LIVERMORE — Years before "Yes we can" hit the mainstream and helped usher in the country’s 44th President, a migrant farmworker used the "Si se puede" chant to help unite thousands of fellow workers to form one of the country’s first farmworkers unions.

On Tuesday, a captivated audience of students at Junction Avenue K-8 School in Livermore heard Cesar Chavez’s grandson, Anthony Chavez, talk about his grandfather’s legacy and urge them to do the little things to make the world better for others.

"My grandfather didn’t want farmworkers treated like tools," said Anthony Chavez. "They were human beings who deserved to be treated with dignity and (he) always said, ‘Be the change you want to see in the world.’ "

Cesar Chavez was a civil rights icon who followed in the steps of Martin Luther King Jr and Gandhi and preached about using nonviolent protest to bring change. He championed farmworkers’ rights and cofounded the National Farm Workers Association that later became the United Farm Workers.

"My grandfather never thought people would listen to this poor, brown farmworker," said Anthony Chavez, who was 7 when his grandfather died in 1993. "But they did, and look at it now. There is a holiday that celebrates his work and promotes service learning."

For the past decade, the Alameda County Office of Education has been promoting Cesar Chavez’s work through its service learning programs, said Evan Goldberg, coordinator for the county office of education.

This year, in conjunction with the Tri-Valley Community Foundation, Anthony Chavez, 26, has spoken at schools throughout Alameda County.

Anthony Chavez’s message has been heard in Oakland, San Leandro and Tuesday was his third appearance in the Tri-Valley since January.

"I have seen that after Anthony has spoken, the kids look at him differently than other guest speakers," Goldberg said. "Even if they don’t know the story directly because Cesar died in the ’90s, their parents have told them the importance of who is coming, and the kids understand that these are civil rights icons."

Anthony Chavez’s first public presentation about his grandfather was as a junior in high school when he spoke to a group of Fresno State students during the dedication of a statue of his grandfather.

He followed the lead of his cousin Julie Chavez Rodriguez, who worked with the Alameda County Office of Education and is now the associate director of Latino Affairs and Immigration for the Office of Public Engagement at the White House.

During a visit to the classroom of Roberta Schryver, a sixth- and seventh-grade teacher, Chavez took pictures and answered questions and told the students how farmworkers have gone from earning about a $1 an hour when his grandfather started to around $8 today and that it was important for the students to know what their lifestyle supports.

"It starts with the basic core principle to teach kids that sharing is caring," Chavez said. "It’s the simple day-to-day actions that make a difference but seem to be the most complex thing for us to understand."

Alameda County schools that would like to book a visit by Chavez may contact Evan Goldberg, a coordinator for the Alameda County Office of Education at egoldberg@acoe.org or call the county office at 510-887-0152.

Contact Robert Jordan at 925-847-2184. Follow him at Twitter.com/robjordan127.