September 26, 2008, Send US ballot by embassy mail, By Gretchen Sullivan, Jóvenes Adelante throws a party, By Keith Wall, Luncheons help rural women excel, By Joan Strouse, Auction raises funds and spirits for Centro Infantil, By Beverly Russell; photos by David Tarrant, Hilton/Perkins assists new school for the blind, By Lisa Vickers, Finding a summer CASA in Mexico, By Nastasiya Korolkova

Send US ballot by embassy mail
By Gretchen Sullivan September 26, 2008 San Miguel de Allende

Information has come to Democrats Abroad that in some areas of the US absentee ballots that do not come from outside of the US may not be counted. Since many San Miguel residents use mail services that send mail from Texas, some San Miguel ballots may not be counted. In order to make sure that does not happen, voters are instructed to take their ballots to the US Consular Office between October 13 and 17. There will be a special table there to collect the ballots and to provide a Federal Write-in Absentee Ballot (FWAB) to voters who have not received their ballots. These ballots will be sent to the Embassy in Mexico City for mailing and will be stamped as coming from Mexico.

Democrats Abroad sponsors a nonpartisan table at the Biblioteca on Wednesdays, 1–3pm, to facilitate late registration, help with ballots and provide a FWAB for people who have not received their ballots by October 15. This table will be staffed until October 22.

US citizens and dual citizens are reminded that they must be registered to vote in their home states in order to use a FWAB. Citizens can still register to vote at the Biblioteca on Wednesdays, and if the ballot is not received in time to return it before November 4 the FWAB still can be sent in on time.

Gretchen Sullivan is chairperson of Democrats Abroad in San Miguel and has lived here for 10 years.

Town Hall Meeting
Mon, Sep 29, 10am–noon
Biblioteca Pública
Insurgentes 25

US Embassy holds town hall meeting

Voting, federal benefits and security are the primary topics for a town hall meeting sponsored by the US Embassy.

Consular officers will have voting materials available at the event. All absentee ballot requests will be dropped into the US Embassy mail the same day as the event—no need to worry about your absentee ballot request reaching the US on time!

A federal benefits officer will discuss and answer questions about Social Security and other federal benefits.

Security is always a topic of importance here. An Embassy security officer will answer questions and offer tips about staying safe in Mexico.

Sunday, September 7, was a big day for Jóvenes Adelante students and members. It was the growing organization’s biggest-ever annual party celebrating its students and their parents; it was beca (scholarship) distribution day;

it was bring-your-parents day; it was, for some, meet-your-mentor day; and for others, get-your-computer day; and it was, for all, major-feast day.

Some 40 continuing students, 28 new students, their parents, mentors and Jóvenes Adelante members arrived at 2pm at the Instituto Allende to a bedlam of happy activity in the patio. Eight large serving tables were being laid out, chafing dishes lit and volunteers scurrying from the kitchen to the tables with just-delivered bowls and trays of food, while others did a final taste test on the fruit punch. Up front, a greeting table was being manned by two volunteers while another longer table with eight volunteers was being set up to distribute scholarship money and pass out computer and tutoring-needs questionnaires. The musicians carrying instruments, two of them scholarship recipients, were climbing the steps up from the Ancha and bumping against arriving food-contributors carrying large trays and pans.

While students signed in to receive their September stipends and completed questionnaires, family members, mentors, officers and volunteers mingled, made introductions, hugged and laughed, and generally got into a party mood.

Students sought out their mentors, mentors sought out their students and their families, and for some it was a first introduction. Much bad Spanish and English were spoken (as well as some quite good). One father and his daughter’s mentor spoke together in very good French!

The questionnaires students were working on were devised by Pat Harding, head of the Mentor Program, to determine their computer needs and proficiency level. Many scholarship recipients already have received donated computers, thanks to a joint effort of Jóvenes Adelante and Computadoras Pro Jóvenes, and another shipment had arrived for distribution that happy Sunday.

An hour of happy chatter among the guests and musical entertainment passed before President Amanda Ruíz officially welcomed the guests, numbering over 200, and told them, “La comida está lista.” Quickly, lines of hungry guests formed at two parallel serving areas to fill their plates with salad, broiled chicken, enchiladas, carnitas, beans, rice and tortillas. Volunteers made almost all of the food in their own kitchens, and it was delicious and very Mexican. After all the guests had their first run at the serving tables, hungry volunteers took their turn. The remaining food was incorporated onto a single table, and the other was converted into a display of homemade chocolate treats and other desserts, and everyone was invited back for seconds or thirds of both the food and dessert. Despite initial protestations, enough people did revisit the chocolate table to clear it in short order.

Entertainment was provided by the musical Macías father and son with students Cirilo and friend Mario. The group made its debut at the “Hot July Nights” fundraiser but since has discovered Cristina, a scholarship recipient who sings, and she joined the group to demonstrate her big voice to the delighted crowd.

Even keyboardist Emmanuel Macías, who claimed not to sing, proved otherwise with an impressive solo.

After enjoying food, drink and dessert, it was time for more fun and games designed to encourage communication among the party-goers. Everyone received a sheet of paper upon entering the party that afternoon and later learned that these provided the key to a treasure hunt in which students, parents and mentors alike had to find students from particular universities, people who had lived in particular countries, or who were from particular neighborhoods in San Miguel. Then party-goers were divided into teams and, upon flipping over their sheets of paper, discovered large Scrabble letters. They went to work on their assignment to make as many words as possible and count up their Scrabble points. Everyone’s competitive nature came out and the game stimulated a good deal of activity, and confusion, as people tried to find words, while others offered advice and suggestions in English and Spanish. I don’t know if there was ever actually a winner declared, but I know teams were competing for hundreds of Scrabble poi
nts before one table finally reached over 700, and that everybody had fun. (If you ever do this, be sure to get enough vowels and no more than one ñ!)

By 4:30pm people were expressing their thanks for a great party and saying their goodbyes. By 5pm, there remained only a good deal of food and about 15 volunteers to clean up.

The remaining food was loaded into Bill Harding’s car and delivered to Alma, in the hopes that the residents would enjoy it, probably for a couple of days!

Jóvenes Adelante officers and members were thrilled at the success of this year’s annual celebration and are already thinking about how to pull this off again next year, with growing numbers of students, mentors and members.

For information on sponsoring, mentoring or tutoring a student, contributing or volunteering with Jóvenes Adelante, contact jovenesadelante@gmail.com.

Keith Wall is a Jovenes Adelante volunteer and mentor.

Luncheons help rural women excel
By Joan Strouse

Mujeres en Cambio Luncheon
Thu, Oct 2, 2pm
Hacienda de las Flores
Hospicio 16
120 pesos

This luncheon’s guest chef is Alicia Rivero from the newest essential food destination in San Miguel, La Fonda Escondida. She will prepare quiches made from locally grown ingredients as the main course.

Mujeres en Cambio core members prepare distinctive salads and desserts. Tickets must be purchased in advance at Casa de Papel, Mesones 57A (the China Palace building). Tickets sell out quickly! For more information, call Joan at 152-2820 (no phone reservations can be taken). Join them to share a meal, meet interesting people and learn more about programs that provide educational assistance to rural Mexican women.

What can 250 pesos buy in 2008? Perhaps a week’s worth of lattes, a one-way bus ticket to Mexico City, or maybe two movie tickets plus popcorn and a small soft drink. Yet a 250-peso monthly scholarship from Mujeres en Cambio can make the difference in keeping a rural young Mexican woman attending high school.

Raquel Correa has been teaching chemistry and biology at the high school in Corral de Piedras for seven years. She is a staunch advocate for her students and had this to say recently: “I encourage my students and tell them that they need to do well in school. I also help the families understand the importance of education for their children. This year I am very happy because we have really bright students who are able to stay in school because of their scholarships.”

Scholarships are awarded to young women who show promise of continuing their education. Because in Mexico school is only free through the sixth grade, scholarships are vital to keeping students in school. Without these modest Mujeres en Cambio scholarships, many students could not afford to continue. The scholarships continue as long as the students maintain high academic standing. Many students have graduated from high school and have gone on to college, technical school, or university, where Mujeres en Cambio continues to provide financial support.

A recent survey of current recipients showed the average family size to be seven. In most homes only one person in the family works and is employed as a farmer or works in construction. The homes where the students live are poorly built, with brick-and-mortar walls, dirt floors, an outside kitchen and tin roofs augmented with “found” materials. Some of the homes have electricity, but very few have septic or sewer systems. Over 93 percent of the students come from families where they are the first to study past the sixth grade. Given their home environments, it is even more impressive that students maintain high grades and dedication to their studies.

Auction raises funds and spirits for Centro Infantil
By Beverly Russell; photos by David Tarrant

Appraisers Joy and Tom Price, with laptop for handy research.

A record turnout for the first annual antiques, appraisals and auction event at St. Paul’s netted over 52,000 pesos for the church’s outreach program, Centro Infantil, a preschool for children in Colonia Independencia.

The evening was loosely modeled on the PBS Antiques Roadshow, with opportunities for people to bring collectibles and have them appraised by experts. The four appraisers, Tom and Joy Price, Lee Feurestein and Mort Erlick, saw some interesting items, including an English “Toby” Staffordshire jug that was valued at US$10,000–$15,000. One owner turned up with a large Mexican folk art tin cat that was valued at US$200 by folk-art expert Erlick and then donated for the auction later on, where it fetched $250.

The auction itself was the highlight of the evening. Fifty lots, all donated by their owners to raise funds for the charity, provoked some lively bidding. Paddles waved furiously and auctioneer Lee Feuerstein knocked down the treasures. Reverend Michael Long and Adrian Ross, organizer and chair of the event, were on stage to assist.

A silver-plated coffee service with tray went for US$125; a sterling tea caddy brought $100. A silver-plated punchbowl, tray and 12 cups fetched $200. Waterford crystal decanters went for $175, $150 and $225, respectively. A set of eight blue crystal goblets brought $400, the highest price of the evening. A quilt handmade of vintage linen went for $325, the second highest price.

Rosalie Gower gave her grandmother’s Victorian chocolate cups and saucers; Lee Feurestein gave eight blue glass goblets.

Feurestein was pleased with the prices in terms of raising money for the school, “but everyone really got bargains,” she remarked. “For example, the blue Irish crystal goblets are still in production today and cost twice as much as was paid for them.” A Wedgewood Poppy tea set consisting of five cups and saucers, with two plates and bowls, fetched US$150. “While no longer in production, individual items can be ordered and a cup and saucer costs $75,” Feurestein added, noting that the buyer got a good deal. She knocked down lace tablecloths and other linens for between $30 and $75, which she remarked would bring $400 and $500 in New York. A surprise price of $150 was paid for a white lace and linen Victorian apron. Donor Adrian Ross said, “I found this in an old suitcase I bought at a garage sale years ago.”

With a generous wine bar and cheese buffet provided by St. Paul’s members, the evening had a festive spirit and attracted many people beyond the church congregation. Among them were Jennifer Butz of the Bagel Café and her stepmother, Marguerite Butz.

Patrizia Palacios, Director, with Claudia Vilchis, past CEO, of Centro Infantil.

Centro Infantil is now a fully accredited preschool with a total of 51 children. It has three teachers, in addition to its director, Patrizia Palacios. The children receive a midday meal from Feed the Hungry and take their classes in a brand-new, fully furnished building. Funds are needed to meet the US$5,000 monthly overhead and come from fundraising activities, individual benefactors and grant-giving organizations.

Beverly Russell, author of several books on the arts, has written articles for numerous US publications including The New York Times.

Hilton/Perkins assists new school for the blind
By Lisa Vickers

The marvelous richness of human experience would lose something of rewarding joy if there were no limitations to overcome. The hilltop hour would not be half so wonderful if there were no dark valleys to traverse. —Helen Keller

When my son, John, and I moved to San Miguel a little over three years ago, I had no idea what fate had in store for us.

John, who was born sighted, lost his vision due to a brain tumor when he was six years old. Neither of us had a clue about living with vision loss and it was a very scary time for both of us. John’s vision loss came in a matter of hours and we had no warning. We were frightened and alone in our new world.

Gradually, we adapted but we were fortunate to have the resources and the caring support of our friends and family. I scoured the internet for hours at a time and read all the books and literature I could find. One book, in particular, gave me the inspiration and the courage to face the challenges that lay ahead. That book was Touch the Top of the World by adventurer and mountaineer Erik Weihenmayer. In May 2001, he became the only blind man ever to reach the summit of Mount Everest. We are fortunate to know him. He and his family continue to be a source of endless faith and inspiration.

The road to educate my son has been winding and rocky. We have tried public school, private school and home schooling. We began to find a balance a couple of years ago when we were blessed to find Lupita. She began to tutor John, and although she didn’t know Braille initially, she tackled the job with enthusiasm. Many of you may have seen John and Lupita working at the Bibleoteca Pública.

Early last year, I began to be approached by family and friends of other blind and visually impaired children in our community. They begged for knowledge and information in educating their own children with vision loss. They, like John and I, were desperate for anything they could learn to help the children.

In early October 2007, John and I opened the doors of our hearts and home and welcomed our first visually impaired “students.” We weren’t exactly prepared to do this but we felt that any help we could offer would be better than none. We purchased canes, Braille books, Braille instructional programs and toys for stimulating visually impaired children. We provide education, nutrition and health care for all of our students. We began moving toward developing a school for blind and visually impaired children in San Miguel.

Recently, we have been privileged to receive assistance from Perkins International. The Hilton/Perkins Program was established in 1989. Their work is generously supported by the Conrad Hilton Foundation and many other donors.

Perkins International is dedicated to improving the quality of life for children throughout the world who are deaf and blind or blind with multiple disabilities. They collaborate with partners around the globe to provide direct services to children and their families, create innovative education programs, promote Braille literacy, expand local and regional expertise, augment leadership skills for teachers and professionals and advocate for lasting changes through education and disability policy.

We have many other children in San Miguel and surrounding areas that need our assistance, and we have had to put them on a waiting list. You may not be aware that many blind children in Mexico are still abandoned at birth as simply being too much of a burden. It is our belief that all blind and visually impaired children deserve the same love and rights as any other child. We are determined that we will do all that we can to see this to fruition.

We believe the need for our services is great. We believe we have the experience and expertise behind us to make our mission successful. We believe the San Miguel community will support us in this mission. We respectfully ask for your assistance in helping us achieve our goals.

Lisa Vickers is president of Escuela Vickers para Ciegos (Vickers School for the Blind) in San Miguel, 152-0426 or (415) 114-0948.

Finding a summer CASA in Mexico
By Nastasiya Korolkova

A year ago, I sweated through the sweltering summer heat of the concrete jungle, darting out of the air-conditioned office only for the occasional iced latte. This June, I exchanged the business suit for a T-shirt, the subway for dirt roads, and the typical internship for that famed life-changing experience. I volunteered for 10 weeks as an international intern at CASA (Centro para los Adolescentes de San Miguel de Allende, www.casa.org.mx ).

CASA was founded in 1981 by New Yorker Nadine Goodman, who started speaking with Mexican women about birth control and family violence prevention right in her kitchen. By the time I got there, the center was housed in a sprawling domed edifice, constructed by Nadine’s husband and CASA cofounder, Alejandro Gonzalez.

The organization provides health, social, educational and environmental services. In addition to a daycare center, a hospital and a World Health Organization-acclaimed midwifery school, CASA hires peer educators (promotores) who target various issues. PESANE promotores provide workshops about sexual health to teenagers; ECOSS works with mothers in rural communities; TEATRO actors put on performances about ecology and family violence in primary schools; and REDESS radio broadcasts throughout northern Guanajuato.

According to the website, CASA “teaches others to teach, a pedagogy that has enabled hundreds who, in turn, have affected the lives of thousands. CASA programs mobilize teens to change their lives and inspire others to change with them.”

Reality check

From the start, Nadine was very clear with the three interns working for the summer. “You have to get rid of the idea that you’re going to help,” she told us. This really burst our bubble. “You can be useful just by being sincere and polite and learning about each other’s cultures.” The truth is, the organization functioned brilliantly without us. Although we each created a summer project, most of the experience consisted of observation and interaction with the promotores, the midwives and the population using CASA’s services. Thus, we spent much time together and with the promotores from CASA, exploring the nearby El Charco del Ingenio botanical garden, learning to make enchiladas and visiting other cities on the weekends. As for work, I conducted a survey about nutrition, researched immigration and observed the midwives at the hospital.

Going nuts, nutritionally

I spent much time with the promotores of ECOSS, who helped me administer a nutritional questionnaire. Mexico is the world’s largest consumer of soft drinks and has the second highest rate of obesity in the world, after the United States. Ironically, due to a long history of malnutrition in rural areas, many mothers do not consider overweight children unhealthy. Seeing this disparity, CASA will launch a health and nutrition educational program in January and I decided to focus on helping with this program.

We surveyed nearly 200 women in 10 rural communities about their eating habits and nutritional knowledge, since no such statistics exist. One community where we gathered data, Ojo de Agua, was nearly a three-hour drive away. We had no indoor space in which to gather, so I administered questionnaires on a rock. The sun grilled my back as I read the questions and filled in answers from the largely illiterate participants, eight-time mothers in their 40s and three-time mothers of college age. No family reported eating meat more than once a week, lard was the only available cooking grease, and everyone complained of lacking money for food at least “sometimes,” especially when their husbands could not get work in the farms. I gazed at children with deep eyes and pouty lips, I listened to their mothers tell of how malnourished they are, and I learned, for the first time, what terms like “income gap” and “impoverishment” really look like.

Immigration nation

In addition to the nutrition census, ECOSS assisted me in conducting an immigration questionnaire for my senior thesis, comparing the lives of young, documented Mexican immigrants with those of their “illegal” counterparts. I had a first-hand look at this in Texas, on an impromptu visit to the Mexican consulate—a shabby building a block from a gas station, with half a wooden fence and a line of disgruntled people out front. Well over a hundred people snaked up to the “Passport” windows. Every single one looked Mexican.

The rate of emigration from the state of Guanajuato, where San Miguel is located, is very high. Indeed, “Today in Mexico, if we don't have a relative in the US, we have a friend there,” said Sandra Corrazco, the acting teacher who worked with TEATRO promotores at CASA.

The high levels of immigration cause many changes, including a disintegration of the family unit. “What happens is a dependence on the immigrant, high expectations of his success,” Sandra continued. “Meanwhile, I have known children with nothing but vague memories of their parents. Then, the children of immigrants repeat the cycle as if it is something natural: they see their destiny as going to the United States.”

I conducted many interviews with the young people working at CASA. One 18-year-old mother with a quiet manner had been able to swim across the border four times to visit her mother in Texas. Another had tried to cross at 15, running away with a boyfriend, but decided to turn back when she reached the river. “I was afraid,” she shrugged, but confided that she plans to try again, hopefully legally, to avoid the risks of drowning, drug dealers or death.

Witnessing birth

In addition to the survey and research work, I spent Wednesdays—and once-weekly night shifts—at the CASA clinic. The clinic is beautiful; there are many arches and large open garden spaces right outside of the waiting room, complete with flowing fountains.

CASA employs six midwives (parteras), all trained at the CASA Midwifery School. Throughout the summer, they permitted me to sit in on countless prenatal exams and PAP smears. I saw cervixes, listened to fetal heartbeats and learned to take blood pressure. The entire summer I hoped to witness a birth, but either the mother would not permit a visitor, needed a C-section, or there was a stillbirth. Finally at 11:30 pm on August 22, six hours before I left San Miguel for good, God answered my prayer. I watched the waterbirth of baby Thomas, son of Perla, who came into this world as his mother exhaled and pushed, pushed, pushed! He was purple, tiny and black-eyed. He was perfect.

As I gazed outside the window of the airplane on the way back to JFK, I reflected that mine has been a summer of learning. I learned how a well-functioning nonprofit organization caters to the needs of its population. I learned that New York is not the world, that I even prefer mountains and cobblestones to skyscrapers and highways. Most of all, I learned that a person with a dream can give birth to that dream and make it real—whether that dream is to create an organization, to become a parent, or simply to learn from a different culture.

Nastasiya Korolkova is a Macaulay Honors senior at Baruch College in New York, where she is majoring in international relations. She is writing her senior thesis on immigration and is also a senior staff writer for the college newspaper.

Donations sought for CASA’s annual sale

CASA Great Fall Garage Sale
Sat, Oct 11, 9am–2pm
CASA patio
Santa Julia 15

Clean out your house and donate used items that are still in good shape to CASA’s fall garage sale. Bring donations to CASA or call Monday–Friday, 9am–4pm, for pick-up from your home. Contact Elsbeth at 152-2813 (English) or Ana Peña at 154-6060 (Spanish).

CASA (Centro para los Adolescentes de San Miguel de Allende) is a nonprofit organization founded in 1981 to serve the population of Guanajuato through programs such as rural health promoters, a maternity clinic, a child development center, a library and the only accredited school of professional midwifery in Mexico.

More than 50,000 people benefit from CASA services every year and they count on many foundations, companies, small businesses and individuals for support by donating money or volunteering their time.

In addition to donations, CASA has also organized a garage sale every year since 2004 to maintain the building and employees. Each garage sale has been a huge success. In the past, people have donated items such as furniture, electronics, clothing, shoes, toys, music and books in English and Spanish.

It is always in CASA’s interest to promote community health, so there will also be blood pressure checks, HIV rapid tests, haircuts and distribution of folic acid for expecting mothers at the event.

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