LULAC plans anniversary celebration in October
For more than 20 years the League of United Latin American
Citizens (LULAC) has been a change agent in the community, but it’s
also improved the lives of scores of young people through education
and empowerment.
LULAC plans anniversary celebration in October
For more than 20 years the League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC) has been a change agent in the community, but it’s also improved the lives of scores of young people through education and empowerment.
Take Abraham Prado, for example. When he was in high school he was an average student. He was involved with athletics and worked a part-time job. College seemed something of a stretch.
When Prado, a soft-spoken executive with the city of Hollister, learned he was eligible for a scholarship from LULAC his life began to change. At the time he was, for the most part, unfamiliar with the organization.
“Not only was I able to benefit financially from the scholarship,” Prado said. “But it was also a spiritual motivator because it showed me that somebody believed in my efforts. It was a motivator.”
After Prado graduated high school, he enrolled at Gavilan Community College. He transferred to the University of California, Los Angeles where he received a bachelor’s degree. He is currently working for the Hollister Planning Department while taking classes at San Jose State University toward a master’s degree. He brings more than a quick smile and dedication to the job. He is the department’s only fluently bilingual representative. He recently translated at a city meeting about zoning ordinance revisions on the West side of Hollister.
“I’ve always held the organization close to my heart,” said Prado, who is not currently an active member. “I felt I could achieve my goals because of [LULAC].”
Education has always been the No. 1 priority for LULAC members since the group’s national establishment in 1929, according to Mickie Luna, current LULAC chapter president and a founding member of the local council.
For LULAC Council No. 2890, the San Benito County chapter, the scholarship fund was established in 1988 to assure students an opportunity to further their education.
Since then, members have given out $136,000 to more than 140 students, according to Luna.
In 1989 they formed Youth Council No. 705 at San Benito High School. The goal of the youth council is to get Latino youth active in assisting the community in many events. They assist the youth with mentoring programs, internship opportunities and scholarships.
LULAC youth are involved with local, district and state meetings. They sponsor bake sales, car washes and numerous other fund-raisers to raise money for their trips. They are involved with community events such as the downtown cleanup, street festival, and Christmas toy drive as well as Christmas caroling at the convalescent hospitals. They also participate in student conferences such as the Latino Student Leadership Conference, the Annual Youth Leadership Retreat at La Paz, and participate as tutors for the Young Readers Program at Ladd Lane School.
Young Readers Program
The local LULAC chapter sponsors the annual Young Reader Program for six weeks every spring at Ladd Lane Elementary School. During that time 30 students from first through third grades participate along with 30 tutors, parents, two teachers and a coordinator. Since the program’s inception in 1999, LULAC has assisted more than 240 students, engaged more than 240 volunteers – mostly high school students – and more than 150 parents in their program.
During the weeklong event, parents, peers and teachers take turns reading to students and emphasizing the importance of reading.
Membership in the local LULAC organization has grown to be the largest membership council in California with 79 adult members, 35 youth members and 27 young adult members.
Member Veronica Lezama started with the LULAC Youth organization during her freshman year of high school.
The organization gave her the drive and desire to succeed.
“If I hadn’t been a part of LULAC, I wouldn’t have gone to college,” Lezama said. “My parents didn’t even talk about college. But through LULAC I went to different educational events and the organization helped me to see that there were options out there.”
Lezama graduated from San Benito High in 1997 and attended classes at Gavilan College before transferring to San Jose State University. She eventually graduated from San Jose State and moved back to Hollister where she took a job as an intern at the Council of Governments office.
Today Lezama, now a confident polished woman with a professional demeanor, is still with COG – and still with LULAC.
It was when she felt as if something was missing from her life that she joined the LULAC adult council. She is still a member of the adult organization.
Through LULAC Lezama found her purpose.
“LULAC opens opportunities,” Lezama said. “It was from LULAC that I learned that the biggest thing you can do for your community is be involved.”
Lezama currently works as a transportation planner with COG and though she does not currently hold a position within the organization, for the past three years she served as the group’s secretary.
Luna sees the Youth Leadership Development Program as one of the crowning achievements of LULAC.
“The idea was always to get more youths involved in government,” Luna said.
At the first meeting, 22 people were in attendance and an additional 18 joined after the first night. The first president was Tony Aguirre, Hollister’s long-time fire chief.
From there the organization moved to the old Hazel Hawkins Hospital on Monterey Street but had to find a new location when attendance at the meetings got to be standing room only. At one time or another the group met in the conference room at San Benito Bank and eventually moved to the YMCA, where they have held meetings ever since.
The organization was also responsible for introducing city council district elections in 1989. It was during that time that LULAC got involved with voter rights attorney Joaquin Avila who had helped bring about city council district elections in Watsonville and Salinas by filing lawsuits against those city councils. In Hollister, such drastic actions were not necessary since the council decided to take the issue to the voters. During the next elections the voters passed the ballot measure and district elections were instituted.
Honorary membership includes playwright Luis Valdez and former Hollister Councilman and County Supervisor Henry Solorio; distinguished membership includes former White House chief of staff Leon Panetta and voting members include Congressman Sam Farr.
Next month the organization will hold its official 20th anniversary celebration on Saturday, Oct. 20. The event will be held at the Veterans Memorial Building and will include a VIP reception as well as a dinner dance.
