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My last, but not least, thoughts after visiting Oregon last week come from conversations I had with Doris while we drove around Central Willamette Valley (or Mid-Valley area) in Oregon together and visited with people both formally and informally on the street, in restaurants, etc. First a little about Doris and her husband.
Doris is very well known in her community of Corvallis where she has lived for the past 10 years. She came to Corvallis and began working as a mental health counselor after moving from Miami to Portland with her husband Juan Pablo Valot. Both Doris and J.P. as he is often called by English speakers, are accomplished professionals. Doris Cancel-Tirado is a first generation college student and now has four degrees! She received a BA and an MA in Psychology in her native Puerto Rico. She was recruited by Oregon State University (OSU) for the PhD program in Human Development and Family Studies. She graduated with her PhD in 2009 and also earned a Master's Degree in Public Health from OSU. She was at OSU for seven years and is very connected to the campus and the town. She took me on a short tour of campus as we visited the Hallie E. Ford Center and she shared with me some of her experiences and told me about the people who were a large part of her journey, her friend Sarah who is alive and well in Ellensburg, and her mentor Alexis Walker, who is now deceased. Doris teaches at Western Oregon University (WOU) where her interests include sexual and reproductive health issues among Latinos, health disparities, fatherhood, poverty, and diversity in higher education. I found her a wealth of knowledge and most of it the enticing blend of experience and theory. I have known Doris for almost four years as we have served on the Northwest Council of Family Relations board together. Doris was earned tenure and promotion at WOU this year and so her website will soon read Associate Professor. Congratulations Doris!
Juan Pablo is an accomplished winemaker. J.P. came from Argentina where he was educated in agriculture science and vineyard management. He has traveled widely in wine producing regions around the world and has settled in Oregon. He is now head winemaker at Silvan Ridge Winery, outside Eugene. My memories of this visit include seeing J.P. being a busy father with Francisco and Eva, a loving husband to Doris and a son-in-law to Doris (my friend's mom who lives with the family) and a competent, enthusiastic and award-winning winemaker. Doris took me to the winery on a sunny afternoon and J.P. and his staff in the tasting room treated me to sips from some really good wines. The Tempranillo was divine and sold out! I had sipped Malbec, an Argentian speciality of which I am fond over dinner at their home. J.P. offered to give me a short tour of the barrel room and to taste straight from the oak barrels. It was really a treat to learn more about how the wine is aged and to taste the difference in the varieties. I have always been somewhat mystified about why so much fuss was being made about Pinot Noir. I understand so much more and now can appreciate it not only for its taste but also its color and its fine scent. I will practice the swirl at home to release the wonderful aromatic mist that enhances each sip of wine. I have begun to rethink my wine glass collection as a result! J.P. was really generous in gifting me with a bottle of the Pinot Noir to take home. I am enjoying it very much!
I was quite taken with the demands and accomplishments this busy professional couple manage and wish them well in all they pursue. They are about to celebrate their 40th birthdays and their 10th wedding anniversary. What a glorious time that will be for them and all their loving family and friends. I regret that I did not get a picture of the family together but it is no surprise since it took four adults (me included) to manage meals and the children each evening! I did add pictures of Doris and the kids in previous posts this week.
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| I shadowed this busy family all week long! |
Doris and J.P are very connected with the international community that surrounds Corvallis, Eugene and the academic and viticulture worlds of the mid-valley region and beyond. Doris shared with me several insights from her experiences.
- There are insiders and outsiders with Latino groups. I asked her more about this after she first mentioned it to me. She explained that there is an undercurrent, sometimes obvious, sometimes subtle, in pan-Latino relations. She connected it to immigration patterns. I have been learning so much about the pattern of immigration and settlement of Latinos in this country that I was really glad to get her perspective and to understand it more fully than I would have six months ago. She explained about the path to citizenship and that Puerto Ricans are already citizens because PR is a US territory. Cubans are the next on the citizenship ladder because they are well educated and it takes only 2-3 for a Cuban who has arrived in this country (and not been caught on the boat) to get citizenship. The next wave of immigrants to NYC were the Dominicans and they have mostly been naturalized. The Mexicans and I would add the Haitians (more creole in make-up) are at the bottom of the citizenship barrel. Most who have come to this country since 1996 and especially since 9/11/2001 have crossed the border in desperate circumstances or have overstayed a visa to visit. Not all who are undocumented are survivors of the long journey north through the borderlands. Those with more education are seen more favorably by the federal system but can also be excluded from local insiders because of country of origin issues. Doris has observed issues of distrust that arise from regional differences (place in Mexico where people came from), personal friendships and exclusions based on what reminded me of the cliques of middle school culture, and country of origin differences. She told me that it is not uncommon for a sense of territoriality to exist in the workplace that can create a barrier if people believe that no-one but one of their own country or region will be able to understand the clients they serve.
- Doris stated that even Latinos need cultural guides to gain trust in the community. The surface connection of skin tone, hair color, and speaking Spanish is not enough. Spanish language varies from country to country and region to region. One of our local programs folks learned Spanish in Nicaragua in the Peace Corps and always laughed when our local Mexican parents and program folks helped her understand the phrases they use to describe things that are different.
- Doris talked to me about the wet feet/dry feet phenomenon in relation to Cuban nationals who have been coming to this country since the Castro regime began. If one is caught in a boat or in the water, one is referred to as having wet feet (not landed) and will be deported back to Cuba and if one is caught on land, they have dry feet and can stay. I had never heard the terms used before and it added one more puzzle piece to the immigration dilemma we now face.
- Doris is also concerned about qualified first generation Latino students gaining entrance and acceptance into the allied health professions in Oregon. She is advocating within the nursing profession for more inclusion. She told me that the admission rates were disproportionate to the population and that qualified candidates were being overlooked. She is a fierce advocate and yet found that as a Puerto Rican it took her several years to gain the trust of the Mexican origin students at her university.
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| I share this picture I took I visited the Statue of Liberty to remind us that we are not all equal. |
Thanks for reading!
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