BCA April 2022 Newsletter

Vol 46 NEWSLETTER

April 2022

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.

Dear BCA friends and supporters,

Happy Spring from the Border Community Alliance!

Spring at BCA means continuing our strong programming including birding walks, a class about U.S. immigration history, Nogales day trips, Tucson art & mural walks, a special tour of the old mining town of Ruby, AZ, and much, much more. Please see our Upcoming Events listing, included in this newsletter, and we hope to see you at a BCA program, tour or event soon.

We also would like to let you know about several new multi-day tours just scheduled for the fall/ winter of 2022. We have two more of our very popular Oaxaca tours planned for October 14-21 and December 2-9. We also have a very special Kino Bay trip on the calendar for October 23-27, in collaboration with the Prescott College Kino Bay station. For more information on these trips and to hold your spot, please see our website www.BorderCommunityAlliance.org. A sample itinerary for our Oaxaca trip can be found here. A sample Kino Bay itinerary can be found here. We hope you’ll consider joining us on a trip to Mexico sometime this year!

Lastly, we’d like to ask for your generous support during AZ Gives Days, April 5-6. Border Community Alliance creates and produces year-long programming, runs our Spanish language program, develops cross-border tours, conducts our summer Borderlands Ambassador Internship program, and supports our social investment initiative in Nogales, Sonora, investing in over 20 non-profits, utilizing only one full-time and two part-time staff members. We try to keep our costs lean and put most of our funding into programming for our members and the public. We rely on a strong board and many volunteers to help us do what we do. But to continue to do our work - we need your financial support today - to keep the lights on, expand our programming, support our internship program and grow.

Please consider giving a generous donation today during AZ Gives Days at https://azgives.org/BorderCommunityAlliance so that we can continue to bridge the border and build a cross-border community in the southern Arizona borderlands through education, cultural exchange, and social investment.

We thank you for your ongoing support and look forward to seeing you soon.

In community,

Celia Bavier

Executive Director

Border Community Alliance

Fundación Del Empresariado Sonorense A.C.

Update

Escuelika:

A historic new school in a Nogales shelter!

Together with Casa de la Misericordia, a Nogales shelter for families seeking asylum, FESAC has started the first school in a Nogales shelter.

The FESAC supported educational program at Casa de la Misericordia, called Escuelika, provides in-person schooling to asylum-seeking children in Nogales, Sonora. Escuelika is the only program of its kind in Nogales. Two educators who graduated from Universidad Pedagógica Nacional (UPN) in Nogales, Sonora, teach children aged 3–-17 in academic courses such as mathematics, Spanish, geography, and science. Additional educators are funded by Save the Children and BYTE. Your support helped us continue this project and has enriched the learning experience for students at Casa de la Misericordia.

Escuelika is the kind of social investment FESAC strongly supports. Funding education for asylum-seeking children creates opportunities for them and their families to thrive socially, emotionally, and mentally in the long -term. Families have noted that the academic environment has aided children with the following:

Adjusting to new environments.

Retaining academic knowledge and skills.

Making academic gains.

Overcoming traumatic experiences from immigration.

In addition to investing in children’s education, Escuelika provides growth opportunities for young professionals in the education field. Escuelika’s teachers, Lupita and Yesi, have gained teaching experience and contributed to their academic program through practice and observation.

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.

Spring 2022

Upcoming Events

Bird Talk

Bird Walk

Mark your Calendar for these Events:

April 6: Nogales Cross-Border tour. Visit our partner nonprofit organizations in Nogales, Sonora, lunch & afternoon coffee (all day tour). Fee: $75 members; $95 non-members. (All day tour) (Proof of full COVID vaccination and masking required.)

April 11: Ranching to Vineyards tour. In the arid Southwest, ranching has dominated agriculture, with historically large ranches and a vibrant cowboy culture. More recently, vineyards have sprung up and some have done surprisingly well. This tour begins with a visit to the Santa Fe Ranch near Nogales, and an introduction to the challenge of ranching by Dean Fish, head cowboy. After a delicious lunch at the Sonoita home of Susan Scott (included in the tour fee), we stop at Sonoita Vineyards where the owners will greet us and offer a glass. Our last stop is Empire Ranch for a guided tour of this almost 150-year-old enterprise. Tour fee (includes lunch and snacks): $75 (members); $85 (nonmembers). Wine tasting is extra ($30 pp). Participants on this tour will be responsible for their own transportation. Meet at BCA’s office at 8:00 am, for directions and carpooling. Total number of miles from BCA’s office to final stop: 83 miles. Return home from Empire Ranch. Guides: Jerry Haas & Susan Scott.

April 14, 10:30am-1pm: Tour the modern-day ghost town of Ruby, AZ with historian Tallia Pfrimmer Cahoon, co-author of the book, Ruby, Arizona - Mining, Mayhem & Murder. Ms. Cahoon will lead us around the historic mining town of Ruby, telling us stories of her childhood there in the mining camp’s heyday in the 1930s. Fee: $35 members; $40 non-members. Fee includes BCA tour, day pass to the ghost town, map of Ruby, and access to 350 acres of trails and two lakes. (Directions to the meeting site in Ruby will be provided upon registration.)

April 18 & 20, 2-3:30pm: U.S. Immigration Policy: Confronting the Myths & Mysteries of US Immigration with Jim Hoff, BCA Board member and President of TEGNOS Research, Inc. This educational program will focus on the U.S. immigration system and how it affects people coming to the United States to visit, conduct business, obtain employment, seek asylum, and gain citizenship. Throughout the program, emphasis will be placed on immigration policies and their consequences, especially those that most affect the Borderland region of the southwest United States. The program will be presented in two 90-minute sessions in person. Fee: $20 members; $25 non-members. Location: ZOOM

April 21, 10am-Noon: The Spectacle of Bird Migration - with Jeff Babson of Sky Island Tours. The mass movement of birds in spring and fall are truly phenomenal natural events, as millions of birds from to and from tropical wintering grounds to their breeding range in temperate forests, grasslands, and marshes. No other natural event stiches the planet together quite as well as does bird migration. In this presentation, we will explore bird migration – why and how they accomplish the feat, threats that they face on their journey, and other topics, using examples of North America birds. Location: United Methodist Church of Green Valley

April 22, 8am-Noon: Migratory Birds Field Trip - with Jeff Babson of Sky Island Tours This trip’s goal is to explore the bird life along the Santa Cruz River in Tubac, with an emphasis on migratory birds. We will walk the De Anza trail along the river and expect to see many species of birds. We will talk about the migratory habits of the birds we see – whether they are permanent residents, summer breeders, or passing through on their way north. For migratory species we will discuss where they spend the winter and where their ultimate destination is for the breeding season. It will be a morning spent looking into the extraordinary journeys that birds undertake each year. We will meet at Ronald Morriss Park in Tubac (directions to be sent upon registration). Fee: $15 members; $20 non-members

April 26, 9-10:30am: Downtown Tucson Public Art & Murals Tour. Recent years have seen an explosion of public art throughout Tucson. The Downtown Public Art Walking Tour begins at the Presidio Museum and proceeds through the neighborhood and 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. Fee: $15 members; $20 non-members

May 3, 10am-Noon: Barrio Viejo, Tucson Walking tour. Experience the rich history of Tucson through the Barrio Viejo walking tour. For over 100 years, Barrio Viejo was the heart of Tucson’s social, economic, and cultural life. This 90- minute walk will take you through the largest collection of Sonoran Row houses in the United States, in Tucson’s oldest remaining neighborhood. Your guide will discuss the history of the neighborhood, it’s architecture, and the individuals, businesses, and cultures that met there. The tour will end with a margarita (or other drink) and snack at El Minuto Café (included in fee). The tour is approximately one mile. Fee: $40 members; $45 non-members. Meet at the Presidio Museum

May 7, 8:30am-1030am: “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 Presidio

May 11: Nogales Cross-Border tour: Visit our partner nonprofit organizations in Nogales, Sonora, lunch & afternoon coffee (all day tour). Fee: $75 members; $95 non-members. (All day tour) (Proof of full COVID vaccination and masking required.)

A donation of $10 is requested for events, unless a fee is required

as shown on the event registration page.

To register for events go to www.bordercommunityalliance.org

or call Suzy at (520) 398-3229.

BCA @

Tucson Festival of Books

BCA’s first foray at the Tucson Festival of Books was fabulous! The booth’s central location assured a constant flow of visitors, and our colorful Mexican theme and our friendly, knowledgeable staff kept the many new “friends in the making” interested and engaged. We had about 150 signups for the monthly newsletter, made about 1,200 to – 1,500 contacts each day, and passed out several thousand brochures, business cards, and informational sheets describing programs and events, FESAC partners, our intern program, the Book, Literature, and Film Circle, the Spanish program, and more.

Our authors were all happy with the turnouts for their book signings, with quite a few selling a dozen or so of their books as well asand signing treasured books belonging to their fans. A steady stream of folks came by just to see their favorite author and engaged in conversation, and learned and learning ofabout BCA while waiting. The atmosphere was nothing short of electric, and intellectual curiosity was the theme of the day.

We at BCA want to thank all of our capable booth volunteer staff, and invite all you new friends from the festival who are reading this newsletter, your first, to jump in and get involved. There is so much to learn, to share, to give, to do!

2022 BCA

Borderlands Ambassadors

Intern Program—

Introducing Our Interns

The Border Community Alliance proudly presents the 2022 Borderlands Ambassadors. This is the 10th anniversary of this internship program. The BCA Internship Program seeks to give participants broad exposure and provide hands-on experience with the realities of border life. Interns will experience perspectives from both sides of the border—politically, culturally, socially, and environmentally. BCA interns will have unique opportunities to dialogue with borderland writers, teachers, politicians, artists, migrants, social activists, environmentalists, and attorneys.

Nicholas Cackett

Hamilton College (New York)

Major: World Politics

A native of Ecuador who lives in Florida

Quinn Jones

Hamilton College (New York)

Major: Hispanic Studies and Government

Currently studying in Spain

McClain “Moka” Johns

McGill University (Canada)

Major: International Development Studies

Lives in Ann Arbor, Michigan

Andria Liliana Lomeli

St. Mary’s College (Indiana)

Major: Global Studies and Spanish

Lives in Indiana

Danna López-Flores

Arizona State University

Major: Political Science; Minors: Spanish and Nonprofit Studies

Family immigrated from Hermosillo, Sonora

Samuel Pollak

Wesleyan University (Connecticut)

Major: English; Minor: Film

Family immigrated from Colombia

Have a vehicle to rent, lease or loan us

for 6 weeks this summer?

BCA is looking for a 7-passenger vehicle to transport interns

this summer (June 20--July 29). If you have a vehicle you don’t use much and could do without for 6 weeks, please let us know. Contact us at cbavier@bordercommunityalliance.org or (520) 398-3229