Chavez’s legacy inspires Guadalupe youths
Cesar Chavez’s campaign for human and worker rights moved a nation.
Presidential candidates, celebrities and political leaders held rallies and marked Chavez’s birthday Monday by calling for a national holiday honoring his legacy.
In a quieter and more colorful way, students from a Guadalupe elementary school celebrated Tempe’s Cesar Chavez Day and the memory of the United Farm Workers union leader.
The unlikely story of an Arizona-born son of migrant farm workers who became an icon inspired Frank Elementary School students. The students etched their aspirations in crayon for Tempe’s third annual Cesar E. Chavez Coloring Contest.
"Cesar Chavez has a calling. What’s yours?" said Mayor Hugh Hallman, explaining the theme of the contest sponsored through a partnership between the city and school.
The winners, two students from each grade, were honored at Thursday’s Tempe City Council meeting.
A generation of future leaders shared dreams with teachers, parents and council members.
Mireya Miranda, 6, held up a stick-figure picture of herself as a professional soccer player.
Anthony Vargas, 6, wants to be a teacher. The bashful kindergartner stood close to his proud teacher, Rachel Holderbach, as Hallman shook his hand.
Vargas’ mom, Vanessa, and dad, Anthony Sr., cheered.
"I think it teaches him to be proud that he’s Hispanic," Vanessa said of the contest. "And Cesar Chavez did help a lot of people."
Tempe Fire Chief Cliff Jones told an aspiring young firefighter it is "the best job there is." A boy with his sights on police work tried on a Tempe officer’s helmet.
Cloaked in judicial robes, Judge Louraine Arkfeld had Daniela Peinado, a pig-tailed first-grader and aspiring judge, in awe.
Elia Garza, Daniela’s grandmother, said she was glad her granddaughter was learning about Chavez, who died in 1993.
"I was from his time," she said. "It (Chavez’s history) encourages the kids to further themselves."