蜜柚直播

Remember when you made a personal discovery, one that set you on your life鈥檚 journey, filled with passion?

I鈥檇 like to think that many people have. But I suspect few have.

Enrique Garc铆a Naranjo, a 20-year-old Pima Community College student, encountered his and has embarked on his road.

It was just a few years ago when Garc铆a was a student at Pueblo Magnet High School that he connected with words. Poetry, to be precise.

He heard two local slam poets give a presentation after school and the power of their words, the images they created, and the rhythm and cadence, left Garc铆a mesmerized.

鈥淚 want to do this,鈥� he said while sitting at La Pilita, in Barrio El Hoyo on South Main Avenue, on Thursday.

Poetry, he discovered, possesses special powers.

鈥淵outh individually feel like the world鈥檚 against them. But as a unit, like always, la comunidad, bringing youth together empowers them. They see that they are not alone,鈥� he said.

The road that leads to words and writing is different for every writer. Garc铆a began his with his family as they traveled across several states and into Mexico.

He was born in Salt Lake City, Utah, where his Mexican-born parents had migrated to work. His parents came to the United States without legal permission. But his father, the son of a bracero worker, received legal residency under President Reagan鈥檚 1986 amnesty program.

From Utah the family moved north to Idaho where there were fewer people who looked and talked like his family, which was one of the very few Mexican families.

But when he was 13, his family had to make a major move. They left for Ju谩rez, M茅xico, where his mother could make her application for legal residency. Told there would be a long wait, Garc铆a moved to Jalisco, the Mexican state where his parents were born and where the young Garc铆a was a foreigner.

In school, Garc铆a helped teach English while he improved his Spanish. He also saw the effect of global trade policies and practices that destroyed small Mexican farmers, forcing them to migrate north, like his family had done.

Within a year his mother received her residency card and the family came to 蜜柚直播 in 2009. He enrolled at Pueblo and poetry came to him though the slam poetry of Sarah Gonzales and Logan Phillips, co-directors of Spoken Futures and organizers of the 蜜柚直播 Youth Poetry Slam.

With poetry came political awareness. By the time Garc铆a graduated in 2013, the state Legislature had banned Mexican American Studies in the 蜜柚直播 Unified School District. He had become active in supporting the program, which was designed to provide critical thinking skills and to teach Chicano history and culture.

Now Garc铆a is channeling his experiences and knowledge into poetry and acting.

Last month he played the role of 鈥淧oder鈥� in 鈥淢谩s,鈥� presented by Borderlands Theater. Written by Milta Ortiz and directed by Marc David Pinate, the play encompasses the development and demise of TUSD鈥檚 Mexican-American Studies. Garc铆a played the roles of two male high school students with UNIDOS, the youth group that galvanized much of the public support for the program.

The play, he said, helped him heal from the pain of what he believes was the state鈥檚 abusive hand in eliminating Mexican American Studies, a program that resulted in higher academic progress for students.

鈥淥ur history in 蜜柚直播 is full of hurt and pain. So this play reiterates that idea of resiliency and resistance,鈥� said Garc铆a.

He has performed successfully in slam poetry recitals, participated in the Brave New Voices International Youth Poetry Festival in New York City, and won the National Association for Bilingual Education Essay Award and La Zona de Promesa Promising Leader Award in 2013.

Last year he published a book, 鈥淭ortoise Boy Says,鈥� a collection of poems about his familia, the barrios, immigration raids, summer rain.

He shares his poetry with other young people in after-school programs, hoping to inspire, as he was inspired at Pueblo when he sat in the classroom of former Mexican American Studies teacher Sally Rusk. He believes that through poetry young Chicanos and Chicanas can express their experiences, fill in the missing parts left out of the historical narrative and make profound personal changes.

Poetry has the power, he said.

鈥淚t can open them up to this universe of literacy achievement in our culture.鈥�

Daniel Neyoy Ruiz, his wife and son are on the move.

The family, which had spent nearly a month in church sanctuary to protest a deportation order last year, is moving forward, on and up. The family is moving into a new home, Neyoy is working without the fear of being deported to Mexico and the family is looking ahead.

鈥淚t鈥檚 been better,鈥� said 13-year-old Carlos Daniel Neyoy, the U.S.-born son of Daniel and his wife, Karla Stahlkopff. Lots better since the family walked out of the Southside Presbyterian Church and into a hopeful future. Daniel Neyoy Ruiz鈥檚 deportation stay was issued in June.

The eighth-grade student at Challenger Middle School was joyful when I met with him and his parents Thursday night in their new home near South 12th Avenue and West Elvira Street. Their lives have turned from uncertain to tranquil.

鈥淲e were in the shadows but when we came out, it gave us a chance to breathe,鈥� Stahlkopff said in Spanish.

Now the Neyoy family wants the same for another 蜜柚直播 family.

The family has joined with others to push the U.S. government to grant the family of Rosa Robles Loreto the same opportunity to move beyond fear. Robles Loreto, a wife and mother, has been in sanctuary at Southside since Aug. 7 last year, waiting, hoping and praying for a stay of deportation from Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

Keep 蜜柚直播 Together intends to widen the campaign to support Robles Loreto, using social media, hashtags #LetRosaStay, #Keep蜜柚直播Together, letter writing and good ol鈥� fashioned lawn signs with the words 鈥淲e Stand With Rosa.鈥�

The Neyoy family has been in near daily contact with Robles Loreto. They visit, talk by telephone or exchange spirit-lifting messages on Facebook.

鈥淪he鈥檚 been down sometimes, but she is a strong person,鈥� said Daniel, who came with his wife to this country without authorization. They came to work and improve their lives.

While the Neyoy family was in sanctuary together, Robles Loreto鈥檚 husband and two sons visit her. And a large circle of support surrounds the Neyoy family and now Robles Loreto, said Daniel, 37, whose father is an evangelical preacher in Mexico.

Karla, 34, said that while in sanctuary, 鈥淪trangers, total strangers, gave us the feeling that we, too, have rights.鈥�

Immigrant families, regardless of their legal status, have universal rights. The first one being keeping families together.

The push for a deportation stay for the Neyoy family, as well as the family of Francisco Perez Cordova, who was in sanctuary last year for 94 days at St. Francis in the Foothills United Methodist Church, transcends 蜜柚直播. It鈥檚 a movement in support of millions of immigrant families across the country, who face the prospect of deportation or who have already been deported and separated.

Neyoy struggled to maintain his family together after he was stopped in 2011 by an 蜜柚直播 Department of Public Safety officer. Daniel鈥檚 vehicle was emitting smoke. He was turned over to ICE. His story is typical of too many other undocumented immigrants who are detained by local and state police officers on minor vehicle violations and then, when they can鈥檛 prove their legal status, are turned over to immigration officers.

The family remained steadfast. The family did not bend. The family sacrificed.

鈥淭he value of the family is universal,鈥� said Karla.

The future is clearer. Daniel is working and paying taxes. Still he has to renew his stay of deportation. If his stay becomes permanent, Daniel and Karla can apply for residency and eventual citizenship when Carlos turns 21. By then Carlos said he expects to be in college, preferably in California.

Even if a second deportation order were to stun the family, Carlos said he would gladly re-enter sanctuary with his parents.

鈥淢e and my family think we should be together,鈥� Carlos said. 鈥淎s long as we鈥檙e together, we have a chance.鈥�

When Mauricio Vergara was growing up in Tijuana, Mexico, he wanted to be a singer. He dreamed of being on the 鈥淎merican Idol鈥� television program or on the same stage as a backup singer to pop star Britney Spears.

He didn鈥檛 reach those stages, but he made it to the stage as a performer anyway. Vergara is a professional dancer with Ballet 蜜柚直播.

鈥淚 feel like I am back home,鈥� said the bilingual, 27-year-old Vergara, a dual citizen of the U.S. and Mexico.

Tijuana鈥檚 loss became 蜜柚直播鈥檚 gain.

In September he joined the local ballet company after stints in Mexico City, Tijuana, San Diego, New York City and most recently in Montgomery, Alabama.

When his last company dissolved, Vergara went looking for a new home and auditioned in Los Angeles. As chance would have it, overseeing his audition was Mary Beth Cabana, the founder and artistic director of Ballet 蜜柚直播.

Vergara, with his radiant smile, beaming personality and upbeat presence, danced his way into her artistic heart.

鈥淚 just fell in love with this guy,鈥� said Cabana at the busy ballet studio on South 蜜柚直播 Boulevard. 鈥淚 had to have him.鈥�

蜜柚直播, with its large and growing Latino population, and home to a large number of Latino artists, musicians and performers, is a match for Vergara. He is one of a growing number of professional Hispanic male ballet dancers across the country.

Cabana said the number of Hispanic men in ballet has grown in the past 20 years. Like Vergara, they come from abroad: Cuba, Venezuela, Argentina, among other countries. While ballet does not have the cache in this country, Cabana said ballet 鈥渋s understood and revered鈥� in some Latin American countries 鈥渁s an authentic art form.鈥�

Vergara understands ballet鈥檚 lack of appeal among most people. Popular culture overwhelms ballet and the dance is seen as 鈥渙utdated and boring.鈥� Vergara strongly disagrees.

Ballet is an appealing art, graceful and athletic, visually stunning. And today鈥檚 ballet, while based on classical technique, is wide ranging and eclectic, Cabana said. 鈥淲e have to do everything,鈥� she added.

Vergara realized ballet鈥檚 allure and power when he was approaching 17. He had been dancing hip-hop and singing pop songs.

A dance teacher suggested Vergara take ballet lessons to learn the basics. Vergara, who had not been exposed to ballet, initially balked but followed the advice.

It wasn鈥檛 long before Vergara experienced a visceral transformation. He emotionally and physically connected with ballet. He discovered the beauty in its movements. He found resonance in its fluidity. More important he discovered himself.

鈥淚 felt alive,鈥� said Vergara. He blossomed, he added, using the Spanish word 产谤辞迟贸.

Unfortunately his parents didn鈥檛 share his new-found enthusiasm. His father, a doctor, and mother did not see ballet as a potential career for their teenage son. Neither could they envision their son, in tights, jumping, twirling, and holding and lifting ballerinas.

Despite their opposition, Vergara turned his full attention to ballet. He practiced and practiced and practiced. He developed discipline and devotion. While he discovered his passion, Vergara believed that he was arriving late to the rigorous life of a ballet dancer.

Still, without his parents鈥� blessing, he persevered. 鈥淚 wanted to dedicate myself,鈥� he said.

When he was 20 years old, Vergara earned his first contract with California Ballet in San Diego, his birth city. Just as important, his divorced parents saw him dance. His father saw him in 鈥淭he Nutcracker鈥� in San Diego and his mother saw him dance perform in Tijuana the grand pas de deux in the second act of 鈥淪wan Lake.鈥�

His mother cried. His father fought the tears. He had gained their support.

Vergara joined Ballet 蜜柚直播 at a good time. The company is nearing its 30th anniversary. Cabana has plans for wider dance programs, including more Latino themes. She said Vergara鈥檚 future is bright and unlimited because 鈥渉e鈥檚 hungry for it.鈥�

His hunger for ballet is clear as he waxes about the dance and his dreams. He wants the lead role in 鈥淕iselle,鈥� the mid-19th century French classic. He wants to perform on the stages of Radio City Music Hall in New York City and the Palacio de Bellas Artes in Mexico City.

And he wants to mentor future male ballet dancers, and serve as a role model. Vergara wants to tell them dancing ballet beats standing behind Britney Spears any day.

On this Easter Sunday, this day of renewed hope and life, the family of Marta Ure帽a will attend Catholic Mass to give thanks and pray.

The family will pray for Alberto Ure帽a, Marta鈥檚 husband and father to their children, Ana, Nora and Oscar. They will recall his love and joy, which they have missed since his death nearly 15 years ago.

In their prayers they will give thanks to God, because it was their faith that sustained them in the years since Alberto鈥檚 sudden death, which for a brief period, left the family unsettled. They will swell with thoughts of gratitude for the friends who assisted them through that period when uncertainty compounded their grief.

And they will again, as they have so often, silently pray for the unknown angel, who after Alberto鈥檚 death, gave Marta and her children a home.

I first met Marta in the summer of 2000, the month after Alberto died of a heart attack at the age of 39. Through Habitat for Humanity and its volunteers, the Ure帽as were building a three-bedroom house in the 鈥淎鈥� Mountain neighborhood. Alberto and Marta had invested 375 hours of 鈥渟weat equity鈥� when he died.

However, when Alberto died, so did the prospect of owning a new home. Marta was undocumented and could not legally work. Habitat feared she would not be able to make the monthly payments.

I wrote about the Ure帽a family鈥檚 disappearing dream that July.

Then the Ure帽as鈥� angel came forward. The donor paid the $60,000 mortgage.

To this day, the Ure帽as do not know the donor鈥檚 name. The 蜜柚直播 woman asked to remain anonymous.

But the donor鈥檚 generosity afforded the Ure帽as more than a home. She gave Marta and her three children an optimistic foothold toward stability. She gave them the confidence that they could take advantage of the goodwill and opportunities.

They have.

Next month, Ana Ure帽a, 22, will graduate from the University of 蜜柚直播. The Mexican-American studies major, who earned a full-ride college scholarship, hopes to enter nursing college or maybe become a doctor.

Through Ana, who is a U.S. citizen, her mother initiated the process of acquiring legal residency. Last New Year鈥檚 Eve, Marta鈥檚 work permit was approved, and this year she expects to receive her legal resident card.

Dec. 31 was a tearful, celebratory night for the Ure帽as.

鈥淲e were all crying because we were so happy,鈥� said Nora, 20, the youngest of the three children.

While the angel donor gave the Ure帽a family some footing, Marta has worked hard to keep the home. In the years after her husband鈥檚 death, she cleaned homes, made tamales, and cooked other foods to earn income. She paid the property taxes and insurance on the house.

She also kept her children focused on their education. All three graduated from Cholla High School, a few blocks from their home. Oscar and Nora have taken classes at Pima Community College. Their mother wants them to continue.

鈥淢y parents always told us we had to do better than they did,鈥� said Ana, who was 7 years old when her dad died. 鈥淓ducation is the only way to get out.鈥�

Along the family鈥檚 journey, a small circle of support has buoyed the Ure帽as. Habitat volunteers continued to pitch in even after the house was blessed by a priest.

Other volunteers came from Most Holy Trinity Catholic Church, where the Ure帽as worship.

Church friends drove Marta to work when public transportation was not an option, and drove the children to religious education classes.

Ken Moreland, a deacon at Most Holy Trinity, said that because of the Ure帽as鈥� strong faith and commitment, 鈥渢hey didn鈥檛 see obstacles.鈥�

鈥淭hey always looked at everything they had as a blessing from God,鈥� said Moreland, who, along with his wife, Linda, has consistently been at the Ure帽as鈥� side.

Also at the family鈥檚 side is Alberto. The husband and father is never far. His wedding day photo hangs on the living room wall. There are other photos of him in the house.

Tears flowed when Marta and her children talked about his spirit and cheerfulness.

鈥淗e would be proud of me for helping mom with the bills,鈥� said 21-year-old Oscar, who cherishes the memories of the son and father weekend 鈥渕an trips.鈥�

On this day, as every day, the Ure帽as will resurrect thoughts and images of a husband and father, and assure him that they are strong and moving forward.

Mom, you lucky gal, happy Mother鈥檚 Day. Sunday we celebrate our mothers, whether they are with us or not.

Julieta Bustamante Portillo turned 80 last month and fortunately for her, being the proud Mexican-American mujer that she is, can also celebrate D铆a de las Madres, which is observed in Mexico on May 10.

Most mothers are special. Mine is very special.

Julie B., as we call her, was born in 蜜柚直播, in the old Storks Nest, a birthing center downtown on North Court Avenue at the corner of West Council Street. The building is still there and houses a hydrogeological consulting firm.

Mom has never let me and my siblings 鈥� Carmen, Mario and Carlos 鈥� forget where she was born. In fact, mom reminds us constantly of the 蜜柚直播 she knew and loved as a child before World War II and as a teenager in the postwar years.

That Julie B. loves 蜜柚直播 is an understatement. She鈥檚 a one-person chamber of commerce. She鈥檚 蜜柚直播鈥檚 unofficial No. 1 cheerleader waving University of 蜜柚直播 red and blue pompoms. She is 蜜柚直播.

Her boundaries, however, go further than the mountains and desert surrounding her birth town. They extend south into Mexico, where my grandparents, Carmen Macias and Miguel Bustamante, and my father, Ernesto Portillo Sr., were born. And her roots branch out to Los Angeles, where my grandmother鈥檚 family, like thousands of other Mexican families, settled after they fled Mexico鈥檚 turbulent political and social unrest that persisted after the 1910 revolution.

But the Old Pueblo was and continues to be Julie B.鈥檚 center of the universe. She filled us with stories of her blissful childhood:

The kids and teachers at Safford elementary and junior high schools, and mighty 蜜柚直播 High. Watching cartoons and cowboy serials at the Mickey Mouse Club on Saturday mornings at the Fox Theatre. Craning her neck from outside my grandparents鈥� second-story apartment to listen to what was being presented on the stage next door at the Temple of Music and Art on South Scott Avenue. Walking downtown with her older sister Alva.

While she relishes her memories, madre鈥檚 love for 蜜柚直播 is not simply based on nostalgia. It鈥檚 always been about its people, friends or strangers.

Mom liberated herself in the 1960s by going to work. One of her first jobs was as a teachers aide at Mission View Elementary School in South 蜜柚直播.

It was the dawn of bilingual education and mom was all in, helping the students and their parents, some of whom were immigrants.

She left Mission View, with her commitment intact, to serve as the office manager at Pueblo Gardens Elementary School near South Campbell and East 36th Street. She later worked in the district鈥檚 human resources office.

Public education was paramount for her. I can still hear her berate 蜜柚直播 voters who turned down school bond proposals.

Later she moved over to the 蜜柚直播, where she spent more than 17 years as the administrative assistant to the publisher and editors.

She was a news junkie and was in heaven in the busy, energetic newsroom. Every person at the Daily Star was her daughter or son, and she called them mija and mijo.

In her capacity, she connected nonprofit organizations with the Star. She would do what she could to assist groups in the arts, education and child development.

And when she couldn鈥檛 help give away the Star鈥檚 money, she made sure to contribute what she and my father could afford to community groups. She would say that philanthropy is our duty, regardless of the amount. And if we cannot give money, we have time to give.

These days Julie B., grandmother to four girls and two boys, spends much of her time with her new passion: quilting. She continues to get together with her girlfriends and remains active with Club Duette, a social group of women, many of whom mom grew up with in the days when it seemed that everyone knew each other.

My politically opinionated and liberal mom continues her love affair with the town that gave a beginning to her parents as well as to my father, who had a long career in Spanish-language radio. Her unabated attachment still is infectious and inspires my love for my 蜜柚直播.

Gracias, madre.

蜜柚直播 is one of the oldest communities in the country. Heck, people have lived in this desert valley of ours for more than 3,000 years. Probably longer than that.

Bet most 蜜柚直播ans don鈥檛 know this bit of trivia. It鈥檚 not taught.

Our long history surrounds us. History, the memories of the everyday lives of people who called 蜜柚直播 their home, is a graveyard-dead subject to many. For others, it remains alive.

Last Saturday was one of those living days.

The day started by celebrating the valley鈥檚 agricultural past on a patch of the west bank of the Santa Cruz River. The nascent Mission Garden Project, on South Mission Road at the foot of Sentinel Peak, just north of West 22nd Street, is a re-creation of a colonial Spanish garden.

It was here where the first Spanish colonizers made contact with the Pimas who lived in small clusters along the life-giving river. The Spanish established Mission San Agust铆n at the base of 鈥淎鈥� Mountain in the mid-1700s, before the founding of the 蜜柚直播 presidio in 1775 across the river.

Inside the walled garden, the Friends of 蜜柚直播鈥檚 Birthplace honored our historical past by celebrating St. Isidore, the Catholic patron saint of farmers, whose feast day was May 15. But the Mission Garden is more than recognizing the Spanish and European aspects of our history. The fruit trees, some of which are heritage descendants brought by Jesuit explorer Eusebio Francisco Kino, also reflect our Native American, Chinese, African-American and Chicano heritage.

In a similar multlcultural celebration later that same day, I joined other 蜜柚直播enses at the Sosa-Carrillo-Fr茅mont House Museum on South Granada Avenue, on the grounds of the 蜜柚直播 Convention Center. We were there to hear the oral histories of people who once lived in the downtown barrios, but whose lives and homes were razed to build the cold, brick complex in the late 1960s.

The stories of the elders were delivered by the voices of nine young students from the Trio Upward Bound Program at Pima Community College鈥檚 Desert Vista Campus: Idaena Castro, Monica Tan, Karelia Gil, Ruth Ballesteros-Saenz, Diana Vega, Haredo Mohamed, Mana Abdi, Batula Abdulkadir and Amina Shiwoko.

The students, Latinas, Asian and Muslim, recited monologues, shaped from interviews they conducted with the former residents of Viejo and El Hoyo barrios.

鈥淥ral history has power,鈥� said Milta Ortiz of Borderlands Theater, who taught the Pima class 鈥淭heatricalizing Oral Histories.鈥�

While oral history, handed down generation by generation, possesses that power it acquires over time, it is absent from conventional historical conversation, Ortiz said. The oral history of 蜜柚直播鈥檚 ethnic minority communities was ignored, and only in recent years have there been attempts to document those stories.

鈥淭he monologues honor that history,鈥� Ortiz added.

Much of the beauty of that afternoon in the backyard of the Sosa-Carrillo home, which was built in the 1870s, occupied for generations by 蜜柚直播 families, and now managed by the 蜜柚直播 Historical Society, was the diversity of faces of the students who presented the oral histories.

Four students were born in Africa. One student was the daughter of Cambodian refugees, and the four others were Chicanas whose roots extend south.

While their backgrounds varied, the students were united through their exploration of the history of people鈥檚 lives and their memories of their families, neighbors and businesses that formed la calle, a name some residents give the barrio. This experience piqued the students鈥� interest in exploring their families鈥� histories.

Ortiz said, 鈥淭hey really didn鈥檛 know each other or anything about 蜜柚直播, and this class brought them together, establishing new friends.鈥�

These barrio stories did not end at the conclusion of the presentation. The monologues, which hopefully will include the voices of the Chinese and African-American residents who also lived in the barrios, will form the basis of a Borderlands Theater play next year.

That鈥檚 living and breathing history for 蜜柚直播ans to take and share, and to encourage others to discover theirs.

The halls were buzzing with young musicians and music at Davis Bilingual Magnet School. The mariachi summer camp was full on when Daniel Buckley walked into the classrooms.

Many of the students recognized him instantly, and some greeted 鈥淢r. Buckley鈥� warmly.

Buckley, a tall 62-year-old with a full white beard and white crop of hair, may not be your idea of a superstar. But to many of these budding mariachis 鈥� and to many older and accomplished mariachi musicians 鈥� Buckley rocks.

However, he doesn鈥檛 play the guitar, violin, trumpet, vihuela or guitarr贸n. He doesn鈥檛 sing or dance. Yet to many in 蜜柚直播鈥檚 wide mariachi and folklorico dance community, Buckley is the champion of mariachi music and culture.

鈥淗e鈥檚 like family,鈥� said Jaciana Fimbres, a 17-year-old senior at Pueblo Magnet High School and a violinist with Pueblo鈥檚 Mariachi Aztl谩n who was tutoring at Davis last week. 鈥淗e鈥檚 always around.鈥�

For the past three years, Buckley, with his video and still cameras, has recorded hundreds of hours for his documentary film, 鈥淭he Mariachi Miracle,鈥� which he hopes to debut during next year鈥檚 蜜柚直播 International Mariachi Conference.

Buckley, who began exploring and writing about mariachi music more than 30 years ago, probably knows more about the music鈥檚 history and players than most mariachis. He likely has done more to promote the music, which is embedded in 蜜柚直播, than most people have. And if there are some who love mariachi music more than New York-born Buckley, it surely must be a very short line ahead of him.

鈥淲e need someone like Dan. If it wasn鈥檛 for Dan we would not be here right now,鈥� said violin instructor and longtime mariachi David Gill at the Davis mariachi summer camp.

While the music鈥檚 roots are deep in Mexico, mariachi music in this country can trace its lineage to 蜜柚直播, the birthplace of the first mariachi youth group, the incubator of mariachi festivals and where mariachi curriculum was introduced into public schools.

The inclusion of mariachi programs in schools has led to lower drop-out rates among students and has propelled many high school graduates into college. Mariachi school programs, led by graduates of 蜜柚直播鈥檚 youth mariachi groups, can now be found in Las Vegas, San Francisco, Chicago and elsewhere.

But Buckley鈥檚 mariachi chronicle is more than the story of youths performing on stage. The history of mariachi in 蜜柚直播 is the history of desegregation, urban renewal and Chicano social and political changes, said Buckley, a former writer for the defunct 蜜柚直播 Citizen.

鈥淚 have learned more than I could have ever imagined,鈥� said Buckley, who was inducted into the Mariachi Hall of Fame in 2013 and was 2014 Artist of the Year at the 蜜柚直播 Governor鈥檚 Arts Awards.

To complete his project, Buckley needs to raise some serious money, to go along with funding he has already received from the 蜜柚直播 Pima Arts Council, the Southwestern Foundation, The Chann Foundation, Pima County Board of Supervisors, the Pascua Yaqui Tribe, a 2012 Kickstarter campaign and money out of his own pocket.

Next Saturday, Buckley will be joined by some of his many mariachi and folklorico dance friends for a daylong fundraiser, from 2 p.m. to midnight, at El Casino Ballroom at 427 E. 26th Street.

Buckley plans to present his film at the Fox 蜜柚直播 Theatre in April during the annual mariachi festival, in conjunction with a two-day national summit on mariachi education in collaboration with The White House Initiative on Educational Excellence for Hispanics, Buckley said.

Linking the music to education is critical, he said. Musical excellence and classroom achievements are inseparable, he added. Many of the mariachi students Buckley has met over the years are now in college or have earned their degrees working as professionals.

鈥淚t鈥檚 just fantastic,鈥� he said.

At our home the ol鈥� swamp box cooler is heaving and groaning, marking the arrival of the summer rains and raspados. As the chubasco clouds gather in white billowing towers, the cooler growls.

And with this comes a flood of memories of summers past when I was oblivious to the heat, in awe of the power of the rains and enchanted with the cacophony of the thunder.

As I was growing up on San Rafael Avenue, north of St. Mary鈥檚 Hospital, a wash ran behind the house. For most of the year it was dry and invited the neighborhood boys to explore, hide our treasures and re-enact the black and white war movies we watched on television. But during the monsoon season, the wash became our torrential river, full of fury, screaming danger.

When nighttime arrived and the thermometer seemed reasonable, the street became our playground until we drifted back to our homes on our own or at the call of our mothers.

Years later when the family moved to Armory Park, the old downtown library on South Sixth Avenue became my summer haunt. To escape triple-digit temperatures, I found the perfectly cool respite.

For many 蜜柚直播enses, this is our season to enjoy and to remember.

Charlotte Leon Weakland remembers the summers of her youth with relish. Her family lived in an apartment on West Cushing Street, in the old downtown barrio now covered by the 蜜柚直播 Convention Center. This was during World War II, in the days when there was no cooling for many 蜜柚直播 families.

鈥淲e left the doors open, to the front and back,鈥� she said. The night breeze would flow through the high-ceilinged apartment, cooling it off.

When there was no wind to chase away the heat, the family would sleep outside on a bed.

鈥淣ot even mosquitoes bothered us.鈥�

As a child, Weakland loved 蜜柚直播鈥檚 summer nights, playing in the water-filled streets, walking to the old Cine Plaza on West Congress Street to see the Mexican movies and stage acts.

What Carmen Soto Sieger remembers the most about the summer was the scent.

鈥淭he smell of rain was greater then. We used to get that smell in the early afternoon,鈥� she said.

Many older 蜜柚直播ans will tell you the same thing. The smell of the desert floor and the flora was more pronounced back in their day. There was more desert, and less concrete and asphalt than there is today.

The Soto family lived on the corner of South Fifth Avenue and West 25th Street. There was a screened porch where the family slept on hot nights.

鈥淭here was a big bed, and my mom and dad and me would climb in there,鈥� she said. When it wasn鈥檛 raining they slept outside on cots.

While some of her neighbors fended off the summer heat by improvising, the Sotos had a swamp cooler.

鈥淢y dad was so proud when he got it,鈥� she said.

But it required work. Her father wrapped the cooler in a burlap bag that had to be constantly soaked. If not, the cooler just blew hot air.

A special memory from those summer nights was hearing the older boys in the barrio strum the guitars and sing popular songs. They would gather on the corner or on empty lots.

Some of the boys, she added, would later ship off to war in Europe or the Pacific. A few did not return.

蜜柚直播-born Mina Estevez Felix grew up in Southern California but spent her summers at her grandmother鈥檚 downtown home on West Council Street off of North Stone Avenue.

鈥淚t used to rain every afternoon. As soon as the rain would stop, my girlfriend and I would stand under the Chinaberry tree and shake it very hard. It would rain again,鈥� she said.

They slept outside whenever they pleased and she especially loved to hear the pinging of the tin roof when rain pelted her nana鈥檚 house.

For Felix鈥檚 afternoon nap, her nana would have her sleep on a damp mat on the floor. The house had a swamp box that her grandmother tended to, making sure the straw mat did not dry out, Felix said.

鈥淭he heat wasn鈥檛 a big factor back then like it is today,鈥� she said.

A summer treat was to drive out, slowly, to the Sabino Canyon area where small farmers grew produce. Felix especially loved the tomatoes.

鈥淚 didn鈥檛 care about anything else but the tomatoes.鈥�

On Saturday afternoons, she and other kids would fill the Fox 蜜柚直播 Theatre to watch cartoons and serials, and live acts and talent shows. It was the gathering of the Mickey Mouse Club.

鈥淓verybody belonged to the club,鈥� Felix remembered.

And everybody has a summertime of memories and experiences. It鈥檚 our special time in the desert.

You can excuse Lorenzo Torres if he seems a tad obsessive.

He gets up early every morning, makes a cup of joe and walks out into his backyard to say hello to his girls. He talks to them, feeds them and freshens up their water. He鈥檒l let them out of their large enclosure to roam about his fallow garden.

Torres is crazy for his chickens.

鈥淚 always wanted chickens. Growing up in Mexico my grandmother raised chickens,鈥� said Torres, a 52-year-old retired career U.S. airman.

Torres acquired his first three chickens from a neighbor in January. Now he has six: five Rhode Island reds and one white Leghorn. And if he has his way 鈥� which he probably will 鈥� Torres hopes to double his lovable flock.

He can鈥檛 stop talking about his girls and his family is amused.

His wife, Anita Torres, shrugs her shoulders. 鈥淭hese are his babies. I don鈥檛 deal with them.鈥� His 14-year-old daughter, Lorenna Torres, a high school freshman, said, 鈥淚 make fun of him.鈥�

I feel him.

Since February I鈥檝e gone chicken crazy, too. Like Torres and a growing cadre of urban chicken owners, I get up as the morning light arrives and I go outside to greet our four girls. They cluck and squawk in response. I give them clean water, scratch to eat and let them roam our backyard. Then it鈥檚 back to sleep.

Whether it鈥檚 to relive their childhood or engage in a more sustainable lifestyle or simply to have a new kind of pet, 蜜柚直播ans have gone hog wild over their chickens.

Alli Swanson knows the elation of having chickens.

鈥淚 wanted a third baby and didn鈥檛 think it could happen so I got chickens,鈥� she told me over the phone.

That was late last year and, yes, after the chickens arrived so did her third child. She converted her garden shed into a coop where her five fluffy Silkies hold court.

She wanted chickens as pets and for eggs but they鈥檝e become part of the family. The chickens are especially ideal for her two older children who have learned something about where their food comes from, Swanson added.

That鈥檚 one of the driving factors why city dwellers have turned to chickens and other fowls, said Megan Kimble, managing editor of Edible Baja 蜜柚直播, a 蜜柚直播 magazine devoted to local culinary themes, and author of her just-released book, 鈥淯nprocessed: My City-Dwelling Year of Reclaiming Real Food.鈥�

鈥淧eople are getting into chickens for the same reason they鈥檙e gardening. They want to reclaim food cultivation,鈥� she said.

Kimble doesn鈥檛 see backyard chickens as a fad. If anything, the movement will grow, she said. It is also relatively easy. While some chicken coops are elaborate, a simple coop of recycled material and wire is all that is needed. That was our first coop.

Kimble said the increasing interest in urban hens is seen, for example, on social media. Local chicken and fowl owners have a Facebook page named 蜜柚直播 CLUCKS.

鈥淚t鈥檚 a permanent change,鈥� said Kimble.

With this change also comes changes in city regulations. The city is considering altering zoning regulations regarding small farm animals in residential areas. The city currently requires a 50-foot setback for coops and shelters. And no roosters are allowed within the city.

The reality is that if a neighbor were to complain about my chickens and a city inspector were to visit our backyard, the law is on their side, not mine. Some chicken owners have lost their birds this way.

We don鈥檛 intend to lose our chickens, however. We鈥檙e part of a growing movement of urban farming which will ensure that 蜜柚直播 residents will be able to keep a reasonable number of birds in our yards. As it is, my chickens, which we named Valentina, Am茅rica, Daisy and Tropic Thunder, are less of an annoyance than loud barking dogs and feral cats in my west-side neighborhood.

Beyond the question of zoning regulations, having backyard chickens is just plain ol鈥� fun.

The girls have personalities. They have their cute habits. Fluttering their wings, they run up to greet you. They gobble up bugs and they eat all the leafy scraps from the kitchen. They are cheap entertainment. They lay eggs, enough to share with family and friends.

Feel like taking a whack at Donald Trump?

If you do, Manuel Alvarez has something for you.

A Donald Trump pi帽ata.

Alvarez, owner of Funland Express Party Rentals on West Irvington Road east of Interstate 19, has a 4-foot Trump pi帽ata, replete with red tie, blue suit and a pompous pompadour. But it comes empty, like the real Trump, and candy to fill the void is extra.

鈥淲e have sold some,鈥� said Alvarez.

Trump pi帽atas began popping up, not coincidentally, soon after his June 16 presidential candidacy announcement for the Republican Party.

In case you missed it, here鈥檚 part of what he said:

鈥淲hen Mexico sends its people, they鈥檙e not sending their best. They鈥檙e sending people that have lots of problems, and they鈥檙e bringing those problems with us. They鈥檙e bringing drugs. They鈥檙e bringing crime. They鈥檙e rapists. And some, I assume, are good people,鈥� he said at the tower bearing his name in New York City.

Whack!

That was the sound of the many potential voters who took their swings at the man who wants to lead our diverse country.

But not Alvarez.

鈥淚 do not care about what he said,鈥� Alvarez said, but he added that Trump鈥檚 slap against Mexican immigrants was disrespectful.

鈥淲hat I care about is my business,鈥� said Alvarez, a 42-year-old immigrant from Agua Prieta, Mexico, across the border from Douglas. Alvarez, who has been in 蜜柚直播 for nearly 30 years, has owned his business for three years, has a son at 蜜柚直播 Magnet High School and pays his taxes.

Alvarez said he doesn鈥檛 want to pass judgment on Trump. However, Alvarez is more than happy to sell his $45 Trump pi帽atas to people who do want to pass judgment on the leading GOP candidate, who has been sucking oxygen out of his rivals.

Mexican-Americans, and by extension Latinos, are not the only ones who are taking their turns at Trump, the candidate.

At Thursday night鈥檚 raucous Republican candidates鈥� debate 鈥� a record- breaking program for the Fox 蜜柚直播 Channel 鈥� Fox 蜜柚直播 anchor Megyn Kelly whacked Trump when she suggested he was not presidential timber because of his sexist remarks about women being 鈥渇at pigs, dogs, slobs, and disgusting animals.鈥�

Trump quipped, to applause from the audience, that he was referring only to television personality Rosie O鈥橠onnell, but Kelly took another swing when she said, 鈥淵our Twitter account has several disparaging comments about women鈥檚 looks. You once told a contestant on 鈥楥elebrity Apprentice鈥� it would be a pretty picture to see her on her knees.鈥�

Those thud sounds you hear are women and men across the fruited plain taking their turns at the Trump pi帽ata.

Trump went into spin mode that he doesn鈥檛 have time to be politically correct and that is why the U.S. is in trouble and why this country is losing to China and 鈥� ta-da! 鈥� Mexico. You know he had to get in his dig at Mexico.

The non-contrite Trump, twisting like a pi帽ata in the political wind, later complained to anyone who cared that Kelly was unfair to him.

At the opening bell, Kelly鈥檚 co-moderator, Bret Baier, asked the 10 candidates, 鈥淲ho is unwilling tonight to pledge your support to the eventual nominee of the Republican Party and pledge to not run an independent campaign?鈥�

The human pi帽ata raised his hand and the Republican faithful may start raising their hands to take their turns at the Trump pi帽ata.

The billionaire real estate magnate, as an independent candidate with deep pockets who is attracting a populist, conservative following, could derail the candidacy of the eventual Republican nominee (say, Jeb Bush?).

As long as Trump remains a visible candidate, the line of people waiting to take their turns at the pi帽ata will grow.

But for Alvarez, he鈥檚 not looking to sell many Trump pi帽atas. Among the large collection in his candy and raspado store, the Trump pi帽ata is not his top seller.

Minnie and Mickey Mouse top Trump.

Agnes Uwamahoro has put in about half the sweat equity necessary to be eligible for a Habitat for Humanity home. She holds two caregiver jobs.

For several months, bewildered, scared and with thoughts of death, Agnes Uwamahoro walked across the harsh land from the Congo to Uganda. She and the other refugees with her walked blindly without water, without food.

When it rained, she turned her face upward and opened her mouth to absorb the precious drops.

鈥淚 could not even move,鈥� Uwamahoro said.

She had lived in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, in central Africa, for two years. She fled there in 1994 with her mother and four brothers from their native Rwanda, where genocide marked a brutal civil war during the early 1990s.

But in the Congo violence found them. Her mother and four brothers were killed there, forcing Uwamahoro, once again, to flee. In the following years she would be forced to find refuge in another country, and death would take another loved one from her.

Friday, surrounded by dozens of people sporting hammers and hard hats, I met Uwamahoro, 41. She also was wearing a hard hat. A carpenter鈥檚 cloth utility belt was wrapped around her waist.

She had taken a break from nailing together wood studs to frame a Habitat for Humanity house in 蜜柚直播.

Habitat for Humanity began erecting four homes in a Sunnyside neighborhood on Friday. It was Habitat鈥檚 annual Building Freedom Day to commemorate the U.S. loss of lives on Sept. 11, 2001.

Since 2002, more than 7,000 蜜柚直播 Habitat volunteers have gathered on this day of service.

鈥淚t鈥檚 really exciting we鈥檙e able to sustain this,鈥� said T. VanHook, Habitat鈥檚 chief executive officer, speaking in the midst of the hammering and sawing in the Copper Vista II subdivision, near East Drexel Road and South Park Avenue.

Habitat, the first affiliate of the national group to locate west of the Mississippi River, is celebrating 35 years in 蜜柚直播. In that time it has built nearly 400 homes, VanHook said.

Families selected to become homeowners are required to contribute 鈥渟weat equity,鈥� 250 hours in helping construct a Habitat home. Future homeowners are also required to make a down payment and take homeownership classes before they take on mortgage payments.

Uwamahoro, who has invested about half of her sweat equity, hopes that one of the four homes will be for her and her two young children.

鈥淚n my prayers I asked God to give me a stable place to live,鈥� she said.

It was on Sept. 4, 2013, when Uwamahoro and her two children arrived in 蜜柚直播 from Malawi, a small country in southeastern Africa. Catholic Community Services of Southern 蜜柚直播, through its refugee resettlement program, relocated the family here, ending her 19 years of flight.

She and her children were refugees in Malawi, where she had no work permit, no legal rights. In Malawi they also were without a husband and father.

After Uwamahoro made her harrowing escape to Uganda, she continued on to neighboring Kenya in 2000. A year later, in Kenya, she married a refugee from Malawi. He worked for a United Nations鈥� refugee program in nearby Tanzania and they moved there.

Uwamahoro鈥檚 husband returned to Malawi to continue his work with refugees. A month after their son was born in January 2005, she made the three-day trip with their two tots to join her husband.

But when she arrived in Malawi鈥檚 capital city, her husband was dead. She said his death was suspicious. She didn鈥檛 know his cause of death. There was no investigation, no autopsy.

Again, Uwamahoro鈥檚 refugee life continued. She and the children lived a life of uncertainty in a camp. While in Malawi, she applied for relocation through the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, which helps resettle refugees from global conflicts, like the current crisis in Europe.

鈥淚 know how hard it is to lose a home and country,鈥� she said.

After an eight-year wait, the U.N. agency approved her relocation to the United States. She and her children boarded an airplane and landed in 蜜柚直播. She had spent half of her life as a refugee.

Uwamahoro and her children live in Pio Decimo transitional housing, provided by Catholic Social Services, in Barrio Santa Rosa south of downtown. The children, now 12 and 10 years old, attend Safford K-8 and Drachman Montessori K-6 magnet schools. Their mother has two jobs as a caregiver and dreams of becoming a nurse.

Above all, she has faith in God after surviving her long and arduous ordeal. She laments the deaths of her family and husband, but she and the children have a future. They have something to hold on to.

鈥淚 do not have to lose hope,鈥� Uwamahoro said.

Memory is a beautiful gift. It awakens images, events and words from our past, even if our memories are imperfect and our recollections are slightly altered.

It is still a worthwhile exercise to remember when.

Thursday was such a night at the University of 蜜柚直播 Special Collections Library on the campus mall. This library features an exhibition, 鈥溍坭种辈� Growth, Change and Memories,鈥� curated by librarian and 蜜柚直播 native Bob Diaz.

The exhibit contains photos of Barrio Viejo before its destruction through urban renewal in the late 1960s, a grainy black-and-white film of some buildings being torn down and other 蜜柚直播-centric memorabilia from that time.

In conjunction with the exhibition four 蜜柚直播ans shared their memories of growing up here before and during that period.

Writer, actress and former City Councilwoman Molly McKasson, business owner and preservationist Katya Peterson, UA Professor of Mexican American Studies Lydia Otero and I talked about our shared and different experiences in our coming of age.

鈥淢emory is much more nuanced than the truth. It can take us down strange roadways,鈥� McKasson said a day after the talk. Memories conjure up sadness and happiness, feeding our emotions, added McKasson, who grew up in the Himmel Park area and graduated from 蜜柚直播 High School, where her cultural awakening took flight.

鈥淭his new awareness came to fruition at 蜜柚直播 High where I learned what it was to be a tolerant, diverse, committed, loving community,鈥� she said in her remarks.

Thursday鈥檚 talk was nostalgic, yes, but the testimonies were also a reminder of errors in political judgment and leadership that led to the eradication of an historic neighborhood of homes and businesses of multi-ethnic families who for generations had called the barrio home.

Otero, a descendant of 蜜柚直播 pioneer Sabino Otero, grew up near West 22nd Street, on the southern boundary of Barrio Viejo. But on Main Avenue stood the majestic home of her ancestor, where the 蜜柚直播 Convention Center parking lot sits today.

鈥淚鈥檇 look up at the house. It looked grand and important. I never got to go inside. I felt proud of being connected to legacy and a people who were from this place and I felt a sense of belonging,鈥� Otero said, recalling times she walked to and from downtown as a child.

Memory inspires Otero, who authored the groundbreaking book 鈥淟a Calle鈥� published by University of 蜜柚直播 Press, which explored the civic forces that insisted on the eradication of the barrio鈥檚 80 acres. In great part it鈥檚 her mother鈥檚 memories that motivate Otero.

She said her mother had a built-in GPS memory app. During their downtown walks, Otero鈥檚 mother would point out homes and talk about the history of families living in the 100-year-old barrio. Sharing these stories of our past 鈥済rounds us鈥� and counters today鈥檚 public hype over immigration and wide-spread public misconception that Mexican-Americans are recent arrivals, Otero said.

鈥淭hat鈥檚 why I try to keep memory alive. Memory preserves our past in a tangible way,鈥� Otero said after the talk.

The old downtown barrio may have been a critical part of 蜜柚直播鈥檚 history; it nonetheless disappeared from our midst. Its demolition was invisible to many 蜜柚直播ans.

The barrio was a whole other world, said Peterson, the daughter of Cele Peterson, a well-known and popular figure in 蜜柚直播 for many years.

鈥淚n fact, it was a world that I didn鈥檛 really know until I realized it was being totally torn down,鈥� said Peterson.

In our rear-view mirror of memories, we can still see the Chinese corner markets, Ronquillo鈥檚 Bakery on Court Avenue, the Belmont Hotel and El Charro Restaurant on Broadway, Garcia鈥檚 Cleaners on Meyer, the Jacobs family鈥檚 two-story Victorian house at Meyer and Alameda, Rosequist Galleries on South Convent, the Ying On Club on South Main and the office of Dr. Floyd Thompson, the city鈥檚 first black dentist.

And we can also see Flores Pharmacy at South Meyer, La Plaza Cinema, the Legal Tender bar and La Selva Club on Congress, Nick鈥檚 Barber Shop, Pekin Cafe, Perri鈥檚 Jewelers, Reuben Gold鈥檚 Furniture store, Myerson鈥檚 White House department store and KEVT, 蜜柚直播鈥檚 first Spanish-language radio station, at Congress and Convent. Nearby is Jake鈥檚, a burger joint.

The memories of the barrio are blurring for many 蜜柚直播ans. For others, those who were directly violated by the mass destruction, a dark cloud hangs over their reservoir of recollections. The loss of the family home or business still hurts.