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Doña
Ana
Communities United
June 2019
Newsletter
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Hello, friends and supporters. The summer is heating up and we hope you all have found ways to keep cool.
In this newsletter, we share updates about the grand finale to our storytelling workshop series, the beautiful new mural on Nevada and Mimbres, how you can help address the needs of asylum seekers, and of course the guests who appeared on Kari's weekly radio show,
Just Community,
this month.
Many thanks for all you do to make our work--and our world--wonderful! It is a joy building community with all of you.
In good health,
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Upcoming DACU Events
Timebank Orientation
July 16, 1:30-3 PM (DACU office)
For those who wish to join the timebank. If you are already a member,
refer a friend who joins and you will receive three hour credits!
Timebank Get-together: Potluck and water balloon games!
July 27, 6-8 PM (DACU office)
All timebank members are invited: b
ring a dish to share if you like.
All DACU events are alcohol-free.
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Storytellers Said Their Piece
In mid June, friends gathered with strangers at Cruces Creatives for an exceptional evening listening to real stories told by DACU members who participated in the
Say Your Piece workshop series. Memories shared included a car accident,
starting over at a new school, an earthquake, raising a troubled teen, child abuse, and worker exploitation. Many audience members were moved to tears, saying that the evening helped them understand the connections between structural inequities and real human beings. If you missed the event and would like to hear the stories, you can view the video on
YouTube.
Sharing personal stories is such a powerful way to weave the fabric of our community. If you have ideas for how DACU might continue to support community storytelling in creative, transformative ways, please share. Stay tuned for more opportunities to tell and listen!
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Robert Yee, Kari Bachman, Rosa Herrera, Enrique Solis, Kay Lilley, and Mike Salazar.
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Mural Unfolds at Nevada and Mimbres
From dawn to past dusk on a toasty Saturday, DACU members and local residents painted a mural on a bench-like wall at the corner of Nevada and Mimbres. Directed by
neighborhood artist Meg Freyermuth, the relatively unskilled but enthusiastic group brought the gray wall to life. Stretching from the river on the west to the mountains on the east, Meg's design captures the power of this neighborhood located at the heart of Las Cruces.
You'll find this mural on the north side of Nevada, just east of Solano. Later this summer, we'll be working on another mural further east on this same street. The two art projects will complement water harvesting chicanes that will soon be installed by the City, which will cool the neighborhood and help to slow traffic.
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The mural depicts flora and fauna still seen in the neighborhood today.
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Painting was a family affair! Neighbors of all ages joined in throughout the day.
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| A soaptree yucca reaches up to touch a brilliant rainbow at the center of the mural. |
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Aid the Asylum Seekers
DACU is committed to aiding refugees passing through Las Cruces on their way to stay with sponsors in other parts of the country. These families are legally seeking asylum and most have experienced trauma and hardship on their long journeys. The vision and mission of DACU, to create a county
where all human beings are valued and everyone works together as equals to realize our full potential for individual and collective wellbeing, compel us to help our fellow human beings in the ways we can. We know you want to help too!
DACU is in regular communication with those who are coordinating the armory shelter, and will regularly update
the list of needed items on our
website
. If you wish to donate, you can bring items to our office and we will deliver them. Please only bring items on the list, as volunteers do not have the capacity to sort and store items that aren't immediately needed.
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Kari continues to host
Just Community on KTAL-LP every Thursday morning from 8 to 9
AM. (Locally, tune your dial to 101.5 FM, or listen to the show
online from anywhere in the world
.)
The show focuses on social equity and features voices not often heard in our community.
These guests and topics were featured in June:
- Angel Nuñez (life as a visually impaired mother)
- Meg Freyermuth (being a young woman artist)
- Cyrruss Easterlin (archived show: navigating the city as a blind man)
- Maya Alvarado (life as an NMSU student and karate instructor with visual impairment)
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| Cyrruss rocks on! |
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Meg also hosts a KTAL show! |
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| Angel shines with the KTAL weaving. |
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Maya enjoys the holidays. |
You can listen to archived shows
here (stay tuned, because
soon we will have an exciting new listening platform).
If you know someone who would be an interesting guest, please
contact
Kari.
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Directions to Our Office
151 South Walnut Street, Unit B13
You'll find DACU at the corner of Walnut and Griggs in the Walnut Business Park.
Please call before you come by as we may be out and about in the community!
We are just a few blocks away from several bus routes: Route 6 (stops 16 and 17), Route 7 (stop 20), and
Route 8 (stop 5).
For more information, visit
the
Roadrunner Transit webpage.
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Our Vision:
Our Mission:
Doña Ana Communities United (DACU) creates welcoming spaces for all people, especially those whose voices and stories go unheard. We build genuine relationships, carry out uplifting projects, and engage with local government.
Our Initiatives:
(1) Social equity mapping: Undervalued community members explore their neighborhoods and work with local decision makers to develop policies that advance health equity. Current efforts focus on the Community of Hope, Gallagher Park, the Nevada Neighborhood, and Lisa Drive in Chaparral.
(2) hOurTime timebank: Members build social cohesion and practice an equitable form of alternative economics by exchanging
services.
(3)
Just Community radio show: Residents with lived experience of social inequities share their insights into how we can work together to advance equity in our county.
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