Romero
and cousins form 'ya-ya primahood'
By Carolyn
Gonzales
Rosemarie
Romero, program coordinator at the Southwest Hispanic Research
Institute (SHRI), has deep roots in New Mexico soil. Whether
on the UNM campus or at home in Tomé, she is connected
to all around her.
She began
her UNM career as a work-study student in Chicana/o Studies
in 1985.
I
promised them a year because I was earning a business degree
and believed that I was going to go off to make lots of money
with a large corporation, she says.
What she
discovered, however, was that the work is fulfilling and she
no longer had the desire to become part of Corporate America.
Hired as a Clerical Specialist IV, one year later she got an
upgrade. Rosemarie stayed at Chicana/o Studies for six years,
and continues to participate in their events and projects.
Ive
been at SHRI 10 years now, she says. She coordinates and
oversees department programs, workshops, special projects and
events. She assists in research and preparing proposals for
institute funding. She also participates in recruitment and
retention projects with other campus units and with the public
schools.
She produces
the SHRI newsletter, flyers and brochures. She also manages
SHRI accounts and an account used for a Latin American Project
with José Rivera, Special Assistant to the Provost, she
says.
Rosemaries
heart beats to the rhythm of the Hispanic community on and off
campus. The Romero family has been a part of the Tomé
landscape for generations. Her father, Clemente Romero, died
when Rosemarie was very young. Her grandfather Juan Vicente
Romero was born to Jacobo and Refujio Otero in 1908. Three years
later, after his mother died, he was adopted by Clemente and
Margarita Romero.
When
my grandfather died, my cousins and I made a promise to remain
close, says Rosemarie. We established an account
together and pay prima [cousin] dues. The six of us get together
for every birthday and holiday and we go on a trip at least
once a year.
Rosemaries family was featured in the Raices del Río
Abajo photo history project recently exhibited at the National
Hispanic Cultural Center. Rosemarie is on the exhibit planning
committee.
One
of the goals of the Raices project is to encourage families
to trace their genealogy, says Rosemarie. Another
is to involve our youth and get them to appreciate and learn
about our history and culture. The process of collecting the
photos together resurrects feelings and emotions and makes us
want to find out more about our history.
Rosemarie
wants to uncover her familys history for herself, but
also for her daughter, Chantel Trujillo, a 14-year-old freshman
at Los Lunas High School. In 1988, Rosemarie purchased land
and built a house next door to her mother, Joan Romero. Chantel
is growing up where I did, she says.
Mother
and daughter do many things together, including getting involved
in activities at the Immaculate Conception Church in Tomé.
Chantel is very close to one of her cousins and may establish
her own prima group.
Losing
a brother, Alfred Romero, last year makes Rosemarie aware of
the value of time.
He
was only 44 years old when he died. I try not to put things
off until tomorrow because we dont know if we will see
it, she says.
She, her mother, the rest of the Romeros, and other land grant
families in Tomé recently took the time to successfully
fight off development that would have brought a road through
their property onto land east being developed by the Valley
Improvement Association.
Rosemaries
good works at SHRI help promote Hispanic research, culture and
heritage. Her strong ties to family, friends and faith in Tomé
feed her deep roots, allowing her to blossom.
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