Vol 51 NEWSLETTER
September 2022
CLean
The Border Community Alliance is a 501(C)(3) nonprofit organization dedicated to bridging the border and fostering community through education, collaboration and cultural exchange. 
September 2022

Dear BCA Friends and Supporters,
 
Are you a member of the Border Community Alliance (BCA)? If the answer is “no”, then you are missing out!
 
As a BCA member, you will:
 
* Join a growing group of individuals who want to celebrate the unique cultures, environment and heritage of our southern Arizona borderlands region;
 
* Learn about the history, culture, food, nature and many other aspects of our unique region on both sides of the border and among Native American nations through our educational events and forums;
 
* Support social investment in our nonprofit partners in Sonora, Mexico;
 
* Receive discounts on our tours, classes and events; and
 
* Support and promote our mission of bridging the border and creating community through education, cultural exchange and social investment.
 
During the month of September if you join (or renew) your membership in BCA, you’ll be entered into a raffle to win two free tickets to our Nogales tour or one of our Tucson art & culture tours.
 
We have purposely kept our annual membership fees affordable throughout the years. Our 2022-23 membership fees are:
 
Individual - $75
Family - $100
Student - $25
 
We’ll hope you’ll join our growing family of supporters and we hope we’ll see you at an upcoming BCA event, tour or class soon.
 
In borderlands community,
 
Celia Bavier
Executive Director
Fundación Del Empresariado Sonorense A.C.
Update
Alma Cota de Yanez,
FESAC Director
The first day of school at the Casa de la Misericordia “Escuelika” in August. 36 children were in attendance with two full-time teachers.
 
Casa de la Misesericordia is a school for children of all ages whose families come to stay at the shelter in Nogales, Sonora, while their families await entrance into the U.S. through the asylum process.
From the beginning BCA has had a close relationship with FESAC, a Nogales, Sonora-based community foundation. This unique arrangement allows us to provide pass through donations to FESAC and to specific NGO community organizations that BCA/FESAC supports. We strongly stand with FESAC in lifting up local community by changing the narrative from charity to social investment.



BCA
Oaxaca Tour
December 2-10
Only 2 spots left! 

 Would you like to participate in an unforgettable tour of Oaxaca, Mexico with a small group, visiting native Zapotec artisan workshops and homes; the beautiful historic centro of Oaxaca City; Mitla, one of Oaxaca’s most significant archaeological sites, and wonderful Oaxacan restaurants and markets?
 
If you answered “yes!”, then consider joining us on our December Oaxaca tour. Our Oaxaca tour is led by Ancestros, the Zapotec owned and operated travel program based from the Porfirio Gutíerrez studio in in Oaxaca.
 
For a sample itinerary, click here. For pricing and to hold your spot go here.
 
For information, email info@bordercommunityalliance.org or call (520) 398-3229.
last day to register!
Fall Online Spanish Classes
Beginning Conversation already sold out

2022 UPCOMING EVENTS - BORDER COMMUNITY ALLIANCE (BCA)

September 24: Film showing of BCA’s award-winning film, “Pilgrimage to Magdalena”, Pimeria Alta Museum, 136 N. Grand Ave., Nogales, AZ. Spanish at 1pm; English at 2pm.

September 25, 2pm: Film showing of BCA’s award-winning film, “Pilgrimage to Magdalena”, Tumacácori National Historical Park, 1891 I-19 Frontage Rd, Tumacacori-Carmen, AZ, 2pm.

October 6, 2-4pm: Sonoran Glass School Demonstration and Tour, 633 West 18th St., Tucson,  AZ. Tour fee: $50 members; $55 non-members (fee includes tour and individual glass project).

October 12, 10-11:30am: Borderlands Literature & Film Circle (BLFC) event with Jenn Budd, author of the new book, Against the Wall, her memoir which describes her time as a senior patrol agent and an intelligence agent with the U.S. Border Patrol from 1995 to 2001, her resignation, and her many recent roles in the field of immigrant rights. Fee: $10

October 13, 12:30-4pm: Tucson Gastronomy Tour, a walking tour of Tucson’s Presidio District’s restaurants. ​​Celebrating Tucson’s UNESCO City of Gastronomy designation, the tour starts at the Presidio Museum and then stops at three locations in the historic Presidio District of Downtown  Tucson. Led by ethnobotanist Carrie Niethammer, and co-sponsored with the Presidio San Agustin del Tucson Museum, the tour will focus on Tucson’s complex food heritage and the fusion of Old and New World ingredients. Tour fee: $100 members; $110 non-members.

October 17, 9-11am: Tucson Mainly Murals Walking Tour, led by tour guide Dorothy Yanez,   features many of the murals found in the downtown area, discussing the artist, history of the mural,  and many of the artists’ inspirations behind the pieces. The tour begins at the Presidio Museum and   is approximately two miles long. Co-sponsored with the Presidio San Agustin del Tucson Museum. Tour fee: $20 members; $25 non-members

October 19, 8:30am-1pm: Birding with Jeff Babson, Pima County naturalist and owner of Sky Island Tours. Meet at Las Cienegas National Conversation Area for birding, have a picnic lunch, and then head to Paton’s Center for Hummingbirds in Patagonia for more birding. Fee: $15 members; $20 non-members

October 20, 2-4pm: BCA Open House & Round Up. Drop in to learn about BCA’s fall program lineup, meet and mingle with BCA community members, and see our office. Short program at 2:30pm. Location: 2221 E. Frontage Road, Bldg F, Suites 201-203 (2nd Floor), Tubac, AZ

October 21, 9-11am: Film showing of BCA’s award-winning film, “Pilgrimage to Magdalena” & Breakfast. Location: Tucson Newcomers Club, Overlook Restaurant, 10555 N La Cañada Dr., Oro Valley, AZ. Breakfast fee: $18.

October 22, 10am: U.S. Immigration Policy - “Prevention thru Deterrence”, a presentation by Geoff Boyce, Academic Director & Faculty, Border Studies Program, Earlham College and Research Associate, Binational Migration Institute, University of Arizona. Location: United Methodist Church     of Green Valley. Co-sponsored with AZ Immigration Alliance (AZIA)

October 27, 4pm: Day of the Dead presentation with Luis Coronado Guel, Director of Mexico Initiatives, University of Arizona. Location: Community Performance & Arts Center (CPAC), 1250 W. Continental Rd.,Green Valley, AZ. Fee: $10 members; $15 non-members

November 5, 11am: Amerind Museum Film showing of BCA’s award-winning film, “Pilgrimage to Magdalena” on Zoom; panel discussion following with Dr. Tom Sheridan, Research Anthropologist at the Southwest Center and Professor of Anthropology at the University of Arizona, Regina Siquieros (Tohono O’odham), retired classroom educator, former Senior Coordinator for the American Indian Languages Development Institute at the University of Arizona, and former Government Affairs Assistant for the Chairman and Vice Chairwoman of the Tohono O’odham Nation, Dr. Seth Schermerhorn, Associate Professor of American Studies at Hamilton College and author of “Walking to Magdalena,” Dr. Magda Mankel, Associate Producer of “Pilgrimage to Magdalena” and former Education & Research Specialist at BCA. The panel will be moderated by Jerry Haas, Co-Producer of “Pilgrimage to Magdalena” and BCA Senior Advisor. To register, visit: https://bit.ly/AmerindOnline110522

November 9: Nogales, Sonora Cross-Border tour: Visit our partner nonprofit organizations in Nogales, Sonora, lunch & afternoon coffee. Tour fee: $75 members; $95 non-members. (All day tour) 

November 10, 9-11am: Tucson Public Art & Mural Walking Tour, led by tour guide Dorothy Yanez, begins at the Presidio Museum and proceeds into the downtown area, stopping at numerous public art pieces and murals. At each stop you will learn about the artist and the artwork. The tour is approximately 2 miles. Co-sponsored with the Presidio San Agustin del Tucson Museum. Tour fee: $20 for members; $25 for non-members

November 15, 10am-Noon: “The River Made Me: Nature & History Tour in Old Tubac”. Join NPS Ranger Rick for a fun nature and history tour of old Tubac and the Santa Cruz River. Experience historic Tubac, the Tubac Presidio, and the Anza Trail along the river below Tubac. Meet Ranger Rick of Tumacacori National Historical Park at the Tubac Presidio, then stroll 2 miles from the Tubac Presidio, a short walk along the river and back. Fee: $15 members; $20 non-members. Location: Meet at Tubac Park.

November 16, 8:30-11am: “BCA Breakfast at the Border” with speaker Dr. Michael Brescia, Curator of Ethnohistory, Arizona State Museum. Presentation topic: “Putting Mexico and the United States on the Historical Couch: The Long View of a Shared and Contested Past”. Location: Desert Diamond Casino, Sahuarita

November 18, 8pm: Film showing of BCA’s award-winning film, “Pilgrimage to Magdalena”, in person at the American Academy of Religion Conference, Denver. 

November 19, 7pm: Film showing of BCA’s award-winning film, “Pilgrimage to Magdalena” - by Zoom, with the Tucson Presidio Museum.


December 5, 10am: “Borderlands Reporting” with Melissa del Bosque, Emmy Award-winning Journalist with the Border Chronicle and 2020 RFK Human Rights Journalism Award winner. Co-sponsored with AZ Immigration Alliance (AZIA). On Zoom

December 14: Nogales, Sonora Cross-Border tour: Visit our partner nonprofit organizations in Nogales, Sonora, lunch & afternoon coffee. Tour fee: $75 members; $95 non-members. (All day tour) 


A donation of $10 is requested for attending events, unless a fee is required as shown. To register for events go to www.bordercommunityalliance.org or call Suzy at (520) 398-3229.
Borderlands Literature & Film Circle (BLFC) October 12, 2022
“Against the Wall: My Journey from Border Patrol Agent to Immigrant Rights Activist”
with author and former Border Patrol Agent Jenn Budd

Ms. Budd will be here in October for a Nogales, Sonora vigil on the anniversary of the death of Jose Antonio. She has graciously accepted our invitation to speak by Zoom as we explore her accounts in the BCA Books, Literature, and Film Circle on October 12th at 10-11:30am via zoom.

This memoir presents her time as a senior patrol agent and an intelligence agent with the U.S. Border Patrol from 1995 to 2001, her resignation, and her many recent roles in the field of immigrant rights.

“Her journey offers a vital perspective on the unfolding moral crisis of our time. She also gives harrowing testimony about rape culture, white privilege, women in law enforcement, LGBTQ issues, mental illness, survival and forgiveness.” 
 “…Raw and truthful, no one escapes judgment, not even Budd, who searches deep within herself to examine her own prejudices as a white southerner, and the role she played as a Border Patrol agent."

We are delighted and honored to have Jenn Budd join us for discussions as we explore her book and relevant videos and writings to explore a continually complex and challenging topic of policing the border.
 To register for this BLFC meeting, go here or call Suzy at 520.398.3229.
Please Help!

The Border Community Alliance (BCA) is in critical need of general operating funds to get us through the end of the year.  

We aim to keep all our program and tour costs low and affordable to members and the public - and to continually invest generously in our Sonora, Mexico nonprofit partners - but we also have to pay rent, utilities, staff salaries (one full-time and two part-time), insurance, and other standard non-profit operating costs.

Please help us continue offering high quality and affordable cross-border programs, invest and collaborate with our Sonoran nonprofit partners, and foster community by giving a generous donation today.

Donations can be given online here or mailed to
P.O. Box 1863
Tubac, AZ 85646
Thank you for your generosity and support.
Office Hours Vary
Call for appointment
(520)398-3229
Mailing Address:
P.O. Box 1863
Tubac, AZ 85646

Physical Address (no mail):
I-19 2221 E. Frontage Rd.
Bldg F201
Tubac, AZ 85646