Dia del Campesino draws estimated 5,000 workers

BY JOHN VAUGHN, BAJO EL SOL EDITOR

SAN LUIS, Ariz. — At 3 a.m. amid the December chill, Friendship Park here may not seem the likeliest place to get a flu shot or a blood pressure check.

Or to get advice about personal health or learn or about the variety of social services available in Yuma County.

But thousands of farm workers did that and more early Saturday morning as they gathered in the Arizona border city's park on their way to work in Yuma-area fields.

The 15th annual Dia del Campesino — Day of the Farmworker — celebration brought together about 50 Yuma-area organizations, among them health care providers and non-profits, to introduce their services to thousands of field laborers who stopped by before boarding the labor buses that would take them to work for the day.

Even before the event started, dozens of farmworkers from San Luis, Ariz., and neighboring San Luis Rio Colorado, Son., were lined up along the fence surrounding the park, located next to the international border.

As soon as gates opened at 3 a.m., they formed long lines that went through the park as the workers went from booth to booth to receive door prizes, sign up for raffles or learn about services provided by the organizations.

They also had the chance to get seasonal flu shots paid for with funds provided by Western Growers Assocation, or to get blood pressure checks and other health screenings. Also provided was information about personal health from providers such as Yuma Regional Medical Center, the Yuma County Public Health Department and Sunset Health Clinic.

They could also learn about how to access housing, job training, legal aid and other community services.

Musicians were on hand, meanwhile, to perform throughout the morning.

Temperatures had dropped into the low 40s, prompting farmworkers and event organizers alike to layer their clothing against the cold.

The event is meant to celebrate the contributions made by farm workers through their labors, but it's also intended to make them aware of the gamut of community services available to them, said Emma Torres, executive director of Somerton-based Campesinos Sin Fronteras, one of the main organizers of the event.

“It's not easy for them to access services unless the services go to them,” she said.

The number of organizations taking part in Dia del Campesino has about doubled since the inaugural event, Torres said.

Torres estimated that about 5,000 farmworkers would turn out for the event, which was scheduled to continue till 11 in the morning.

“We have been doing this event for the past 15 years and the turnout has always been good.”

The event initially was held in a parking lot between two San Luis grocery stores, Torres said, but it soon outgrew that location, prompting the city of San Luis to provide the park for the event. City police also provide security at the event.

This year, the starting time of the event was moved up an hour to give farm workers more time before starting work.

And despite Saturday morning's chilly temperatures, said Torres, “nobody is getting out of their comfort zone.”