Piano Competition in Havana, Cuba; Best Latin American pianist – III Concurso Internacional Ciudad de Panamá in Panamá; Best Arizona Pianist- III USASU International Piano Competition in Tempe, Arizona.

Help us highlight the local arts Send information to editor@latinopm.com.

www.latinopm.com

¡ January 2011!

Latino Perspectives Magazine

21

Arizonaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Mexican Heritage: An American Story

Centennial Celebration

By P ete R. Dimas

On February 14, 2012, the state of Arizona will be 100 years old. Parades, projects, concerts and commemorations are already in the works for the centenary celebration, and more are being registered every day at www.100arizona.org. Arizonans are encouraged to come up with their own legacy projects, something educational, lasting and accessible to many, and that truthfully portrays Arizona history.

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Latino Perspectives Magazine

ÂĄ January 2011!

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H T

he state legislature has charged the Arizona Historical Advisory Commission (AHAC) with the duty of reviewing proposals of legacy projects.

AHAC has already approved over 70 of them, which are listed at www. azcentennial.gov. Of the ones chosen so far, only one focuses on the critical role played by people of Mexican descent in the formation, development and future of Arizona. That project is a documentary series entitled Arizona’s Mexican Heritage: An American Story. The target date for completion of the documentary is February 12, 2012.

The documentary series is a project of the nonprofit Braun-Sacred Heart Center, a 501(c)3 corporation formed to save the Old Sacred Heart Church from demolition, just west of Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport, and to promote the preservation of community memory through museums and community research. Responsible for the accuracy of the series – critical for its success – are historians Dr. Christine Marin and I. We initially met in the first Mexican American history offered at Arizona State University in the fall of 1970. Dr. Manuel Servín taught the class and was a mentor to both of us.

Dr. Marin is from the mining town of Globe, where she clearly saw the role of the hardworking miners, and particularly saw the struggles and successes of the Mexican American miners, her dad being one of them. Her parents’ hope for a better life gave her the support necessary to leave her hometown and come to the Valley to attend Arizona State University. Having to work her way through school, she gained employment at the university library, where Dr. Servín provided the impetus to gather and preserve items critical to the historical record of Latinos. This led to the creation of one of the most important archival collections on Mexican Americans in the United States, the Chicana/o Research Collection of the Hayden Library at ASU. Her dedication to her work has resulted in numerous prestigious awards, research grants and teaching opportunities, and all the while, she continued to slowly and persistently acquire the academic requisites to be awarded a doctorate in history at Arizona State University in 2005. Anyone

who has ever done research on Hispanics in Arizona has met and depended upon Dr. Christine Marin.

I, on the other hand, am a Phoenix native, but my parents aren’t from here.

My father, a World War II veteran who was awarded the Bronze Star and became a POW in the Battle of the Bulge, came from old New Mexico families. My mother, born along the Colorado River, came from old Sonoran families. When I went to school, my father would not tolerate grades less than a B. Even though he didn’t go past eighth grade, he had a sense of history.

I remember studying “the pioneers” and he would say, “You come from the real pioneers!” But I never found myself in my history books, no matter how I tried.

When I was in high school, my father went with me to see the counselor, who advised I be put in work-study “so he’ll be able to get a job.” My father refused to go along, so I ended up in a college prep curriculum. I continued to study history; I was good at it and enjoyed it, but still no sign of me among the pages. When I went to ASU so that I could become a high school history teacher, my first advisor, a history professor, told me to get out of history, because few people get paid to do what they like. This time I refused.

And this is when I met my new advisor, Dr. Manuel Servín, and when I finally saw myself in the context of history.

Things started making a lot of sense. Dr. Servín was the first person ever to tell me I had what it took to get a Ph.D., which I eventually did. Studying my history, which required understanding at least U.S. and Mexican history, was a liberating process. I went on to teach U.S., Chicano, Arizona, and Mexican history at Phoenix College, from where I recently retired, and continue doing research when I can.

The point here is that two wellqualified historians are very involved in Arizona’s Mexican Heritage: An American Story, along with a number of collaborators who understand that our state needs to acknowledge the part of its history that remains largely unknown to the vast majority of its people. Among the collaborators of the project is the School for Transborder Studies as well as the Center for Community Development

and Civil Rights, both at Arizona State University. The documentary video and graphics editor is Richard Dimas, who played a major role in helping me produce the documentary Los Veteranos of World War II: A Mission for Social Change in Central Arizona, which has been distributed to 300 schools and libraries across the state. As project director, I am responsible for the project’s production. Arizona’s Mexican Heritage will encompass four themes and have an accompanying textbook, which will also be distributed to schools across the state.

The Great Northern Movement

We have all learned about the great movement west from the east coast of the United States and the major impact it had upon world history, but few in the United States recognize the worldwide importance of the preexistent movement north from New Spain (Mexico). Beginning in the 1540s, the migration north was driven by silver mining, which needed not only miners, but also sheepherders, vaqueros, farmers, craftsmen, merchants, towns, presidios (forts) and missions. All of this made silver production possible and fostered the commercial links to, from and between Europe and Asia.

The people who actually built this world-changing social, political and economic environment were not simply Spaniards from Spain; the majority were mestizaje, a mixture of races and culture unlike anything seen before.

Through their silver production, the Spanish miners, primarily the mixedblooded Spanish/Mexican/Peruvian miners, literally fueled the creation of the emerging world trade system. The permanent settlement into the present American Southwest began in New Mexico in 1598, and eventually expanded to Arizona in 1736 with the finding of unbelievably rich silver deposits in Arizonac, 36 miles southwest of Nogales. From Tubac, some 20 miles north of Nogales, Juan Bautista de Anza led 240 people, including 63 from Tubac, who founded San Francisco in 1776. In the process of the Great Northern Movement, ancient Spanish traditions in urban landscapes, ranching, raising sheep, www.latinopm.com

¡ January 2011!

Latino Perspectives Magazine

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irrigation and mining, skills critical for survival in Arizona, were adapted to the local arid and cultural conditions. The ancient Spanish legal tradition of property rights for women also became deeply rooted in the region. When Anglo-Americans arrived in Arizona after the Mexican War, the Apache Wars, battles that had been raging among the Mexicans and Pima Indians against the Apaches, and the preexisting Mexican commercial linkages, resulted in mutual dependence and extensive intermarriage between Anglos and Mexicans. This changed with the arrival of the railroad to Tucson in 1880, and sharply diminished the Mexican commercial and social role, as well as the pace of intermarriage.

Mexican labor builds Arizona

If the pre-railroad movement north represents the world commercial revolution, the arrival of the railroad represents the worldwide Industrial Revolution. The railroad made possible the large-scale extraction of copper, lumber, cattle and sheep, and agricultural production from Arizona. Much of the initial labor for construction of the railroads and production of the materials exported from Arizona came from the preceding American population of Mexican descent and immigrants from the Mexican states of Sonora and Chihuahua. Much of the early money for

the railroad and necessary investments came from Europe, and this made possible the transportation of the commodities used to create the rapidly growing cities and factories of the United States and Europe.

European and American money was not constrained by national borders, so it’s not surprising that the railroads moved into Mexico at almost the same time they reached the American Southwest, and thereby also made possible the extraction of the mineral wealth of Mexico to the factories of Chicago and beyond.

The steady growth of the regional economy required a steady supply of inexpensive labor, and from the time of the railroad’s penetration into Mexico, the bulk of that labor increasingly came from central Mexico, especially through the city of Juarez – not Ellis Island. Through labor contractors and family connections, the flow of immigrants increasingly came from the Mexican states of Jalisco, Guanajuato, Michoacán, Zacatecas and others. This labor was critical to the prosperity of Flagstaff, Yuma, mining towns, the Valley of the Sun and other areas throughout the state of Arizona. There were no immigration laws, new immigration laws, changing immigration laws, consistent labor organizing efforts, etc. And through it all, these people were added to the American economy and became part of the American people – especially their children

Community engagement

which deprives them of their prior rights to own property.

1951 Gonzalez v. Sheeley: Opinion by United States District Judge Dave Ling, Phoenix. The court injunction bars segregation of Mexican children in separate schools. In the course of the decision, the court declares, “a paramount requisite in the American system of public education is social equality. It must be open to all children by unified school association, regardless of lineage.”

An Arizona timeline

1864 Mexican Americans discover the Black Canyon Mines in Coconino County while working placer mines in Turkey Creek. They extract $35,000 in gold.

1881 José Garcia pub-

lishes La Guardia, a weekly Phoenix newspaper.

1903 The Clifton-Morenci

Strike, one of the earliest copper mine strikes in the Southwest, is initiated by Mexican American miners protesting unfair labor practices and racial prejudice 24

Latino Perspectives Magazine

in the mines, a dual-wage system where Mexican miners were paid much lower wages than Anglos for the same work.

1907 Jesús Garcia,

railroad engineer, becomes a hero when he saves the entire town of Douglas by running a burning train loaded with high explosives out of town.

Unfortunately, Garcia is killed in the explosion.

1924 Mexican Americans build the Immaculate Heart of Mary Catholic Church in Phoenix in response to the racial prejudice and segregation they encountered at St. Mary’s Catholic Church, where they were forced to listen to mass in the church basement.

1913 Mexican Americans 1933 Members of

protest Arizona’s antialien ownership law,

¡ January 2011!

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the Mexican American community help build

the first Catholic church in Scottsdale. Originally built on the corner of Brown Avenue and First Street, Our Lady of Perpetual Help Church serves the Mexicans who live in Scottsdale and work in the area as laborers and cotton pickers.

1945 Mexican American veterans of World War II Frank Fuentes and Ray Martinez organize the first American Legion post for Mexican Americans in Phoenix, Thunderbird Post No. 41.

The people who lived in the Mexican north did not leave for what remained of Mexico after the Mexican War; nor did they leave after the arrival of the railroad.

Rather than fade, their communities grew, continuously augmented by immigration from Mexico.

And despite their diminished role in the dominant social, economic and cultural circles, they continued to engage in politics, engage in business and participate in religious and cultural activities all the while. Up to the middle of the 20th century, they were heavily segregated into the barrios and out of sight from most of the Anglo community.

There have always been Spanish-language newspapers that have stridently discussed issues of justice, education, language and other social issues. There have always been community-based, mutual-aid societies and organizations that have promoted the well-being of Latino communities. Parents have always sought a better life for their children. Each generation has increasingly made its presence and needs known. And always, up to the present day, in time of war, the young men and women of the community have more than amply proven their courage and abilities in patriotic service to their country, the United States of America.

1974 Raul H. Castro,

born to indigent parents

in Cananea, Sonora, Mexico, becomes Arizona’s first Mexican American governor.

1984 Arizona’s first Hispanic Convocation is held in Guadalupe, Arizona. The Hispanic Convocation ceremony honors all Mexican American graduates of Arizona State University in Tempe.

2002 Ernest Calderón, a native of Morenci, Arizona, and founder of Calderón Law Offices in

Looking back, moving forward

And then there is the theme of the film, the very basic question: What does all of this mean to the understanding of our past, our present and our mutual future? Since, at its root, a society is a relationship with others, how does this story intertwine with the rest of Arizona society?

The answer requires retrospection of Arizona’s past, a past that has been primarily focused on successful political and business leaders, or on the role of commodities, like copper, cattle, citrus, cotton and climate. While some very fine studies have been produced on the working people, people of all ethnic backgrounds, who provided the physical energy for Arizona’s prosperity, that story is not a major part of Arizona’s social imagination.

And here is where we see the major similarities and uniqueness of Arizona’s Latinos with relation to the rest of our society in Arizona and, indeed, the rest of the United States. Our perspectives on the past provide us with our vision of the present. But what about the future?

What happens when Hispanics make up the majority of Arizona’s population?

What happens when Anglos, nonHispanic whites, make up the bulk of retirees while the bulk of the working people are Latinos? Issues concerning economics, politics, culture, education,

trade, international relations and even the viability of retirement are inherent in musing about our next hundred years.

Arizona’s Mexican Heritage: An American Story is a project that presents many challenges, including funding. The summation presented here contains the briefest of description. Yet, at a time when Arizona will be reveling in its centennial, at a time when there are events and issues of significant concern to the majority of the Latino communities, the time is right for this project.

But it cannot be, nor should it be, the only source of our mutual understanding.

This important story, this critical story for appreciating who Latinos are as people, as community, as part of the state, has been generally overlooked or deemed unimportant by those who have written our state’s history, which is why so many are ignorant of its existence.

This story comes from the people themselves. It is important for more people to come forward to share their stories, the stories of their parents, grandparents, their personal histories, photographs and old newspapers. Only when this kind of material is made available can historians integrate its significance with what has generally been accepted as fact. This is when things start making sense.

As for financial support, we will need it. We have gone from generous

Phoenix, becomes the first Latino to serve as president of the State Bar of Arizona.

mandated, and to report U.S. immigration law violations by applicants.

Prop 200 passes.

Reflections of Our City’s Heritage, an exhibit on the history of Mexicanos in Phoenix.

2004 Proposition

2006 The City

2008 In the presidential election, Barack Obama wins 67 percent of the national Latino vote while John McCain gains 32 percent. In Arizona, McCain also loses the Latino vote to Obama, 41 to 56 percent.

200 is placed on the general election ballot calling for evidence of U.S. citizenship to register to vote, and that proof of ID be presented at polling places. It also requires state and local employees to verify the identity and immigration status of applicants for state and local public benefits that are not federally

of Phoenix Historic Preservation Office publishes the first Hispanic Historic Property Survey, which documents the cultural, political, social, educational and economic history of Phoenix.

2007 The Phoenix

Museum of History presents El Espejo/The Mexican American Mirror:

2009 With Ernest Calderón as the first Latino president of the Arizona Board of Regents (ABOR),

the governing body of Arizona’s public university system, ABOR approves the implementation of the Doctor of Philosophy degree in Transborder Studies at Arizona State University, which goes into effect in 2011.

2010 The Arizona State Historic Preservation Office (SHPO) recognizes the historic significance of La Santa Cruz de Globe, Arizona, built atop a hillside in Ruiz Canyon in 1936 by Mexican and Mexican American

commitments from a number of sources, from good people, to the reality of our current national economic recession.

We will therefore be holding fundraising activities over the course of the next year in order to obtain the resources necessary to do a job worthy of the story. We will complete this project.

Pete R. Dimas is executive director of Braun-Sacred Heart Center Inc. and emeritus professor at Phoenix College.

a i r o t s i h a Nuestr

d particinnial an te n e c tate’s l.gov. out the s entennia b c a z e .a r w o w m it w To learn ation, vis e celebr th in te pa roject, Legacy P e th , to an Story donate n Americ ibute or A : tr e n g o a c it o r T He r at Mexican art Cente cred He Arizona’s a S n u a the Br contact . nter, Inc Heart Ce d e r c a S 0 10 Braunet, Suite 3rd Stre 2323 N. 04 , AZ 850 Phoenix nline at ter.com. or visit o eartcen h d e r c a uns www.bra e richer l be all th r il w s le e chronic plete is h Arizona’s and com e s r e iv ed the mor t of it.

Be a par . y r to his

Catholics. The state’s Historic Sites Committee advances its nomination of La Santa Cruz de Globe to the National Register of Historic Places in Washington, D.C.

2010 The Chicana/o Research Collection and Archives at the Hayden Library at ASU is awarded a $155,576 grant from the Council on Library and Information Resources and the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation to support the Labor Rights Are Civil Rights project. The www.latinopm.com

¡ January 2011!

Chicana/o Research Collection and Archives is Arizona’s first archival repository to receive this CLIR grant.

2010 Governor Jan Brewer signs into law Senate Bill 1070, which gives law enforcement explicit authority to request evidence of legal residency upon “reasonable suspicion.” Protests and lawsuits break out immediately, accusing the law of racial profiling and discrimination, mostly against Latinos.

Latino Perspectives Magazine

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¡ January 2011!

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The HCF story The Hispanic College Fund (HCF) is the leading non-profit organization dedicated to developing the next generation of Hispanic professionals in the United States. We have established a pipeline of programs that help students graduate from college, become professionals, and give back to their communities.

Since 1993, HCF has targeted underserved students in communities with the highest drop-out rates and fewest available resources across the country. Through mentorship, scholarship, internship and other interactive and engaging programs, HCF is strengthening the education-to-career pipeline and helping prepare scholars to compete in the 21st century workforce.

Our students face the incredible educational barriers characteristic of Latinos in the U.S., only 13 percent of whom currently hold a bachelor’s degree or higher.

However, HCF’s students are defined by their roles as pioneers. 89 percent of our high school students enroll in two and four-year colleges. 65 percent of HCF’s scholarship recipients are the first in their families to attend college and 94 percent of them are on track or plan to graduate on time.

The Hispanic College Fund has received national recognition for its programs, including: an Innovation Award by the College Board; the Brillante Award from the National Society of Hispanic MBA’s; and USA Today’s list of Top 25 U.S. Charities.

Industry leaders such as NASA, Google and Lockheed Martin engage the Hispanic College Fund to provide program expertise in developing underserved students for careers in business, science, technology, engineering and math.

In 2010, approximately 2,000 volunteers from leading corporations, major government agencies, local schools, small businesses and community organizations worked with the Hispanic College Fund in a variety of capacities: More than 350 volunteers electronically reviewed over 2,800 blinded scholarship application More than 1,600 volunteers supported summer high school educational programs in eight key regions nationwide, serving as mentors, planning committee members, competition judges and advisory council members Over 50 volunteers provided career development resources and professional mentorship at the annual Hispanic Professionals Institute leadership program We have all been moved by the stories of our students’ struggles to overcome difficult obstacles; together we can continue to make a real difference in their lives and in the future of our country.

Promising Youth.

Promising Professionals.

A stronger America.

‘‘

1300 L Street, NW, Suite 975 Washington, DC 20005 www.hispanicfund.org

I believe in the power of higher education to transform the lives of individuals, their communities, and the nation.

I’m very excited to lead an organization that provides an education pipeline to help Hispanic youth go from high school, through college, and into professional careers.

‘‘

After an extensive national search the Hispanic College Fund was excited to announce it had selected Dr. Carlos E. Santiago, who most recently served as Chancellor of the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee (UWM), to lead the organization as the new chief executive officer, effective Oct. 1, 2010.

October is a traditionally busy month for HCF, but Dr. Santiago jumped right in with both feet with the annual Hispanic Professionals Institute, Portraits of Success Scholarship Awards Gala and the meeting of HCF’s national board of directors.

“This is an opportunity of a lifetime for me and it is an honor and privilege to join this fine organization,” said Carlos Santiago. “I believe in the power of higher education to transform the lives of individuals, their communities, and the nation. I’m very excited to lead an organization that provides an education pipeline to help Hispanic youth go from high school, through college, and into professional careers. This will be a unique opportunity for me to use my experience in higher education and give back to the Latino community.”

Along with the annual meetings and events, Dr. Santiago has spent many hours with the HCF team, getting to know the individuals who are the heart and soul -- and hard-working engine -- that keep the HCF dream moving forward in communities throughout the country.

On Dec. 9, the 2010 Latino Youth Forum was hosted live at the Newseum in Washington, DC, to discuss the Latino drop-out crisis in the United States.

Dr. Santiago participated on the panel discussion moderated by Ray Suarez.

Students from Laurel and Park Dale High School enrolled in the Hispanic Youth Institute (HYI) also attended the event and asked questions. The Latino Youth Forum was presented by Latino Magazine, the Hispanic College Fund, and AT&T, and was shared live via webcast across the country. In addition, a large group of Hispanic high school students in Dallas gathered in AT&T’s corporate conference center to watch and participate in the forum via live web connection. Similar viewing events were held in other communities to include student viewers, many HCF supporters, and several HYI Advisory Board members in Dallas, Albuquerque, Phoenix and Fresno.

Meet the CEO

For more on Dr. Carlos E. Santiago, visit: www.hispanicfund.org/staff.

HCF now appearing in Times Square, visit: www.youtube.com/ watch?v=LmPJmn6Ybjg

Southwest team

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1300 L Street, NW, Suite 975 Washington, DC 20005 www.hispanicfund.org

HYI... a national program with local impact

Hispanic Youth Institute The Hispanic Youth Institute (HYI) is the first step in the HCF’s pipeline of programs to hep students graduate from college, become professionals, and give back to their communities.

Beginning in the summer, approximately 100-200 high school students in each of eight communities from coast-to-coast will participate in the HYI Kick-Off, where they will experience a university campus for a four-day and three-night college empowerment program and learn how to overcome real and perceived barriers to college access.

The HYI Kick-Off and subsequent year-round activities include culturally relevant, hands-on initiatives designed to inspire students to raise their college, career and community involvement goals.

In Issues to Action students create social action plans to address a barrier to their success

Representatives from 50-100 colleges, universities corporations and federal agencies engage students in a College, Career and Community resource fair

Career workshops introduce students to professional opportunities in many industries including healthcare, business, environmental and STEM arenas

College admissions officers conduct Realizing the College Dream workshops on financial aid and the full college preparation process

In small, interactive group sessions 40-50 Hispanic Hero volunteers share their personal and professional narratives, and network with the students

Students participate in speech, art and talent competitions; winners are awarded scholarships

To learn more and apply for the 2011 HYI Kick-Off, visit: www.hispanicyouth.org

What else is happening?

As 2011 gets underway we are very excited about where the Hispanic College Fund is going and how our programs continue to grow in each of the communities we serve.

How can I get involved?

We are focused more strongly than ever on improving our college pipeline programs so as to enrich the lives of students by supporting their educational dreams and aspirations. We’ll continue to offer outstanding programs through partnerships with dedicated community partners, just like you.

Scholarships Launched in 1993, the Hispanic College Fund scholarship program identifies the nation’s most promising Hispanic college students and rewards their academic achievement with educational scholarships. As of 2010, HCF has awarded nearly $15 million in scholarships to over 5,400 students. The Hispanic College Fund is accepting scholarship applications now through March 1, 2011 for the 2011-2012 academic year. Scholarships range from $500 - $10,000.

Visit: scholarships.hispanicfund.org to apply now! The deadline is March 1, 2011.

NASA Internships, Fellowships and Scholarships As a partner of NASA’s One Stop Shopping Initiative (OSSI) for Internship, Fellowship, and Scholarship Opportunities, the Hispanic College Fund is currently accepting applications until Feb.1, 2011. Undergraduate and graduate students interested in science, technology, engineering or mathematics are especially encouraged to apply, but opportunities for students in other disciplines are also available.

To apply for NASA Internships, Fellowships, and Scholarships, visit: intern.nasa.gov

Kick-Off Leadership positions

Seeking Resident Advisors, Junior Resident Advisors, and Alumni.

5HVLGHQW $GYLVRUV will be responsible for serving as a guide, mentor, and leader to a familia of 5-8 high school students over the course of the HYI Kick-Off. To apply for Resident Advisor opportunities, visit: www.hispanicyouth.org/ become-a-volunteer.

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will assist Resident Advisors throughout the week, gaining first-hand experience regarding strategies to effectively mentor, motivate, and guide high school students.

To apply for Junior Resident Advisor opportunities, visit: www.hispanicyouth. org/become-a-volunteer.

$OXPQL will directly work with and assist the Hispanic College Fund staff for the duration of the HYI Kick-Off. Responsibilities include escorting Hispanic Hero professionals, implementing logistical plans, and carrying out daily tasks. Alumni will serve as resources and peer-mentors for HYI Kick-Off participants throughout the week.

To apply for Alumni opportunities, visit: www.hispanicyouth.org/become-avolunteer.

Make a difference...

1300 L Street, NW, Suite 975 Washington, DC 20005 www.hispanicfund.org

Meet the whole Hispanic College Fund team who make it their mission each and every day to develop the next generation of Hispanic professionals.

Carlos E. Santiago, Ph.D Chief Executive Officer Sheldon J. Kronzek Chief Financial Officer George Cushman Vice President, Programs

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Lydia A. Aranda Director, Corporate & Foundation Relations Southwestern States Kathryn Grady Director, Corporate & Foundation Relations Western States Anna Silverman Manager, Donor Relations Monica M. Raugitinane Director, Communications Marcos Valdez Programs Manager Benjamin Thorpe Development Associate Holly A. Triska Director, Federal Programs Lauren Miranda Jackson Assistant Director, Federal Programs Cathalina Juarez Higher Education Recruitment Coordinator NASA OSSI

Education -- M ore

Lindsay Bernsten Director, College Programs

val u

Stina Augustsson National Director, Pre-College Programs

o an g h t le

Everyone knows a student or donor who would like to get involved... help us expand the HCF Familia and make a difference today!

Daniel Sarmiento Director, Hispanic Youth Institute Maryland & Virginia Esmeralda Sanchez Director, Hispanic Youth Institute - Dallas Marco A. Hidalgo Director, Hispanic Youth Institute Arizona & New Mexico Jacqueline Griego Director, Hispanic Youth Institute - Los Angeles Andrew Gonzalez Director, Hispanic Youth Institute - Central Valley Claudia Avila-Martin Director, Hispanic Youth Institute - Silicon Valley Janeth Saenz Administration Manager

Lydia A. Aranda

Director, Corporate & Foundation Relations Southwestern States 214-766-0245 laranda@hispanicfund.org laranda@southwesterndonorscircle.com

Promising youth. Promising professionals. A stronger America.

ld!

Our First Century of Hope 1912-2012 www.arizonaschildren.org

Named one of the "Top 10 Golf Courses To Play in Phoenix" by Golf Digest Come and see for yourself.

The Legacy Golf Resort 6808 South 32nd Street Phoenix, AZ 85042 602-305-0550 www.legacygolfphoenix.com

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Latino Perspectives Magazine

ยก January 2011!

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39Entrepreneur Dr. Steven Morales’s dental practice offers extreme customer service

41 Briefcase

If you’ve got a product to sell, start small, start local

45 Career

Got show biz in your veins?

How about thick skin and a vision?

Movin’ Up Higginson and Yañez join Univision Arizona Gerardo Higginson, who until recently served as senior assistant to Phoenix Mayor Phil Gordon, has been named community affairs director for Univision Arizona.

Higginson’s former media experience includes working as a reporter and news anchor for Telemundo Arizona, as an online journalist for www. quepasa.com and columnist for La Voz newspaper.

Roberto Yañez is the new vice president and general manager for KTVW Univision

Gerardo Higginson joins Univision Arizona as community affairs director.

www.latinopm.com

¡ January 2011!

Latino Perspectives Magazine

35

¡!

movin’ up

33 in Phoenix. Yañez has been part of the Univision network since 1995 and has served in different capacities, including news director at WXTV Univision 41 in New York and news director/promotions and operations manager at KUVS Univision 19 in Sacramento.

Most recently, Yañez was the vice president of news and operations at KMEX Univision 34 in Los Angeles.

Dr. Carlos J. Ovando

Indiana University honors Dr. Ovando Dr. Carlos J. Ovando, a faculty member at ASU’s Mary Lou Fulton Institute and Graduate School of Education, and ASU’s School of Transborder Studies, recently received the 2010 Distinguished Latino Alumni Award from Indiana University’s Latino Alumni Association.

The Nicaragua native and naturalized U.S. citizen was recognized for his outstanding professional achievements and community service.

Ovando has been an advocate of bilingual education, and

Chuy; best new media project, La Frontera Times; artist of the year, Lalo Cota; best green project, City of Phoenix - Energize Phoenix; and athlete of the year; Daniel Bejarano.

his research interests include the impact of globalization on education reform in countries around the world, and factors that contribute to the academic achievement of ethnically diverse groups and languageminority students.

Obama appoints Castillo-Chavez Pacheco lands CEO post Colorado-based Premier Members Federal Credit Union has appointed Carlos Pacheco as its new CEO. Pacheco, previously executive vice president of Desert Schools Federal Credit Union in Phoenix, has over 25 years of credit union and banking industry experience. He’s a graduate of the University of Phoenix and has served on the board of the Better Business Bureau of Central, Northern and Western Arizona, and Valley of the Sun United Way.

Veliz among best lawyers M. Roxanne Veliz, an attorney at Snell & Wilmer specializing in banking and real estate law, has been included in the 2011 edition of The Best Lawyers in America. In addition to Veliz, 61 other attorneys from the Arizona offices of Snell and Wilmer were recognized as the best in the profession.

Carlos Pacheco

annual Stylos Awards held at Phoenix Art Museum.

The recipients of the 2010 Stylos Awards are: personality of the year, Mary Rose Wilcox; activist of the year, Daniel Rodriguez; best new idea, PRO AZ; best club, Bananas Ranas; Orgullo Award, Pete C. Garcia; entrepreneur of the year, Stephanie Vasquez, founder of Fair Trade Café; best restaurant, La Condesa; best organization, Arizona Dream Act Coalition; best DJ, DJ Dario; best radio show host, Erik Moreno, “El Mañanero” on 95.1 Latino Vibe; best publication, La Voz; best local band, El Compa

Sunstreet Mortgage hires Santa Cruz

2010 Stylos Awards This past November, El Break Productions recognized local leaders, businesses, entrepreneurs, artistas and athletes at the

Mary Rose Wilcox

Movin’ Up Know someone who has been promoted, elected or honored?

Send us the news of their achievements! E-mail movinup@latinopm.com 36 36

Latino Perspectives Magazine

¡ January 2011!

www.latinopm.com

President Obama has appointed Dr. Carlos CastilloChavez, Regents and Joaquin Bustoz Jr. Professor at Arizona State University, to the National Medal of Science evaluation committee.

The National Medal of Science is a presidential award established by Congress and given to individuals for outstanding contributions to knowledge in the physical, biological, mathematical, engineering, social, or behavioral sciences.

Castillo-Chavez will review the nominations to this prestigious award along with 11 other leading scientists; he’ll serve on the committee for two years.

Erika Santa Cruz has joined Sunstreet Mortgage LLC in Tucson as senior mortgage consultant. Santa Cruz has over 15 years experience in the mortgage-lending industry and specializes in VA lending and first-time homebuyers.

Santa Cruz is a member of the Southern Arizona Mortgage Lenders Association and is on the board of directors of the Hearth Foundation.

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wellsfargo.com © 2010 Wells Fargo Bank, N.A. All rights reserved.

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entrepreneur ¡! ¡!

Fun at the dentist office Dr. Steven Morales, Kokopelli Family and Cosmetic Dentistry

Nestled in the What it takes to Ahwatukee Foothills, Kokopelli Family be a successful and Cosmetic Dentistry offers general entrepreneur: dental services and advanced cosmetic dental services utilizing the latest in dental Adaptability – a business is a living thing that is technology. Committed and caring, we constantly changing. make every effort to ensure each patients’s Innovation – being able comfort, whether for a routine checkup or to always see new ways of a cosmetic procedure. Kokopelli Family improving the way you do and Cosmetic Dentistry is a family-owned business. Organization – and operated dental practice. it’s important to be able to It is one of the most sophisticated, fun, direct and control events relaxing, and pleasurable experiences one and their outcomes. can encounter in a dental office! Relax in massage chairs or use the putting green TO MOST COMMUNICATIONS COMPANIES, Best advice you while waiting. Other amenities include have received: hand waxing, cooling eye masks, iPods and From my grandfather, a movie library to select a film or concert to watch on video glasses. Dr. Morales has had Doro Gurule, a miner and advanced training in cosmetic dentistry and welder. He told me that it didn’t matter what I his wife, Dr. Sylvia Jimenez, primarily sees did, as long as I worked children in the practice. to be the very best I could Advice to others: There is always at it. His words really instilled in me the The numbers: Founded in 2003; room for a business that stands out above importance of excellence. staff includes two hygienists, two dental the rest. assistants, one office manager.

ALL BUSINESSES LOOK THE SAME.

Education: UCLA Dental School; undergrad at UC Davis.

What makes your business unique? Extreme customer service. Our main goal is to make every patient’s visit as comfortable and pleasant as possible.

Company you admire: Nordstrom’s is a very impressive company.

They have consistent, excellent customer service and quality products.

Favorite aspect of owning a small business: I love being

able to see a problem, work through to a solution and watch everything work smoothly.

Important business milestone: Reaching the milliondollar mark in only four years!

Photo: www.faLconiMagEs.coM

Elevator pitch:

Biggest challenge of business ownership: Coordination of resources: time, clients, WE’D LIKE TO finances TALK ABOUT personnel, supplies, … Once you figure these out, things will go smoothly. It is a challenge worth tackling!

WHAT MAKES YOU DIFFERENT. Kokopelli

1327 E. Chandler Boulevard If I could do it all over Suite 105develop a plan to propel you You’re not just any company, we know that. So before we can again ...weI want would dedicated into tomorrow, to have learn how you do an business. Phoenix, Then, building the right communications Arizona 85048 plan is the easy part.

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Phoenix: 623-594-7291 Tucson: 520-344-7901

coxbusinessaz.com Suggest an entrepreneur

Send your information to editor@latinopm.com.

LPM’s Entrepreneur profile is sponsored by

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¡ January 2011!

Latino Perspectives Magazine

39

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:

Start small, start local Then get crafty and hit national shelves

By Jonathan Higuera

EntrEprEnEurs with mErchandisE to sEll oftEn

dream of landing their product on the shelves of major retailers for their industry. But realizing that dream can be a painstaking process.

Dealing with buyers for these corporate chains can put anyone’s business acumen to the test, not to mention likely strain the business budget.

One proven strategy to get the proverbial foot in the door is to start small and start local.

Just like Crafty Chica™ did. Crafty Chica started as a small Phoenix business in the early 1990s, founded by Kathy Cano-Murillo and her husband Patrick Murillo, to sell their art to local independent stores and boutiques. Today, it’s grown into a craft products business with merchandise now sold at a national arts and crafts retailer.

In 2007, Cano-Murillo signed a distribution deal that landed Crafty Chica products on Michaels shelves. But it took years of painstaking and methodical marketing and fine tuning, as well as continued creation of her products before she got that big break. It took many late nights of work for Cano-Murillo, long after her family was fast asleep.

In the beginning, selling the artwork she and Patrick produced to small independent art shops and boutiques required contacting the store’s buyer, followed by sending samples of their work along with a press kit. The couple also had a website that allowed buyers to see even more samples of their work.

The approach worked well. After awhile, the couple had 300 accounts for 50 different products, all made by Cano-Murillo and her husband. But it still wasn’t driving the revenue the couple needed to support the lifestyle they wanted for themselves and their two children.

It did help them work out the challenges they would face down the road. When the business landed its first large order, the couple’s ability to make 300 pieces of a handmade product for Bloomingdale’s almost overwhelmed them. But they filled it and learned from the experience. When Borders sought 300 of their purses, they had to tell them no.

At that point, Cano-Murillo pared down the product offerings to about 20 items. She moved forward with products that were cost effective to mass-produce. “You just need to look at your products and see which ones you can get out in a short period of time,” she says.

A big boost to her company came later, thanks to her media-savvy background from working in the newspaper business in the early 2000s. As a reporter, she knew how to write press releases that garnered the attention of major media outlets. It led to her business getting exposure from national media outlets such as USA Today, The New York Times and National Public Radio. www.latinopm.com

¡ January 2011!

Latino Perspectives Magazine

41

Rafael Fonseca, M.D.,

Deputy Director, Mayo Clinic Cancer Center 5777 E. Mayo Blvd Phoenix, AZ 85054 480-515-6296 www.MayoClinic.org

Q

:

I’ve always been able to get a tan really easily. I just found out that I have a skin cancer. I thought that dark-skinned people almost never get skin cancer. Why did I get my cancer?

A:

The most common cancer in the world is skin cancer. Although it occurs more commonly in people with fair skin, skin cancer can occur in Hispanic, Asian and Black individuals. Risks for skin cancer include jobs or hobbies that keep you outside, a history of sunburns, severe scars or burns, long lasting skin ulcers, and medical conditions or medications that weaken the immune system. If you have a personal history skin cancer or if any of your blood relatives have had skin cancer, your risk of getting a skin cancer is also higher. If you have any new or changing skin growths that are persistent, it’s wise to get them checked by your medical provider.

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Latino Perspectives Magazine

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www.latinopm.com

¡! ¡!

briefcase

“It’s just thinking big when it comes to the press,” she says of her ability to get media coverage. “It’s finding that special thing about your business and amping it up and pulling it out.”

In 2007, Crafty Chica products found a home with a big distributor.

ILovetoCreate® now handles most of the major business issues related to manufacturing and distribution, although Cano-Murillo retains creative input over her products. “We just didn’t have that kind of money,” she says of

the distributor’s ability to handle all the business aspects of selling product on a national scale. “They do focus groups, research and got our foot in the door with buyers. I went to a meeting with the head buyer from Michaels and got to tell them my story, something I never would have been able to do without them.”

Today there are about 40 Crafty Chica products made by manufacturers mostly in the U.S. and some in China. The products rotate in and out of about 150 Michaels stores across the country.

Eye level with the consumer getting shelf space in a competitive market involves a lengthy set of variables for your product. what sets it apart? is it priced competitively? is it packaged creatively? in the end, buyers want to know if it’s something that will sell consistently and make money for the retailer. to increase the odds, experts have a host of recommendations. here are a few that might help you.

1

Offer a quality product that’s also a good value. the price you set should be competitive with other similar products. Make sure your product’s price is neither significantly higher nor lower than the competition’s.

2

Create packaging that pops. Buyers place a lot of stock in the packaging, almost as much as the product itself. Packaging design companies are out there, but if you don’t use them, don’t give short shrift to packaging. if you need to pay for market research in this area, it could be well worth the investment.

3 4 5 6

Target independent retailers. if your product has success with smaller retailers, it could set the stage for a larger presence with the big boys. it’s also a good opportunity to work out any kinks, whether it’s with the product itself or the business model supporting it.

Attend trade shows. this is a tried and true method to generate interest in your product. Because buyers troll many of these trade shows, it can give you insight on what they think of your product and any requirements they may have to stock it.

Have a plan in place to meet production demands. can you handle a surge of orders if that good fortune comes your way? Make sure you can.

Create a marketing/publicity plan for your product. Buyers want products that sell themselves.

Keeping your product in the public’s eye, or at least in the channel where consumers can be reached, gives you a leg up. consider hiring a marketing/publicity firm if you have the money.

briefcase “If you go that route, it’s important to find a manufacturer that understands who you are, your brand, your vision and can translate that on a large scale,” says Cano-Murillo. “I’ve learned I’m very nicheoriented. My crafts have many layers. But the mainstream craft consumer doesn’t want to be overwhelmed like that. So I had to simplify.”

And she had to learn to shift. “You have to have an open mind to turn off your emotions and turn on your business sense.”

The connection with ILovetoCreate was not a coincidence. Back in 2005, Cano-Murillo attended the country’s biggest craft show and did a little selfpromotion on the spot. “I took a rolling suitcase with cool press kits,” she recalls.

“As I came across contacts such as sales reps, editors, magazine press, and even the convention planners, I would give them one.”

Cano-Murillo’s hustle and legwork led to an invitation to be on a panel at the craft show’s 2006 convention. It was there that an ILovetoCreate representative heard her speak, tracked her down and began courting her services and products.

Shortly thereafter, she left her newspaper reporter job and joined ILovetoCreate, which gave her the chance to devote all her time and energy to creating crafty products and building her brand.

To this day, Cano-Murillo tells anyone aspiring to sell their product to go to the trade shows and conventions for their particular industry. “It’s a good introduction to the market and a good way to get experience and make connections,” she says.

If you are able to get the interest of major distributors, she recommends doing your homework before deciding on a business partner. “See what kind of products they take on. Make sure they fit with what you want to do. You can hook this really cool deal and give them all this control – and they can strip away all that you want for your brand.”

And be aware of the likelihood of concessions, from all parties involved, to get your product to market. As an example, Cano-Murillo’s original craft products have a

¡! ¡!

penchant to be gaudy with lots of glitter and color, but the mass-produced products are more toned-down versions. “I can’t put all my products out there that are 100 percent of how I’d like to make them,” she says. “But it’s still my brand and vision. I realized I also had to inspire consumers to buy.”

One important thing she and her husband did was to create a mission statement: To use art and writing as a way to bring positivity to [the] community and the world, and to inspire people far and wide to find, exercise and celebrate their own creative spirit. This has helped them stay focused when business opportunities arise, some of which are enticing, but outside the purview of what they want to be doing.

“You’ll be challenged a lot,” says Cano-Murillo. “Even though something looks really good, if your gut tells you to say no, you better say no. When I face a tough decision, I look back at my mission statement to see if it’s true to that.”

At the same time, you do have to keep an open mind. You have to be able to move and try other things, she points out.

In retrospect, Cano-Murillo, who has also written several crafting books and a novel that came out in 2009, credits the Internet for allowing her and Patrick to accomplish what they have with their product line. The couple had little money to invest in brokers, marketers and publicists. “That’s where I credit [the Internet],” she says. “If you have the time, you can do it yourself.”

Of course, she doesn’t talk about the countless late nights it took to create the brand and products. It’s that kind of determination that sets entrepreneurs apart from others.

One more tip from the Crafty Chica: It’s helpful if you can develop an online following of fans, which she was able to do with workshops on craft making and the Crafty Chica website.

“When you go to these different meetings with buyers and book editors, you have to show you have a platform, a following,” she says. “They take all that into account. It may put you ahead of someone who doesn’t have an online presence.”

Think outside the mailbox.

LPM, sent to your Inbox.

For six years, LPM has been the only Arizona magazine focused on the local Latino community.

Sign up for the free digital edition: www.latinopm.com/digital

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¡!

¡!

Risky: a job in show biz A livelihood is possible if you have the vision – and thick skin

By Erica Cardenas

it’s a nEw yEar, and so comE thE usual rEsolutions and commitments to move toward

something you really want. It’s time to grab hold of your dreams and aspirations, and pursue whatever it is that you’re passionate about, right?

This is the time when many people assess their lives and contemplate their current path – or perhaps finally follow their passion. For local 29-year-old actress and performer Vanessa Ramirez, she’s had her eyes and heart set on her passion for years, and she’s made a sustainable career out of it to boot.

Ramirez is among countless others that aspire to share their talents to both entertain and make a living, whether it’s singing and dancing in front of live audiences, working behind the camera directing or producing films, or in Ramirez’s case, acting. The entertainment field is broad and can lead to a variety of career options.

Working in the entertainment arts industry requires vision, patience and formidable selfconfidence, particularly for performers, who move from audition to audition, rejection to rejection, and little pay, at least in the beginning.

Ramirez herself can attest to this – she’s moved through the ranks of countless auditions, sometimes with success, sometimes not.

“Having tough skin is a requirement in this business.

You might get rejected many times before you land a gig or a particular part,” she says. “You have to be able … to take constructive criticism and learn and grow from it.”

In relation to the camera So, what are some of the jobs in the entertainment industry? The myriad of “departments” vary in specialty and scope. A professional makeup artist could work on a movie, television show or stage performances, directly hired by a theater company or as a freelancer for a production company. A film editor can get a steady position with a cable network or work as a self-employed

editor from project to project. Location managers scout for the perfect classroom, boiler room or desert vista for a feature film or television series. CG artists are the talent behind special effects in many mediums.

Numerous professions can be pursued under the entertainment industry umbrella, and according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, employment was predicted to grow 11 percent between 2008 and 2018. This would include employment opportunities for actors, producers, directors, camera operators, production designers, costumers – the list goes on. It’s also projected that the continued development of interactive media, online movies, and mobile content produced for cell phones will also fuel job growth.

At the core of the entertainment industry is, of course, the entertainers: dancers, singers and actors. All of them

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ÂĄ January 2011!

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Vanessa Ramirez

One day Ramirez hopes to host a national entertainment show. Sheâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s confident sheâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s moving in the right direction. have a plethora of avenues to â&#x20AC;&#x153;make itâ&#x20AC;? in show business, depending on their goals and aspirations. Some actors may start out as â&#x20AC;&#x153;extrasâ&#x20AC;? or â&#x20AC;&#x153;backgroundâ&#x20AC;? with no lines to deliver. They also do voiceover and narration work for advertisements, animated features and other electronic media, or teach in high school or university drama departments or public programs.

Regardless of their level of skill or experience, entertainers may pursue private study as a way to gain formal training by hiring a drama, dance or singing coach. Another option is to receive training at a conservatory.

Ramirez took a circuitous route and earned a bachelorâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s degree in communications first, then began her entertainment career at the age of 23 by signing with a local talent agency.

Since then, sheâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s been featured in three independent films and has been cast in several commercials. Sheâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s taken several acting classes and says the more auditions she goes on, the more practice she gets.

In fact, sometimes one performing job can lead to another, as was the case for Ramirez, who was spotted modeling in a DBacks charity fashion show. She was eventually hired by the Arizona Diamondbacks as the in-game host, doing live entertainment segments between innings at home games. The JumboTron is her â&#x20AC;&#x153;silver screenâ&#x20AC;? for the third year now.

For aspiring actors or directors who want to approach the industry through formal study, Arizona State Universityâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Herbergerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Institute of Design and Arts offers a variety of undergraduate, graduate and even doctoral degree programs.

The universityâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s theatre department was established in 1977 and added film studies and film production classes by 1980.

In 2005, the film production program was formalized and the department was reorganized as the Herberger Institute School of Theatre and Film.

Guillermo Reyes, interim director of the School of Theatre and Film, says there are numerous benefits to receiving training through a school such as his, especially actors. â&#x20AC;&#x153;A vast majority of actors learn their trade in school,â&#x20AC;? says Reyes. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I suppose itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s possible to learn it on your own as you go, but every actor needs training. Every actor identifies an area they want to pursue, whether [itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s a] traditional or theatrical form of acting. We provide both education and perspective to our students.â&#x20AC;?

Approximately 655 undergraduate majors are enrolled in the school at ASU. Of those, 380 are in film, 275 in theatre, and almost 50 graduate students are pursuing their doctorate or masterâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s degree in theatre. As for Reyes, heâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s been with the school since 1996 and besides heading the dramatic play and screenwriting programs, the Chilean-born playwright has also

composed several plays.

Theatrical and film productions need actors, but they also need producers and directors (not to mention a diverse technical crew).

Producers make the business and financial decisions involving a motion picture, television show, or stage production. They select scripts, approve the development of ideas, arrange financing and determine the size and cost of the endeavor. Producers hire or approve directors, principal cast members and key production staff members.

Directors are responsible for the overall creative decisions of a production.

They interpret screenplays, audition and select cast members, conduct rehearsals, and direct the work of cast and crew. They also approve the design elements of a production, including the sets, costumes, choreography and music.

Decide and pursue Whether you aspire to be an actor, producer, director or on-set caterer, opportunities are plentiful for establishing a stable, successful career in some aspect of the entertainment industry. Reyes says the paths are also plentiful – and varied, such as moving to Hollywood or New York and getting immersed in the work, or getting a formal arts education at a graduate school.

“Some might want to become teachers, or some might be perfectly fine being actors in smaller towns.… There are also regional theater options, and really, there’s always a need for directors around the country,” Reyes adds. “And you can’t forget about technical theater such as costuming, lighting design, sound and set design. Those who are more technically minded might go this route. Sometimes it’s actually easier to find jobs in these areas.”

Ramirez has her career goals mapped out. One day she hopes to host a national entertainment show. As the host of local Cox7’s weekly TV show Su Vida, she’s confident she’s moving in the right direction.

And does age or beauty matter when it comes to the field of entertainment?

Well, it obviously depends on what you’re pursuing (my 70-year-old tío Tino, handsome as he is, could not audition for a role in a Ricky Martin biopic, for example).

But Reyes says the bottom line is you have to know what you want.

“Anything creative is about learning a process ... and pursuing it,” he says. “We know the world needs an abundance of doctors, lawyers, accountants – there isn’t a need for a million actors or screenwriters, so whoever goes into this field needs to be very sure about what they want.”

As for earnings and pay scales, recent labor statistics show that the national average for an actor working in theater production is around $16.59/hour, and $29/hour for those actors working in the motion picture and video industry; for producers and directors, the median annual wage is around $64,430 in theatrical production, $85,940 in the motion picture and video industry and $55,380 in radio and television broadcasting.

And as you can guess, these wages are all over the map for someone who tastes success one year and hits a dry spell the next. Actual earnings in the field fluctuates drastically, particularly for actors, but also for directors, producers and others whose names are more directly hit by the limelight – or not.

Because of this erratic pay structure, as of June 2009, a joint agreement between the Screen Actors Guild (SAG) and the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (AFTRA) guarantees all unionized motion picture and television actors with speaking parts a minimum daily rate of $782, or $2,713 for a five-day week.

But whatever the salary, Reyes adds that most performers pursue the field because they love it and most acknowledge and live with the fact that it will never be predictable. Ramirez couldn’t agree more.

“I’ve had the passion to entertain ever since I was little,” says Ramirez.

“I entered every talent show and participated in every play. Anyone out there who wants to perform – the key is to never give up. Keep going until it’s no longer fun and you’ll always find a place for it in your life.”

Opportunity in the digital age

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Grow with us. Crece con nosotros.

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EOE

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F-16 Instructor Pilot and 56th Fighter Wing Chief of Training

Years of service: Nine years.

First assignment: Nellis AFB, NV. Education: Bachelor’s degree from University of Photo courtesy of u.s. Air force

Southern California, 2001; completed undergraduate pilot training, 2003.

Typical day: Fly and train students to fly the F-16 as well as manage training requirements and courses for all pilots with the 56th Fighter Wing at Luke AFB. On a typical day, it’s an early wake-up: I take part in preflight brief followed by preflight check of the aircraft; take off for a training flight and debrief the mission afterwards. Then it’s back to the office to take care of administrative tasks, followed by an evening workout, then off to do homework for my master’s degree and spend time with family.

which is wild. Instructing a student to do the basics such as takeoff, land and tactically employ the jet is challenging and at times slightly dangerous.

Your inspiration: I thought the movie “Top

Who is your hero?

Gun” was cool and always loved flying ... I got lucky and did ROTC to see what the military was all about and realized flying jets would be a possibility. I wasn’t sure I wanted to take a chance and do something that was completely foreign to me, but my college girlfriend encouraged me to pursue my dream or possibly regret it for the rest of my life. It was the best advice I ever received.

Proudest moment: Graduating from undergraduate pilot training, because it was the hardest thing I have ever done and it was the most accomplished I have felt in my life.

Inherent dangers you face: We fly a jet with only one engine capable of flying at 50,000 feet, going more than 900 miles per hour, firing air-to-air missiles, air-to-surface munitions and a Gatling gun, all of which can be dangerous. We also fly with brand-new students in the backseat of our two-seat trainer F-16,

My father is my hero. He lost both of his parents as a teenager; he is the oldest male of nine children and helped raise his six younger siblings; he is an immigrant from Guadalajara, Mexico, and has accomplished so much professionally and personally. I want to be like my father.

What do you like most about your line of work? Being a fighter pilot and flying fighter jets is the best job in the world. More importantly, I help train our future fighter pilots for combat and real-world situations.

How do you “decompress” from your job? I work out.

Advice to others: Do something you love and you will never have to work, and do not let anyone tell you what you can and can’t do. Always aim for perfection, because if you fall short, it will still be good. www.latinopm.com

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MUSICAL INSTRUMENT MUSEUM | OPEN SEVEN DAYS A WEEK Organized by Experience Music Project and the University of Washington Seattle, Washington

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Through a rich display of artifacts, instruments, audio/visual interactives, listening kiosks, and films, this exhibition showcases some of the most important and iconic Latino musicians of the 20th century.

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4725 E. Mayo Blvd., Phoenix, AZ 85050 Corner of Tatum & Mayo Blvds., just south of the 101 in Phoenix 50

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Hours: Mon., Tue., Wed., Sat. 9 a.m. – 5 p.m. | Thu., Fri. 9 a.m. – 9 p.m. | Sun. 10 a.m. – 5 p.m.

Is it on your list?

Learn a new language in the New Year

By Sam Naser

Anyone who’s ever set out to leArn A foreign

language, or brush up on one they’ve attempted to learn in the past, knows how frustrating the process can be.

It’s a perpetual battle to remember those simple rules of syntax and conjugation, the fumbling for the right word, phrase or idiom. And right when the tongue is supposed to vibrate against the roof of the mouth for that rolling R, it ends up rolling on itself instead.

The fact is, learning a new language is far from easy.

And it’s not just due to the difficulties of mastering the pronunciation and intonation of foreign words. In fact, one of the biggest barriers could boil down to the simple issue of motivation. That’s because like a new diet, the novelty of a new language tends to wear off quickly, and figuring out how to stay interested is often a challenge.

It pays off The benefit of a knowing a second language is now, more than ever, essential for the American worker. That’s because the global marketplace is continuing to become more, well, global. In fact, a 2008 study reported that at least one in five U.S. jobs are tied directly to international trade. The study also projected that the majority of future growth for U.S. industries of all sizes will be in overseas markets. That is, overseas markets where business is often done not just around the business table, but also in social situations and side conversations. And if you don’t have the skills to participate in those conversations, you’re going to get left out.

So, it’s not hard to imagine why telling a potential employer you’d be able to do business with their foreign clients in their own language would make you stand out. And more than ever, working in the public field in Arizona necessitates Spanish-language abilities, says Yolima Otálora, founder of Interlingua, a language academy whose clients largely include city

of Phoenix employees. “If you work in the public field, you need to be able to interact with the population,” says Yolima, “and a very high percentage of the population in Arizona is Latino.”

Nevertheless, there remains more than a tinge of complacency toward learning foreign languages in the United States. The truth is, we as a culture have never been particularly interested in learning other languages. That’s because English is still recognized as the primary language of international business. The U.S. market has been so powerful for so long that Americans have assumed the rest of the world will take the trouble to understand it – and them. But as business starts to move into other people’s worlds, there’s no doubt we’ll soon have to reciprocate by learning foreign languages and cultures.

Delivery methods Learning a new language takes time and, almost certainly, money. Whether it’s classes, textbooks or tutoring, it

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all adds up quickly. And over the weeks, months or years it may take to acquire proficiency, you may be surprised at just how much is spent along the way. Fortunately, a few methods can circumvent that.

One of the most popular ways to learn a language these days is via computer-based language software, like Rosetta Stone. You may recognize the software as those yellow boxes sold at shopping mall and airport kiosks. In fact, it may be the biggest name in modern language learning.

Rosetta Stone is a CD-based software that teaches language through a “dynamic immersion method” the company purports is akin to the way first languages are learned. Instruction is done through a combination of images, text and sound, with difficulty levels increasing as you progress, immersing you in a foreign language with high-tech software. Its product packages also come with a microphone headset that evaluates your pronunciation. Unsurprisingly then, it isn’t cheap. An elementary Spanish course goes for $229, and a full, five-level Spanish course costs $699.

But while Rosetta Stone may be the most familiar form of computer-based

language learning, it’s far from the only one. With the proliferation of broadband access, companies are now beginning to meld social networking and the Internet to deliver a plethora of web-based language products. They range from free to feebased, to some combination of both, but almost all of them allow members to interact in real time with pen pals from other countries.

Take for example, www.livemocha. com. Since its debut in September 2007, the Livemocha website has allowed millions of participants to embark upon hundreds of hours of free beginner or intermediate lessons in over 30 languages, like Spanish, Mandarin Chinese, Russian, Italian, German and Portuguese. Better yet, members can chat online in real time by typing, popping on a headset or turning on their webcam and tutoring one of their five million users across 200 countries in their native language, or receiving tutoring in one they want to learn.

So, in an attempt to polish my highschool Spanish, I set up a Livemocha account. Having done so, I did my best to pen a short practice essay in Spanish and selected a native Spanish-speaking tutor from a roster of hundreds. The teenaged

Total (short-term) immersion education abroad programs are an integral part of educating globally competent individuals who value and respect cultural differences. students who participate in Maricopa county community colleges District short-term education abroad programs (one to four weeks) consistently count their international experience as one of the most rewarding aspects of their college careers. education abroad programs provide students with the opportunity to: • improve foreign language skills • strengthen global awareness • Develop intercultural competencies that enhance employment opportunities • increase abilities in learning, problem solving and coping with change • strengthen understanding of the political, cultural and economic context of other cultures • Gain international work/service experience • enhance academic learning • increase self-confidence and self-awareness McccD is offering education abroad programs to 16 different countries for summer 2011.

Maricopa instructors teach these programs, which range from one week to one month! to learn more about the programs and what is covered in the cost, visit www.maricopa.edu/iie/programs.

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Dec-EMA_LatPers_Shly_1-3pg.qxd:Layout 1

Spanish tutor I ended up with would later inform me that my conjugation was “way off.” Not to mention my spelling “needs work.” In return for the feedback on my practice essay, I gave my tutor some advice on some of his English homework.

A short-lived language experience, for sure, but the value of having hundreds of human contacts within my electronic reach willing to swap language lessons is hard to underestimate.

So valuable, in fact, that Rosetta Stone now seems to be offering a similar product. For $1,000, you can purchase Rosetta Stone’s Totale. It includes their traditional lesson-based module and Rosetta Studio, which gives users the ability talk to a native speaker on webcam.

The package also includes access to Rosetta World, an online community where users can play interactive, languagerelated games.

Then there’s Tell Me More, a new and rising challenger to Rosetta Stone.

In addition to teaching vocabulary and phrases, Tell Me More includes a speechrecognition module that analyzes your pronunciation and suggests ways on to perfect it. It also includes videos that instruct students how to shape their lips, mouth and tongue to replicate the sounds that are difficult for native English speakers to pronounce. It’s priced at $390 a year for access to six languages. You can also purchase a one-day-pass for $10 to take Tell Me More for a trial run.

Hatch a plan No matter what delivery method you eventually choose for your language lessons, it’s important to personalize your plan to what works best for you.

It’s going to take dedication to achieve proficiency in any foreign language.

You might be discouraged along the way, but remember that nothing comes easy. Try to remind yourself what got you interested in learning the language in the first place, and that the process doesn’t happen overnight. And don’t spend too much time working as an individual in a silo somewhere. While

computer-based software, dictionaries and textbooks are invaluable, nothing can replace surrounding yourself with native speakers.

“I think listening to music in the language really helps to get used to the sounds and rhythm,” says Maria Thompson, a French-language learner who reads in French to her six-month-old son.

“And meeting up with a native speaker once a week to either chat informally or have a lesson is really important … and making it routine is key.” Maria studied French in elementary school, but didn’t attempt to speak it outside of a classroom until she first went abroad to Paris as a junior in college. Sadly, she hasn’t had much opportunity to practice, although she grasps any chance to speak it with a few French-speaking friends, or reconnects with the language through film or music.

Gwynne Heiser of A//R Collections Services is another language lover whose interest was piqued in high school when she studied abroad in Spain for a year. “I practice Spanish every day in my work,” says Gwynne. “I have clients whose customers speak Spanish exclusively, so it is wonderful that I can practice on a daily basis to stay sharp.” Gwynne also corresponds with friends in Spain, but mostly via Facebook (“Soy perezosa,” she quips). She is also a member of the AZ Hispanic Chamber and volunteers at workshops on U.S. citizenship at Fundación Mano a Mano Unidos.

With such bountiful opportunities to connect to language partners around the world through the Internet, meeting up with that native speaker no longer means having to book a trip abroad.

So, even if you opt for the traditional college course approach, remember that having a real connection that can’t be found from a textbook is just a few mouse clicks away.

“Whatever you do to reinforce your language is excellent,” says Yolima Otálora of programs like Rosetta Stone, “but you really need to be immersed in that culture and interact with a native speaker. That interaction gives you a lot.”

“We must view education as an investment, not an expense.”

SHELLY ESQUE Vice President, Intel

The education we provide for Arizona’s children will determine the kind of future we all enjoy.

Arizona employers need a highly skilled, talented workforce to diversify our economy, increase job opportunities and stay competitive.That requires a stronger education system that begins at birth and continues through career. By investing time, talent and money to improve education today, we better position Arizona for long-term success. In the end, we all benefit. Education is everyone’s business. Make it your priority.

Visit ExpectMoreArizona.org.

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Toe-to-toe with Parkinson’s disease Early detection, treatment and exercise enhance patients’ lives

By Georgann Yara

when JuliA gonzAlez first noticed the tremor in

her hands, she was perplexed, but thought taking some vitamins would solve the problem.

But when it persisted, doctors ran some tests and came back with disturbing news: Gonzalez had Parkinson’s disease, a degenerative disorder of the central nervous system that impairs various mind and body functions, including motor skills and cognitive processes.

This was shocking and raised many questions in her mind about a condition she knew little about.

“It was very sad. I didn’t know too much about Parkinson’s. My question was, ‘Why?’” says Gonzalez, a native of Peru who now lives in Scottsdale.

That was two years ago. Since then, Gonzalez has relied on medication to manage her symptoms and participates in classes and workshops at the Muhammad Ali Parkinson Center, part of Barrow Neurological Institute.

Parkinson’s, Botox and the brain The world-renowned center specializes in treating Parkinson’s using a variety of traditional and nontraditional methods, including a substance that is more commonly associated with the beauty industry rather than medicine.

Botulinum toxin, commonly known as Botox, is one of the unexpected drugs being used to treat the physical symptoms of Parkinson’s. The most powerful nerve toxin known to man, Botox is purified, diluted and then injected straight into the muscle, relieving spasms and pain.

Botox has been used to treat Parkinson’s and other movement disorders for the last 20 years and is frequently used at the Muhammad Ali Parkinson

Center. Approximately 30 percent of annual patient visits at the center are for Botox injections. Injection times can take up to an hour and can provide relief for up to three months.

Botox relieves a number of the symptoms that characterize the disease, says Dr. Guillermo Moguel, a movement disorder neurologist at the center.

“Botox can be used to treat motor and non-motor symptoms. It can treat muscle tightness, eye closure, drooling and abnormal posture,” he says. “There have been significant advancements in how we treat it.”

Another method used to relieve the effects of www.latinopm.com

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Parkinson’s involves deep brain stimulation. Electrodes are implanted in the brain and powered by a battery pack, Moguel explains. It has shown to be very effective in treating tremors, rigidity and slowness of movement.

Although it is invasive and sounds a bit like science fiction, patients who opt for this treatment are reaping the benefits.

“By stimulating parts of the brain you can improve the symptoms,” says Moguel, “because you are inhibiting certain areas that are overactive.

It provides a real advantage over medications. It has improved patients’ quality of life.”

We want to educate the Hispanic Parkinson’s disease population. We need to reach this population with stronger effort so they can be more in tune with their disease.

However, the most common and simple treatment remains oral medication, the method that Gonzalez has used for the last two years since being diagnosed. Although the tremors come and go, and her medications need to be adjusted periodically, Gonzalez is encouraged to see other Parkinson’s patients make progress and increase their mobility with ongoing treatment and exercise.

La enfermedad y Latinos

© 2010 Rising Tide, Kft.

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“It is very helpful if someone is speaking your language. They helped me to feel more comfortable. I’m more happy because I know they are helping me. I feel much better because, before, I did not know what to do,” Gonzalez says. “I know that I am sick. Now I have to live.”

Anglos comprise most of the nearly one million Americans living with Parkinson’s, but of the ethnic minority groups, the disease is twice as likely to strike Hispanics than African Americans or Asians, according to a study by the Washington University School of Medicine published in the April 2010 journal of Neuroepidemiology.

While she is fluent in English, Gonzalez takes advantage of the center’s Spanish language courses and workshops aimed at Latino Parkinson’s patients. She says she has gained education about her disease and support from others who share her condition. Gonzalez better understands Parkinson’s and has learned exercises to help improve her movements.

Although the reason for this is not known, the study indicates that genetics and environmental factors play a role.

Moguel says education is the key to increasing awareness about the disease in the Latino community. Early diagnosis and treatment help ensure as positive a life experience as possible.

This is the reason the center has launched several outreach efforts specifically for Hispanic patients like Gonzalez. Moguel says these patients often feel more at ease when they are surrounded by those who share their culture.

“We want to educate the Hispanic Parkinson’s disease population. We need to reach this population with stronger effort so they can be more in tune with their disease,” says Moguel.

“Knowing more will make them take advantage of this information and suffer less from it. In the long term it will pay them back.”

Motor and non-motor symptoms The most commonly known symptoms of Parkinsonâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s are physical: tremors, rigidity, slowness, muscle stiffness and instability.

However, there are non-motor symptoms that also manifest themselves. Some are benign and are not necessarily indicative of the condition, explains Moguel.

Because the disorder begins in the lower brain and advances upward, the symptoms range greatly. The first symptoms can be severe constipation, bladder complications and drooling.

As the disease progresses, depression and anxiety can also occur. Moguel says that as many as 70 percent of patients experience depression or anxiety.

Other non-motor symptoms include dementia, visual hallucinations, paranoia, pain and severe itching.

Patients can also suffer from REM sleep behavioral disorder, in which vivid

dreams often causes them to flail their arms, punch or act out the scenario in their dreams.

By the time the typical motor symptoms surface, Moguel says patients have lost 75 percent of the cells that produce dopamine, the neurotransmitter that plays key roles in cognition, movement, mood, sleep, learning and other basic functions.

However, Moguel is optimistic that with early diagnosis, regular treatment and diligent exercise, the outlook of living a fulfilling life with Parkinsonâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s is encouraging. â&#x20AC;&#x153;We believe in an integrative way of treating the patient â&#x20AC;&#x201C; with physical, occupational and speech therapy. The more you remain active, the better balance and gait you will have in the long term,â&#x20AC;? he says. â&#x20AC;&#x153;We always see a patient as someone who is going to run a marathon, not just a race. We want to keep patients as active as possible.â&#x20AC;?

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Healthy Employee is a Happy and more Productive Employee!

A

Contact the YMCA Corporate Wellness Team to add Wellness to your Employee Benefits

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Youth Development Healthy Living Social Responsibility

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Resolve to avoid the pitfalls Five ways to set yourself up for healthy success

By Rosa Cays

It’s almost lIke sheddIng skIn every

New Year’s Eve, as we ponder the things we want to change about ourselves to make life better. Out with the old, in with the new – out with an old habit or attitude, or in with a new exercise regimen or fitness goal for the next 365 days.

Ah, but this tradition of resolutions is not as simple as shedding skin – a natural, effortless, inconspicuous thing we humans do (in most cases). Fact is, the majority of us are lucky to keep a New Year’s resolution for five days let alone a whole year. Oye, did you know humans shed 1.5 million skin cells every hour? (Perhaps resolving to change the bedsheets more often would be a good idea.)

Yet, many of us do make resolutions, probably the same ones year after year, in hopes of doing something positive and healthy to improve our lot. And when we don’t fulfill those self-promises, we end up feeling worse – and give up. So, instead of losing 10 pounds, we gain 15 to drown our shame and disappointment. Rather than quit smoking, we smoke even more. A selfflogging, if you will.

And some of us have given up on the whole concept, because we know we can’t keep a resolution. Why set ourselves up for failure?

Perhaps the problem is approach.

Grandiose fantasies of perfect bodies and accomplished marathons only carry us so far. We get fixated on the final result instead of the process to that final result.

For my part, I’ve been scheming for

three decades now to have a cuerpo like Madonna’s and I’m still not there. Lesson learned? Too much scheming, not enough action. (OK, I wouldn’t want the man arms, but I’d take the rest of her.)

And even when I do take action and get an exercise routine going, I have a tendency to take minuscule results (ooh, I can see my biceps! or I lost .25 ounces!) and use them as an excuse to fall off my resolution wagon (I’ve earned me a platazo of enchiladas!).

Ah, just one of my favorite pitfalls.

So – what are yours? If your success rate is low, how can you change your approach to realize your resolution?

Perchance you would achieve more success by setting up monthly or even weekly resolutions instead of yearly ones, for example. Or instead of vowing to ride

your bicycle 20 miles a week, start out at five and add two more miles each week.

Baby steps, baby.

Let’s take a simple approach to achieving an objective and eluding the pitfalls along the way. Think of these as the Five Resolution Agreements. Memorize them.

Chant them as you get on that treadmill or think about pouring that third glass of vino.

1

Want it. And want it badly. If you fantasize about having a body like fashion model Tony Ward (speaking of Madonna), that’s not enough. You have to want a body like fashion model Tony Ward. Or you have to want to quit smoking, want to lose weight, exercise more, eat better. WANT it. If you’re saying to yourself, “I should stop eating ice cream every night,” it won’t work. Don’t should yourself. It’ll get you nowhere.

2

Get real. Is it rational to tell yourself that this year you will finally climb every mountain in Arizona by 2012? Even though you’ve only gotten to the top of Camelback Mountain twice in the last ten years? Let this be a metaphor for any lofty (read: impractical) resolutions you’ve set for yourself. This is a sure way to land right into that pitfall. Why make that promise or set that goal when after 20 years you still haven’t done it? Kinda like me and the whole Madonna thing.

3

Voice it. It’s easy to whisper a promise in your own ear. I want to start every other morning with a brisk walk and 20 minutes of yoga.

I’ll quit smoking after the stress of the

holidays. I’m cutting my alcohol intake to just the weekends. How about telling your esposo or best friend? Or your children?

That way they can support you in your decision and give you the tough love you need to stay on track. Heck, maybe they’ll join you with their own goal.

4

Take baby steps. This month you may be feeling gung-ho about working out each and every morning before you head to the office. Do you think you’ll feel this way by, say, April?

Get into a groove slowly – but surely. Start out by resolving to get up twice a week to work out. Feel the success of that for a month; then in February increase your workouts to three mornings a week. Keep this up, and by April, you will have your groove on and working out five days a week – and the bikini body to prove it, just in time for swimming pool weather.

5

Dig the details. If you’ve decided you want to get in shape to run the P.F. Chang’s Rock ‘n’ Roll Marathon in January 2012, that’s an admirable resolution. But how are you going to do it? OK, we get it; you’ll start running every week. But what days? What time? How far? How will you work your way up to 26 miles and 385 yards? What else will you do to get in shape? Dig the details. Keep a daily journal and track your progress.

Record what time you hit the trail, how far you went and how long it took you. Log how many sit-ups, pushups, squats you did. By next January, you’ll be leaping and bounding over those puny pitfalls.

YOU CAN CHANGE A LIFE. REALLY. BE A HERO! BUILDING FUTURES MENTORING PROGRAM

Our Building Futures Mentoring Program is one of our most rewarding services, and we are in desperͲ ate need of mentor volunteers. We have so many great kids, ages 6 to 18, who are at risk due to low selfͲesteem, social isolation, family problems, etc., Ͳ who just need a friend, a role model. A person who can spend a little time sharing interests, listening and ultimately raising a child’s selfͲconfidence and outlook on life. You would be amazed at what an afternoon at the ball game or a trip to the park can do for a child in need of adult companionship and guidance.

Give us a call or email and we’ll explain how our program works, and how you can change a life.

Really.

To learn how to become a Mentor, contact the following directors in your area:

Chandler, Tempe, Ahwatukee Kate Clarno 602Ͳ212Ͳ6179 kclarno@vosymca.org

Mesa Susan Long 602Ͳ212Ͳ6186 slong@vosymca.org

Carefree, Cave Creek, Paradise Valley, Scottsdale Barb Harp 602Ͳ212Ͳ6289 bharp@vosymca.org

Central Phoenix, South Mountain, Chris Town Marta Grissom 602Ͳ212Ͳ6187 mgrissom@vosymca.org

Maryvale, Glendale, Southwest Valley Jessica Mena 602Ͳ212Ͳ6192 jmena@vosymca.org

Regional Director Robert Neese 602Ͳ212Ͳ6071 rneese@vosymca.org

Need a little help from the pros?

Harvard Health Publications has come out with Simple Changes, Big Rewards, a 45-page booklet that may just be what your conscience ordered. It covers seven topics: exercising regularly, eating healthier, dieting effectively, reducing stress, stopping unhealthy habits, controlling spending and embracing positive psychology. For each topic, six simple choices are presented to help reach your goal, like packing a lunch, adding core exercises to your routine, or simplifying your days. You can choose whichever changes appeal to you. The report also includes tools to help you track your goals, keep you motivated and sidestep pitfalls (where’ve you heard that?).

Go to www.health.harvard.edu to order a copy. Enter GOODLIFE25 promo code to get a hard copy or PDF for 25 percent off the regular $18 pricetag. Stop the inertia!

Youth Development Healthy Living Social Responsibility

www.latinopm.com

¡ January 2011!

Latino Perspectives Magazine

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Building stronger communities together.

SRP proudly acknowledges the achievements and contributions of the Hispanic community in the Valley. With hard work and dedication, we can all make the Valley a better place to live. Weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re committed to building an even stronger community â&#x20AC;&#x201C; together.

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P.S.

Stella Pope Duarte

Which wolf will you feed in 2011?

By Stella Pope Duarte

a natIve amerIcan grandfather was talking to his grandson about how he felt.

He said, “I feel as if I have two wolves fighting in my heart. One wolf is the vengeful, angry, violent one. The other wolf is the loving, compassionate one.”

The grandson asked him, “Which wolf will win the fight in your heart?” The grandfather answered, “The one I feed.”

This Native American reflection is indeed a poignant one, and the words lead us directly to our own hearts. I have often shared these words with audiences across the nation, and always, people react to the power of the words and begin to think of their own choices.

Darkness and light are found in every human being on earth. We choose over and over again – sometimes in the simplest ways – the thought that makes us angry versus the thought that brings us peace. People often ask me if they can take an extra copy of the reflection for a mother-in-law, or a husband or boyfriend, and everyone laughs. I want to ask the person, “What about yourself?” Usually I don’t ask, because the audience is often large, and I don’t want to embarrass anyone, but I don’t hesitate to share how many times I have been the one I am talking about – I’m

the one feeding the “wrong wolf.”

The breakdown of the world is this: We have a huge landscape within us, which is where we really live, and in that world, our WILL is law. I compare this with the ancient and profound story of Adam and Eve, or they could have been Adán y Eva, for all we know. One tricked the other into doing something “sinful,” which involved disobeying God, and of the two, the woman was chosen as the scapegoat.

I’ve had people ask me if what Eve offered Adam was really an apple. How should I know? Maybe it was a mango.

The heart of the story is like the reflection of the two wolves. We choose, every hour, every minute of our lives – we choose to love, to hate, to accept, to reject, on and on, sometimes in deadly patterns, which we alone can change.

I have lost count of the times I have wanted to act in anger over a rude remark or a person who has caused me great pain, and the “vengeful, angry, violent wolf” wants to take over. Before, perhaps I would have let the “wolf” out, but as I’ve gotten older and hopefully wiser, I’m learning to respond with love, even when I feel none, with patience even when I’m in a rage, and with diplomacy when I would rather fight.

In 2011, I want to change one choice at a time. In fact, every day, I think about ways I need to change, perhaps reverse an emotional habit that has led me down a path that only brings pain and heartache.

My mother was right, “Cada cabeza es un mundo.” Every mind is its own world, and in the end, it won’t matter how much money we made or what we owned. It won’t matter what kind of pain we suffered or how much we had to endure – everyone has a part in the mystery of suffering. I have learned this: It’s not what you suffer, but how you suffer it that makes you holy.

In 2011, it will matter immensely, which wolf you feed. It will mean the difference between light and darkness, life and death. It will mark you as one who is aware that you are creating Paradise on earth – one choice at a time.

Stella Pope Duarte was born and raised in South Phoenix. She began her writing career in 1995 after she had a dream in which her deceased father told her that her destiny was to become a writer. Her work has won awards and honors nationwide. www.latinopm.com

¡ January 2011!

Latino Perspectives Magazine

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¡!

my perspective on: granitos de arena

A challenge – and an opportunity

By Janet Latinos in the U.S. are Murguía expected to have $1 trillion in purchasing power by next year – $31 billion in Arizona alone. Although the economic recession has hit our community particularly hard, Latinos are resilient. We are entrepreneurs, artists, military, farm workers. No one can challenge our commitment to making our nation the best in the world.

With one out of every ten voters now identifying as Latino, we are the fastest-growing part of the electorate in the country. For anyone who cares about a strong economy, better jobs, a quality education, safe neighborhoods and healthy communities, the growth of the Latino population and electorate should be a welcomed development. The Latino agenda is an American agenda, and we care about building a stronger America where there is equal access and opportunity, and where the merits of everyone’s contributions are recognized.

Though our civic participation numbers still lag behind, community leaders and organizations are working to turn eligible immigrants into citizens, citizens into voters, and everyone in our community into participants with the tools and information to engage in important policy debates. We must continue to work so that as a community, our political voice matches the contributions we make to the economy and the nation. This is no easy task, and success will not be achieved in the course of one election.

Despite our contributions, our community is under attack, and Arizona is ground zero. When Gov. Jan Brewer signed S.B. 1070 into law, she made every Latino in the state a suspect, regardless of immigration status. Incoming state Senate President Russell Pearce has made it clear that this is not the end of this attack. He is working to eviscerate the 14th Amendment, the fundamental tenet of our Constitution.

Sadly, Arizona is not alone. The attacks on our community and history in this country are fast and furious. At last count, more than two dozen states were considering “copycat” legislation similar to S.B. 1070, and the superheated rhetoric surrounding any discussion on

More perspectives

Send us your perspective on whatever moves you.

E-mail editor@latinopm.com.

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immigration usually devolves into attacks against Latinos, language not worth wasting ink on.

In Arizona, perhaps this is what led to many Latinos not participating in the election. But those who did rejected the politics of demonization and, with the support of organizations collaborating under the One Arizona banner, achieved a small increase over previous turnout numbers. We all knew one election would not change Arizona’s alarming course. But it was an important step, and we must stay involved so that leaders of both parties acknowledge the contributions of Latinos to the state, and take continued, meaningful steps to court and engage this electorate.

In other cases, we have seen the silver lining, which can also energize our community to participate. We saw it in California when former Gov. Pete Wilson signed Proposition 187. We saw it in the 2006 marches and the subsequent surge in voter registrations and citizenship applications in the summer of 2007 when the so-called “Sensenbrenner Bill” was being discussed in Congress. We saw it last November, when candidates for the U.S. Senate who compared our community to criminals were defeated at the polls. This energy has to be sustained, and applied to the task of holding our elected leaders accountable every day – not just to our community, but also to safeguarding the diverse fabric of the nation and the space for constructive dialogue.

We must all do everything we can to support and increase these efforts. My organization as well as many local, state and national organizations are looking to contribute their granito de arena. Each of us has a role to play. Action starts at the dinner table, talking with friends and family about standing up for our community and ourselves. It continues with volunteering at organizations working within the community, and it culminates with voting every Election Day. We can spend our time regretting where we find ourselves, or we can take stock of the situation and use it as an opportunity to reassert the long and proud history of Latinos in America. Let’s join hands and do it together – our community’s well-being depends on it.

Janet Murguía is president and CEO of the National Council of La Raza (NCLR), the largest Latino civil rights and advocacy organization in the United States.

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www.latinopm.com

¡ January 2011!

Latino Perspectives Magazine

63

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