Up until several months ago, Consuelo Hernandez and Alex Avigdor didn't know each other. He lives in the Foothills and attends Catalina Foothills High School. She lives on the South Side and attends Sunnyside High School.
The fact that they're both juniors is one of the few common notes about the two. They come from disparate worlds — which is just perfect.
They can cross the same cultural bridge together.
Hernandez and Avigdor, along with 11 other high school juniors and sophomores, are participating in the Jewish-Latino Teen Coalition Program. It brings together local teens to help narrow the cultural divide, teach them to work together and develop leadership skills.
The 13 students from 10 public, private and charter high schools bring different talents and personal experiences to the group, which enhances their learning, said Shari Gootter, social action coordinator for the Jewish Community Relations Council, an arm of the Jewish Federation.
People are also reading…
"It's intended to bring different people together to see the similarities and differences, and to embrace them all," said Gootter.
Avigdor, who plays on his school's basketball team, appreciates the program because it's connected him to students like Hernandez. He's learned through her how many Tucsonans live. He's become sensitized to their dreams and disappointments.
"At my school the spectrum is narrow. A majority of people don't know the effect of the economy," he said.
For her part, Hernandez said getting to know Avigdor dispelled stereotypes she held about Jews. She's learned "they're just like me."
Beyond that, Hernandez, who is on her school's track team, has gained self-confidence and motivation to focus on school and set higher goals for herself.
"Just learning their goals made me say 'Wow,' " she said.
The program, in its fifth year, is sponsored by the Jewish Federation of Southern Arizona, which works with Reps. Gabrielle Giffords and Raúl Grijalva, along with groups and other individuals.
Each year the group, which numbers 10 to 15, selects an area to study. This year the students chose education and the economy. They conducted research and prepared presentations, which they will make this week.
The group leaves today for a five-day trip to Washington, D.C. There they'll discuss their agenda with educational and political lobbying groups, as well as congressional members and staff.
To prepare for the trip the students participated in a series of workshops on government, community issues and leadership. Local educators, elected officials, members of the media and community organizers have spoken to them.
As a group, the students have discussed tolerance and diversity. They have talked about their lives and aspirations, where they come from and who they are. They have torn away the shroud of ignorance to reveal the complexity and beauty of their own diversity and, by extension, Tucson's.
Their families shared a pot-luck dinner and the students exchanged meaningful objects.
"The kids learn more about their own culture in the process," said Gootter. "They're getting in touch with their own identity."
In addition to meeting with policymakers, the group will visit the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum and other D.C. memorials and museums.
Also participating in the Jewish-Latino Teen Coalition are:
Courtney Ayon, Desert Christian; Ashleigh Birin, St. Gregory; David Contreras, University; Gabriela Escobar, Palo Verde; Philip Heilman, Green Fields Country Day; Cesar Hernandez, Palo Verde; Jessica Kulwin, Green Fields; Laura Kurtzberg, Tucson Magnet; Mirissa Price, Basis Tucson; Joseph Spector, Canyon del Oro; and Stephanie Wezelman, Catalina Foothills.
Avigdor and Hernandez are confident that this experience will last them a long time.
"It makes me want to work harder," said Hernandez. "I have a lot of plans."
Did You Know
Cooperation between the Jewish and Latino communities in Southern Arizona goes back to the mid-19th century. Jewish and Hispanic pioneer families helped build businesses and community institutions.
In the 1980s, a Hispanic-Jewish Dialogue effort formed to build bridges between the two communities and work on areas of mutual concern. After a period of inactivity, the Jewish-Latino Coalition was created about six years ago as a collaborative effort of the Jewish Community Relations Council and the office of Rep. Raúl Grijalva.
SOURCE: Shari Gootter, social action coordinator for Jewish Community Relations Council
Tucson to get a Teso Life store
