Community ensures that “orphans” have happy holidays
By Robin Loving, Dec 8, 2006

The spirit of giving to San Miguel’s orphanages Christmas Wishes Shopping Spree organized by La Conexión Contact Susan Sargent, 152-1687/4223

Santa home visit and fleece drive

Info: Robin Loving 152-3709 or robin@robinloving.com

Three Kings Day party, sponsored by Border Crossings

Contact Nellie Lorenzo, 152-2497


San Miguel is known as a caring community, and there is no time when the community spirit shines more brightly than during the winter holiday season. This season, about 100 of the most grateful recipients of San Miguel spirit are and will be the “orphans” cared for by the Dominican Sisters of Mary. These kids—known as the children of Sollano, Mexiquito, and Santa Julia—are refugees from dire family situations. Most of these children will grow up in group homes called casas hogares—house homes—a term the Madres in their “orphanages” use to avoid the stigmatization of the term “orphan.”

The Madres do not have sustainable support from any particular source. They rely on this community: if these children are to be clothed, fed, sheltered and educated, it is up to us. In return, the Madres raise the children to be happy, well-behaved, responsible citizens. Our community could ask for no more.

Perhaps that is why San Miguel goes all out during the holiday season in homage to the kids and their caretakers. This holiday season began with a wonderful Thanksgiving meal and entertainment courtesy of Hecho en México. All the kids from the casas hogares at Sollano, Mexiquito and Santa Julia—who are siblings of one another, by and large—enjoyed sandwiches, french fries, soft drinks and brownies, accompanied by the antics of characters Pin Pon, Tigre, Toro and Barney. Silly string was sprayed, balloons were blown up and dances were danced. The kids seemed to test the sound barrier with their glee.

December will be even busier, beginning with the annual Christmas Wishes Shopping Spree organized by La Conexión. The mailing service is soliciting donations and volunteers to get each of San Miguel’s 100 “orphans” US$50, so each can go to Mercado San Juan de Dios this month for what will be, for many, their only opportunity to shop all year long.

On December 16, the kids begin performing posadas—reenactments of Joseph leading a burro with Mary to inn after inn in search of a place for Jesus to be born. These posadas last nine nights, through December 24, from 6 to 9pm.

The largest occurs December 23 downtown on Hospicio and Recreo streets, culminating at Parque Juárez, where food and drink will be available free to all. 

There will be a live burro and other manger animals, fireworks and costumes on every child. 

On December 17, the kids are treated to an annual Christmas party by supporters of the three casas hogares at Mexiquito. A mass begins the party at 11am, followed by food, gifts and entertainment.

On December 24, Santa visits each of the children in their respective hogares to present stockings—a first for these kids! Help fill those stockings by calling Robin Loving at 152-3709 in San Miguel, or 925-418-8003 from the US, or emailing her at robin@robinloving.com. There’s also a fleece drive afoot to keep the kids warm this winter. Drop-off locations are at Casa Sierra Nevada’s inns on Hospicio and at Parque Juárez.

Also during December, Mega Comercial Mexicana hosts a gift drive for the girls of Santa Julia. Ask for a gift card bearing a girl’s name, age, photo and desired gift, then pick up that gift in Mega’s toy section.

On January 6 is the annual Three Kings Day party at Mexiquito at noon, for which sponsors are now being sought at Border Crossings in their annual Sponsor-an-Orphan program. All the kids have completed wish lists posted with their photos; sponsors select a child, fulfill the list, and then present their gifts at this special party.

Of course, there are many more things our casas hogares need, so if the spirit moves you, ask about the lists the Madres have made for Santa. Their wishes range from appliances to windows to ink for their office machines. And they can always use financial donations. You can bet their smiles of gratitude are every bit as warm as the kids’!

A toast to Tío at 15
By Jayne Robinson

September 15 in 1991 was Mexican Independence Day, but it represented another reason to celebrate in San Miguel—it was the day Max Altamirano opened the tiny eatery that would later become one of the residents’ favorite steak and jazz haunts—Tío Lucas.

The success of Tío Lucas is not due to an anonymous “Uncle Luke” hiding behind the scenes, but to the charismatic entrepreneur Max, the host with the most. With his trademark moustache and loud, welcoming laugh, he is hospitality personified. No client at the restaurant enters or eats without receiving Max’s attention. And that, he confesses, is the secret of his success. 

“I love people. I love this—it’s my life,” he said. “After my wife, of course!” As his wife, Janitza, explains, “Everyone comes to see Max, and they all say the same thing: ‘You make me feel at home.’”

The beginnings of the restaurant were very humble, situated as it was in the front room of 103 Mesones. The eatery boasted a scant four tables furnished by the Corona beer company, no tablecloths, and no liquor license. Looking around the room that is now the bar, one wonders how customers, tables, and jazz singer Doris Rogers all fit, especially with the enormous personality of host Max. Patrons were treated to tacos in the first year, then a more formal menu was created in year two with a special buffet. As more people turned up the business expanded, eventually taking over more than six rooms for the bar, dining room and kitchen.

Although he is a natural restaurateur, Max honed his public relations talents working for many years in sales for an international perfume company. Later, he learned the many aspects of the hospitality industry when working for a Mexican company that owned hotels in Acapulco, Puebla and Taxco. 

Music to your ears

Max is a music fan and a businessman with an acute sense for marketing, and he discovered early on that jazz was the music that would best keep the locals and tourists satisfied and returning for more. “I wanted to attract the local expat residents and give them a comfortable place that they could come to, even during low seasons.

I considered Mexican romantic music, boleros and even shows. But I finally decided on jazz, because nearly everyone likes it.”

He could well be considered the patron saint of jazz musicians in town. Many local musicians have launched their careers or have had the rare opportunity of a regular, paying gig at Tío Lucas. The list of musicians who have played there reads like a who’s who of local musicians: Gil and Cartas, The DownBeats and the San Miguel Jazzcats, just to name a few. And the music plays all week long, not just for weekend trade.

Now that Tío Lucas has turned 15, Max and Janitza will celebrate, though somewhat belatedly, with a party from Monday, December 11, through Friday, December 15, with a lottery of discounts. All customers will receive a discount on their checks ranging from 10 to 100 percent. It will all depend on the luck of the draw! For Max, it is the ideal way to give back to his loyal clientele.

Despite 15 years in the industry Max cannot foresee retirement, or even a change in career. Although he has been approached many times to enter politics, he has never been tempted. “Politics is not for me … the great pleasures in life are good food and good music.”

CASA: Who we are and (some of ) what we do
By Barbara Erickson 

Film, V-Day: Until the Violence Stops

Special San Miguel Walk screening

Tuesday, December 12, 3pm, Teatro Santa Ana

Enter Reloj 50ª, (Biblioteca closed), 50 pesos

Note: The directors of the CASA programs were given various questions to which they responded in writing in Spanish. Their responses have been translated but are available in the original Spanish from Barbara Erickson. 



CASA is a nonprofit, local healthcare organization that has been serving people, especially the young and women, in underserved local and rural areas with health, social service and medical programs since 1981. CASA sends peer-to-peer counseling teams that provide education about the environment, sexual education, human rights and family planning to all corners of Guanajuato. CASA has also initiated youth leadership programs in five states with the goal of building a network of social volunteers all over Mexico. This newer project is in collaboration with IMSS/Oportunidad, a branch of the public health system whose mandate includes working with the most vulnerable populations—indigenous and rural youth. 

In the 25 years that CASA has been providing services to the community, the organization has grown and now has an impact on both a national and international level. CASA’s midwifery school is the first and only accredited school in Mexico. CASA provides a beautiful and modern community center for local youth, a maternity hospital and health clinic that offers free AIDS testing and professional midwives. At the community center, CASA runs a child care and development center, a library and cultural classes. It also holds events and produces a twice-weekly radio program dedicated to providing entertainment and sexual education. Professional physiologists provide counseling and run a program dedicated to ending domestic violence.

Working with the help of the Mexican government, foundation grants and individual donations, the CASA staff is proud to use these resources for people who need help. CASA succeeds in helping over 50,000 individuals in need every year. 

Here are brief profiles of the people who run CASA today and how they see their jobs and their results.

CASA co-directora Maricruz Coronado

What are your responsibilities at CASA?

My responsibilities include supervising the programs of peer-to peer counselors (promotores) and the midwifery school so that we can achieve the best quality possible and support the learning process and the development of the promotores and students in the school. Each one of the counseling programs entails many different activities. (Note: The promotores programs include the theater group, the advocacy group, and the radio group, to be introduced below.)

What do you consider your successes in 2006, and your challenges? 

I believe the teamwork of CASA is one success, and the integration of individuals into the groups is one of the day-to-day challenges. I think every program has been successful this year. We always face challenges. One of the top issues we face as an organization is finding people with sufficient interest and who can work for small salaries. At CASA, we need people who love their work in order to complete the objectives we set for ourselves. I sincerely believe that CASA is the opportunity of a lifetime for everyone who works here. 

Additionally, it is necessary to optimize the resources of CASA, because CASA does not have as much money as some people think we have. 

Administrator of Midwifery School Maribel García Hernández

You hit a very important milestone this year, receiving a letter from the President of Mexico’s Inter-Institutional Committee for the Formation of Health Resources (CIFRHS), authorizing the inclusion of the professional midwife in all of Mexico’s public health institutions. Can you tell us about your program?

So far we have graduated 21 midwives from CASA’s midwifery school. Since January 2006, we have 23 midwives working toward qualification and seven licensed midwives. The plan of studies includes a mix of modern medicine, anatomy, obstetrics, gynecology, comprehensive knowledge of surgery methods, family planning and common diseases, as well as the wisdom and practices of traditional midwives. The course of study lasts four years, during which time the students observe and work in our maternity hospital. They also work alongside traditional midwives in rural communities all across Mexico. When they enter the school, the students must commit to return to their rural communities and work after their graduation. We currently have students from Oaxaca, Chiapas, Colima, Guanajuato, Hidalgo, Guerrero, Veracruz, Puebla, San Luis Potosí, Querétaro and Mexico, D.F. Whether our midwives receive full or partial scholarships, their education depends on the generosity of our donors. I invite you to sponsor one or more of ou
r students! 

Note: After 10 years of consistent effort, CIFRHS authorized professional CASA midwife graduates for work in any of Mexico’s hospitals and health clinics. This important milestone opens access to a national network of clinical training sites and potential job opportunities for professional midwives. Most importantly, this endorsement has the potential for increased access to qualified midwives by the most vulnerable populations: indigenous women in the most remote rural areas.

What are your plans for the next generation of the Midwifery School?

To open more schools in different states in Mexico and to secure the opening of more clinical training sites at the state and federal levels. 

What do you need to make it happen?

To familiarize the authorities and the community so that they are committed to this project and will make donations, since CASA lasks the necessary resources.

Head of Child Development Program Araceli Guzmán

What are your goals and dreams for the preschool program?

To offer a good education for the children, fostering habits and values that help develop their abilities to learn and to think in a harmonious and warm atmosphere

We offer scholarships to families and mothers who do not receive economic aid and are working on proposals to obtain a padrino (patron) to help with part of the costs.

What part of your job do you most enjoy?

I enjoy working with the children. I feel good when I see them grow, when their mothers tell me how happy they are because their children are learning many things. We contribute to the education of the children, but we also learn many things from them.

Interviewer’s note: In many cases, the children come from households where stress and violence dominate. The children and their families have access to psychological counseling and an ongoing educational program to reduce stress and violence. The preschool accepts children from three months to age six; families pay according to their means. Twenty-eight percent of the children come from single-parent households headed by women. In all other cases both parents work. Thirty-three percent earn 500 pesos a week or less; 21 percent earn 500 to 750; 30 percent earn 750 to 1,000.

Radio Program: Marikarol Aragón Marcial, Gustavo Acosta and María José Segura

What is the most effective part of the radio program?

The radio program was founded in 2005 to contribute to the development of adolescents by giving them accurate and clear information. Radio can reach those in most need in the population and promote human rights. 

The most effective part of the radio project is making and transmitting the programs in a “radio magazine” format. The programs include a variety of formats, such as testimonials, radio novellas and news capsules.

Do you plan to expand in 2007?

Our plans for next year are to go “live.” We have a contract with the National Commission of Indigenous Radio (CDI) to work with their 17 radio programs. We want to train youth hosts to run magazine-format shows. Unfortunately, it is very difficult to raise the level of the program to that of a commercial broadcast. One of our other objectives is to look for the funds that will help us achieve our mission.

Head of the peer-to-peer counseling program José Roberto Correa Cabrera

What do the promotores do?

In 1992, the team of PESANE (Promotores de Educación Sexual y Abogacía a Nivel Estado) was created with the purpose of offering information to teachers and parents of primary, secondary and preparatory students through courses and workshops on sexual education, reproductive health and sexual and reproductive rights. We work in urban and rural schools throughout Guanajuato. Our intentions are to help teachers and parents improve the quality of sexual education and promote a healthy and responsible attitude toward making decisions about sexuality. We have five promoters and one coordinator in the area of sexual and reproductive education, plus specialists dedicated to the study of sexuality and the environment, dedicated to the well-being of other young people.

How are you funded?

This program is funded by general donations. The 300 pesos asked of a school as a donation does not cover even 10 percent of the cost of the program.

Do you offer other programs? 

Every year we offer a summer course with 20 subjects taught by professionals. This course lasts approximately 50 hours and teaches adolescents to be peer counselors, so they can take their knowledge back to their communities. We work with IMSS/

Oportunidades and the young people of the CARA program from the states of Michoacán, San Luís Potosí and Puebla, as well as young people of Guanajuato.

Also, we promote the use of contraceptive methods and prevention of infections through sexual transmission, and we distribute condoms and contraceptive pills within and outside San Miguel de Allende.

Note: CASA receives most of its funding from foundation grants, board members and governmental grants. The San Miguel Walk is the only local fundraiser for this very vital organization. Funds from the Walk go directly to CASA and are put to immediate and valuable use. Donations are fully tax-deductible, in dollars or in pesos.

Join us and “Walk the Walk” or sponsor a walker if you can. See www.sanmiguelwalk.com  or call Barbara at 152-0129 or Mary at 155-943. Sign up for (or donate to) San Miguel Walk at Border Crossings or La Conexión.

Audubon starts local database

Audubon birdwalk/count, Sunday, December 17, 8am

Instituto Allende, Ancha de San Antonio 20

Free for members/100 pesos nonmembers

In the past, Audubon has replaced its regular December birdwalk by participating in the International Audubon Christmas Bird Count. Unfortunately, for the past few years this has not met with great success because we were unable to muster enough counters/spotters to report our observations to our parent organization. So, this year, we have reverted to our normal walk on the third Sunday of the month (December 17th), but with a slight twist. Together with members of the San Miguel Department of Ecology, Audubon proposes to do its own local count. In this way, we hope to establish a database that we can return to each year at this time to see whether there are changes to the local bird communities. Together, we hope to increase our knowledge by adding population information to the already excellent area bird list put together by Susan and Wayne Colony.

To cover as much territory as possible, we will break into three groups. One group will go to the botanical gardens, one to the bridge at Atotonilco, and one to the Presa Allende. Local birding enthusiasts Fen Taylor, Susan Colony and Bob Graham will each lead one group. 

To participate, you need not be an experienced birder. Spotters are one of the most important components of any successful count. So why not join us and help? As usual, the hike will start in front of the Instituto Allende at 8am. Participants should wear good walking shoes and a hat and bring water. Binoculars are helpful but not essential. For further information call Bob at 154-9856 or Fen at 044-415-153-5438. The hike is free to local Audubon members; a charge of 100 pesos applies to nonmembers.

Waldorf School holds Christmas bazaar
By Adriana Tapia

Waldorf School bazaar

Sunday, December 17, noon–5pm

La Carpa, Calzada de la Aurora

Admission 20 pesos, children free

Christmas is still a few weeks away, but here in San Miguel the festivities are starting early with a fundraising bazaar put on by Colegio Los Charcos, the local Waldorf School. Traditionally, Colegio Los Charcos, which offers full and partial scholarships to local Mexican children, has done little fundraising, but it currently finds itself in a position to expand the school and add a seventh-grade class.

Colegio Los Charcos is a bilingual Waldorf school, an independent school rooted in the international movement and philosophy of Rudolf Steiner. Our mission is to provide a nurturing and challenging environment that inspires our students to reach the highest levels of intellectual, spiritual, artistic and physical achievement. The faculty and staff work in partnership with the larger school community to keep this environment vital, dynamic and diverse. Through the integration of academic and artistic pursuits, we honor the potential within each child to fully develop his or her abilities.

This focus translates well into items for the Christmas bazaar, where beautiful items made by hand from natural fibers will be sold, along with toys, dolls, ornaments and even gingerbread houses, as well as products from local vendors such as jewelry, paintings, honey products, exclusive homemade desserts and knitted hats and scarves.

The entertainment includes a professional puppet show, guitarists Jack and Frances, jazz musician Ken Basman and his son, Acatzin, who is a third-grade student at the school, a violin recital and the sounds of Colegio Los Charcos Choir. There will also be workshops where children can make arts and crafts, among other things.

Added to this will be a wonderful array of burritos, pozole, salads, ponche and other festive foods, not the least of which will be an extensive selection of cakes, cookies and brownies.

Christmas garage sale at the Biblioteca Pública

Clean your closet, your garage and your basement and bring all those gifts you haven’t used for years to help the Biblioteca Pública with all its cultural programs for Mexican kids. We accept all your donations and can pick them up at your home. Call us at 152-0293.

Don’t forget the Biblioteca’s Christmas sale, including art, appliances, jewelry, decorations, and other treasures on Saturday, December 16, from 10am to 1pm in the library patio.

Our brief study abroad in San Miguel
By Mikele DeHaas and Tanner Barker

On November 25, a group of gangly teenagers entered your beautiful town. Whether you are a fellow traveler, student or local, we’re very glad to experience this wonderful culture with you. We’ve been spotted in the Jardín, feeding pigeons and trying to carry on weak Spanish conversations with locals patient enough to talk with us. We’ve been to magnificent churches and bustling mercados, taking in all of the incredible things around us. We can’t even express our excitement at being allowed the opportunity to totally immerse ourselves in a different culture.

All 17 of us attend a charter high school in Provo, Utah, called The Walden School of Liberal Arts. The school was founded by Diana West just three years ago, but already a lucky few of us have had the opportunity to travel to Oaxaca in Mexico, Lake Atitlán in Guatemala, and San Francisco, California, plus many of the local wonders in our own state. We students have been incredibly lucky to experience things that people twice our age have never seen. We’ll be staying in San Miguel for another two weeks, helping at local charities and taking intensive Spanish lessons, while doing what we can to both experience and aid the community for the rest of our stay. 

Walden is founded on a particular vision of what we believe an education can be. This is a vision of a school where students are participants in their own education and actively plan, collaborate, solve problems and share ideas. It is a school where students are busy creating, researching, writing and experimenting—not just watching someone else who does these things. 

As part of the hands-on learning experience, Walden tries to submerge its students in foreign and local parts of the world so they gain more of a cultural understanding. Along with cultural awareness and understanding, students form morals and self-esteem, along with a greater understanding of themselves. 

So, if you see one of us walking the streets of San Miguel de Allende, feel free to start up a conversation. We would be happy to tell you more about our school and our projects here in Mexico. After all, what is the point of exploring the world if we don’t connect with one another?