At the close of Year One of the COVID-19 pandemic, a look back evokes the fear, dread, and uncertainty of those first days when so little was known about it — except the deadly unleashing of its virulence on a global trajectory.
While some of us wrestled with having to physically disconnect from the most significant people in our lives, others suffered the irreversible separation of heart-shattering losses.
As the pandemic shut many doors for human interaction, some who are my age — those with more years lived than those that hang in the balance — pried open long-shut windows to cast light on examinations of our lives, and therein have abounded meaningful reflections on what we value and must have in our lives —emotionally and otherwise — and what we can carry to the curb.
Therein, too, at least for me, surfaced discomfiting memories of words, behaviors, and things left unsaid — my own and those of others — which took me to remordimiento’spursuit of its distant cousin, redemption.
What began as a collection of writings on the reaction to Governor Greg Abbot’s decision to open up business in Texas and to lessen the importance of wearing face masks, ended up a mix of reflections on what we learned, lost, or gained over the last year.
BERMAN RIVERA, 44
Botanist/Landscape designer
One source of deep anger and resentment for me during this pandemic and ultimately losing my mother to it, has been the role of government and its blatant disregard for the science that should be navigating our country and the world through something so foreign to most of us alive today.
While one cannot pinpoint a source of blame for the unfortunate losses of life due to COVID-19, I feel strongly that our nation’s and state’s leaders are very often looked to for making important decisions and protecting their people. I can say with certainty that my mother, and many of her peers, believed in the perspectives of the administration at the time, so much so that it could and did override the concern held by myself and other friends and family. These choices, such as Abbot’s recent opening up to 100% and no mask mandate send the wrong message — especially to the highly vulnerable population who maintains a tradition of believing in our government for protection.
In this dark year we have learned of our own personal vulnerability as well as the vulnerability of these constructed systems of society and economy. We have learned that the natural (or devised) planetary ecologies do not operate or take into consideration the day-to-day constructed aspects of our livelihood.
We lost those we loved, trust in the government, and in the economies and organized systems that feed us and allow us to meet our most basic needs in extremely facilitated manners. We have lost a sense of total comfort – which I believe is necessary in moving toward a more ‘real’ future.
Even though social distancing has created an apparent wedge within our social spheres, I feel that we have gained a degree of closeness in terms of the care and love we feel for our friends and family and even those who we typically would engage with on the daily. Furthermore, we have experienced first hand what it means to take care of ourselves and others within our community. We have gained a hindsight perspective of the things that matter most and that there are no guarantees other than our own preparedness in exercising foresight of what is potentially to come.
RICARDO CIGARROA, 62
Physician
COVID-19 Survivor
Governor Abbot’s pronouncement reminds me of the words “Mission Accomplished” used prematurely by President George Bush in 2003 aboard an American aircraft carrier to declare victory in Iraq. The war continued many years more with greater loss of lives.
In our town, our city of about 300,000 – a true number for those infected with COVID-19 is double the number tested. Factor in the 20,000+ who have been fully vaccinated. That puts us at about 120,000 Lardoons who are probably protected, which leaves us at 180,000 yet susceptible to the virus and yet to be vaccinated. We are only halfway to herd immunity.
If the Governor had waited another two months, every adult in Laredo could have been vaccinated by June.
This is a time to think for yourself and for the lives of your children and parents. It is more important than ever to wear a mask and practice social distancing. If you don’t, you and I may be meeting much sooner than you might have wanted to. Crowded classrooms, big family gatherings, and social events without protective masks and social distancing are a fateful formula for loss and sorrow.
The Governor’s action is a purely political move about a virus that has no politics.
YOSH WONG, RN, 33
Acting Captain, EMS Support
Laredo Fire Department
Texas is the least vaccinated state. The governor relaxing face mask restrictions will set us back and set us up for more infections. In our city, with hospitals filled to their capacity, the situation could become chaotic.
This is a first for me as a nurse, to experience this kind of a crisis, a pandemic, and it’s a first to have waited for a miracle cure. The arrival of the vaccine felt like a Hail Mary. In history it is the fastest that a vaccine was produced. There was a lot of skepticism about its safety and efficacy.
There was much to learn from the disease, and we were learning it firsthand — how it spread, why some were hit with the full ferocity of it and others had the symptoms of a mild cold, who was most at risk. We learned no one was safe from it.
The recent cold weather is probably the reason we saw a dip in reported cases. People stayed in their homes I thought we might be seeing the light at the end of the tunnel.
I understand the need to re-open business, though early on I would have used a different approach to subsidize those who had to stop working. The federal government has bailed out huge corporations. How could it not have taken care of those who lost their jobs at companies affected by the pandemic? Other countries have used this model. Why has it come down to a decision of business versus health?
The corona virus has changed our parameters for oxygen saturation. Pre-pandemic, a person with an oxygen saturation level below 80 to 95 was considered to be dying.
We are seeing COVID-19 patients with oxygen saturation levels of 60 to 70 percent and lower.
The one-dose vaccine will be much more efficient. It will lessen the personnel burdens of the vaccine drives and the stresses of worrying about a second dose.
We can’t change what has been handed down by the governor, but we can sure stay away from spreader events like concerts, parties, and bars, and we can continue wearing a mask and sticking to the social distancing anD hygiene protocols that kept us safe.
First responders have been characterized as heroes. I don’t credit myself as such. I just do my best. If I have helped someone, I’m happy.
VAL VEGA, 35
Restaurateur
Downtown Beer Garden Owner
I have conflicting views on Governor Abbot taking mandatory masks out of the equation for protection against the pandemic. As a person concerned for my own safety and the safety of others, especially my staff, I feel that removing the masks for economic reasons puts us in a quandary. It was premature.
Masks are mandatory for staff and customers at both Caffe Dolce and Cultura Beer Garden. To place an order at either place, to talk to our staff, you must wear a mask.
As to the lifting of the occupancy constraints, at Caffe Dolce we will hold to 50 percent. The indoor dining area is too small to pack it in. The outdoor dining area works well, and so does take-out.
At Cultura, which has a large outdoor seating area, a security guard will direct you to hand washing station and ask you to wear your mask. Our mini-market vendors will also set up outdoors now, all of them adhering to our mask rule.
Cultura was the hardest hit of the two businesses. It’s been open three years, one of them a pandemic year. We opened to a roaring start, but that changed into a frightening struggle over the last year to make rent and utilities. When the bars opened last June, we were so far behind, but we managed to catch up. When the bars closed again, we slid to reaching only 40 percent of the gross benchmark we needed to keep going.
We are fighters working toward the stability that will keep our doors open. Our landlord, who has been kind and in constant communication with us, is one of the reasons we have remained open.
We, all of us at both businesses, have been on the learning curve of the lessons of the pandemic – lessons for staying alive, adapting to change, and growing. Learning to deal with the mental stresses of the challenges we face in this business climate has made us more positive, more considerate, more innovative.
At both venues, we all know the drill for safety and survival. Wash your hands. Don’t touch your face. Wear a mask. Keep the kitchen clean.
On a personal note, I’ve become healthier. The pandemic brought into focus the need to change and survive on so many levels.
Every year I write a New Year’s letter to myself. What I wrote at the close of 2020 was different from other years. I was 24 when we started the restaurant. The letter listed what I had learned this last year as a human being, citizen, business owner, and a member of the community. What I wrote told me that 2020 was the longest of the 10 years we have been in business.
SISTER ROSEMARY WELSH, 78
Mercy Ministries Clinic
Casa de Misericordia
Who are you going to listen to — your doctor or your governor?
We have been living on the brink of catastrophe. Last month’s storm left us without electricity, water, phones, or Internet for days. Our hospitals are at capacity, COVID-19 continues to ravage our city and our state, and the governor has relaxed the mandate for face masks. How many more will die as a result of him telling people they don’t have to wear masks?
Mercy Ministries Clinic and Casa de Misericordia shelter continue to take all precautions to be safe. Our patients and our shelter residents know they are saving their own lives and those of their families by wearing masks, keeping distance, and washing hands often.
This was a year in which we learned the dearness of life and that we have had to take responsibility for our own safety. Many of us have looked out for our neighbors and friends, taking them food or shopping for them.
And likewise our neighbors looked out for us for the days we had no water at Casa Misericordia. They made sure we had enough water for the shelter’s bathrooms.
But we have also learned that some people, who live as though they hadn’t heard we are in a deadly pandemic, do nothing to protect themselves or the rest of us. The former president inflicted much harm by minimizing the danger of the pandemic.
A local politician told me before the last election that I was naive about the purported deadly severity of the pandemic. He said it would all go away after the election because it was all made up.
It has been distressing to hear good, generous people call the pandemic a “ruse” to hurt the economy.”
Some who are in denial refute the importance of the vaccine. I am 78. I had no side effects from it. It is saving lives. God put the science of the vaccine in our hands to help ourselves.
We have reached a point in this year in which we understand how heavily the pandemic weighs on us. Some of us have said last goodbyes to loved ones over a telephone, without a last squeeze of the hand, without saying “I love you.”
Many of us feel the weight of not being able to be with each other on the holidays and events that mean so much to us — Easter, Mother’s Day, graduation, Christmas. Those are off the table along with summer events that children so look forward to.
We have witnessed the courage of many health care givers in and out of hospitals and clinics — doctors, nurses, kitchen workers, firefighters, and EMTs. At our facilities, no staff member has said they are scared to come to work, to do God’s work.
ARMANDO X. LOPEZ, 62
Attorney, Poet
We’ve been here before. You think he would have learned something. But there are voices that are louder in his head then ours. It has always been like this. Some people are just invisible. Others hector and rage. They claim that they are smart enough to make their choices. But when they try to refute the science, they display their ignorance.
I have written every day since this pandemic began. Naturally I worry about my parents who are elderly. I worry about my wife and my children. I worry about the effects of this year on my grandchildren. My youngest grandchild is one. This is all she has known. I wonder about the timing of these announcements by the governor. I am able to see who is pulling the strings. I anticipate the snowflake insult. That is all they have. They know that they are wrong. They don’t care. This is what I wrote back when the governor first opened up Texas prematurely.
Poetry From The Pandemic #40
April 27, 2020
One More Month
Let’s see whom they blame.
It shouldn’t be the health worker.
Not the frontline first responder.
Don’t point fingers at the scientists.
Avoid saying it was the health compromised.
No fault on those who stayed at home.
Please don’t try to make the media responsible.
“What do you have to lose?” is the question of the day.
Why couldn’t we wait one more month?
May, June. July …the news got worse and the governor back-pedaled. He’s been here before. So have we. Many didn’t make it. I shudder to see what happens next.
Poem From The Pandemic #349
#Poemfromthepandemic, #galacticfrontera
March 2, 2021
New cases today: 16
Deaths: 8
Ship Of Fools
Dr. Abbott, Dr. Patrick,
Dr. Patrick, Dr. Paxton,
Dr. Paxton, Dr. Abbott
We’ve seen this scene before.
One flew east. One flew west.
One flew over the Cuckoo’s Nest
Fake doctors on a boat.
Players in each other’s delusion.
In the movies it is funny.
In real life, it is life and death.
They think we don’t see the ploy.
Deflect from their energy fiasco.
The real doctors differ on this course.
The nurses on the front line suffer another blow.
It is too early to take the foot off the pedal.
There is no logic to this action.
We’ve been down this road before.
The governor sets out regulations.
Then he ignores them.
He ties the hands of local leaders.
Nothing is gained by I told you so.
But soon we will be back here.
We will remember this day.
Just like we did back in April.
Tonight take a knee and pray.
We are in the hot zone.
We are not out of the woods.
And remember the golden rule.
And stay off the ship of fools.
FATHER PAUL FREY, 66
Rector
Christ Church
I was disappointed by the governor’s decision. I wished he’d put it on a longer timeline, perhaps waiting until a higher percentage of Texans are vaccinated or postpone to at least until after four weeks past spring break, to see how the virus developed.
I do believe he is right about people needing to take personal responsibility. That is always true. But my cynical self wondered if he’d be willing to relax speed limits. After all those pesky speed limits interfere with commercial trucking. And of course, we know that all Texans would drive responsibly even if we took away those speed mandates!
I wish it were true that we were all always responsible and accountable, and caring, but that sometimes we need the rules to help us behave better.
On the other hand, I am also aware of the economic challenges of the shutdown. As a pastor, I know that some of our parishioners have really been hit hard by this financially. In some cases, they’ve been laid off, or their businesses are barely afloat and in other cases, they have employees that can’t work because of their preexisting conditions. No one denies how hard and unsettling this has been.
Of course, the flip side is that some industries are booming and doing quite well. We have parishioners in the health care industry, in the funeral homes, in education, law enforcement and more who because of the pandemic have had to work, many more hours. All of that has put more money in their pockets but a strain on their families because of the overwork and in some cases their exposure has given them COVID-19.
Looking back, it seems very naive to believe that by summer of 2020 the heat was going to eliminate the COVID-19 virus. It’s hard to believe that it’s been a year since we realized how serious this was. By mid-March last year, I realized people were nervous about coming to church. Sunday, March 15, we had about a third of the folks who would normally show up at our services. Three days later, the Episcopal Bishop of West Texas. David Reed, ordered all Episcopal churches in our diocese to close for public worship.
What was challenging initially was simply figuring out how to connect people to worship and fellowship when they couldn’t come in person. Learning how to better stream services and have regular meetings via Zoom. My Rotary Club was trying to figure out how to use WebEx. I began using conference calls more often but discovered there were so many people trying to do conference calls that the lines would not work. There wasn’t enough capacity. The Internet was being stretched.
People began to get sick. I am amazed that we had no deaths in our parish early on. We still have had no deaths in our immediate parish family. But we have had deaths in parishioners’ families. The hardest thing has been to grieve with families where one member infected another and that led to death of a close relative. The person who had it first is the person who then had to watch the other die. That’s been painful for all concerned.
My household has three children who are all school age. Third grade, seventh grade, and ninth grade. It’s painful to watch and discover how hard it was for the schools to make the transition. In the beginning it was so chaotic. First it was “Well, we’re going to close an extra week after spring break.”And then of course, we realized it was going to be all on-line. None of us expected anything other than regular classes resuming in the Fall.
All over town, people were trying to figure out how to work online if possible, and help their kids transition to online school. All the educators in my parish are really struggling. It’s hard to make that kind of transition and to do entirely different lesson plans. And the amount of phone calls and emails and contact that teachers must have with parents, has multiplied 100-fold. Unfortunately, they didn’t get additional hours in the day to do the extra work. They have been stretched to the limit and in some cases way past the limit.
There have been some positive elements too. One of the things I found is, people who live together have gotten re-acquainted with each other in deeper ways. Some folks have learned new hobbies. Others are discovering new abilities. And people began to contact old friends as social media forced many to go online. I’ve heard from people that I hadn’t heard from in 20 years, which has been lovely.
There have been unexpected blessings for our parish as we host services online. We’ve had people visit and join our worship services from all over the world. But we’ve also seen a rise in depression, loneliness, grief, and fear. Despite some of the unexpected blessings, we are all ready for an end to the pandemic. I regularly read the excellent poem, “When this is over” by Laura Fanucci. It reminds me of so much that I took for granted before the pandemic. I hope I remain grateful when that is restored.
I’ve been inspired and humbled to see the dedication of health care professionals, law enforcement, and the fire department and paramedics caring for people in this community. Their sacrifices have saved many. I am grateful for the work they do.
Finally, I do hope that, despite the governor’s pronouncements that we in Laredo at least will seek to do the absolute best for one another. I am not personally worried about getting COVID-19. I’m healthy. I am worried about getting it and giving it to someone who is not as healthy. I do not want to be the cause of someone else’s death or long-term illness. So, even though I have been vaccinated. I still plan to wear a mask when I’m around people I do not live with. Yes, I’m tired of wearing a mask. Like many other people. Yes, I’m tired of social distance. Like many other people. But I can see the light at the end of the tunnel.
Again, I wish that our governor had encouraged us to wait a few months longer. Even if he had opened things to full capacity but continued to insist that we wear masks that would have made more sense. But we hope that he is right and that we will not have another surge of illness. Time will tell.
Richard Sames, 34
General Manager
Thunderbird Auto Finance
I can only speak to my experience working with my team at the Sames Auto Group, but I think more than anything I have been reminded by just how resilient we are. I directly oversee eight people and when this started no one really knew what we were going to do or how we were going to respond. We each wondered whether we were considered essential, and so we focused on doing the next indicated thing, sharing news with each other, and feeling out an ever-evolving list of best practices. At one point early on we explained social distancing to a staff member by recreating The Washington Post’s now-famous simulation, rolling an office chair randomly around the workspace. More than anything, we just kept showing up.
Working remotely was not an option, so we put on masks, separated our desks, kept our heads down, and worked as hard as we could while also implementing policies and procedures like morning health surveys, temperature checks, and a halfway-house-like cleaning schedule. I’ve spent many years developing my professional career in the car business and my running joke is that you’re never surprised by what awaits you because you come to expect the strangest of experiences. But no one could have expected a world altering pandemic, vaccine development and rollout, and presidential election, all within the course of a year. Honestly, despite my favorite book being Station Eleven, I didn’t think anything like this would ever happen.
I think lots of people feel the same way, and so instead of expanding on procedures like my “you can’t come into our office if I can’t give you a raise” rule, I instead want to comment on how this group of people took care of one another. We shared eggs and toilet paper during shortages, checked in via text when someone was ill, listened to and were willing to help customers going through hard times, and were always willing to cover someone’s work queue should anyone have to leave due to a 14-day quarantine or a lack of childcare. This group of people took care of one another. And we are not done yet. We will continue to stay positive, mask up, and support one another until an official all clear comes.
ELISA RUIZ, 48
LISD Child Nutrition Program
The masks have been a rule for our family for the last year. We have taken it very seriously. The governor’s decision is premature and wrong. It will invite carelessness and fatalities.
Those of us who have been diligent understand the seriousness of the pandemic and have taken responsibility as a matter of life and death to protect ourselves and our children. We are all vaccinated now except our 13-year-old.
None of us enter our home without stepping onto a disinfecting mat. We have all been well this year, without even a cold.
Our eldest daughter Maria, who is 25, is a registered nurse who has worked on the frontline of the pandemic here and in other cities. She has guided us throughout this time.
I think the bigger lessons of the pandemic have been having compassion for those who have suffered. We now are able to fully comprehend the precious value of life. My children have always been supportive of each other. They have shown extreme care in these days. I have learned to value the unity of my family.
Though we have lost some of life’s pleasures, like travel to see our children who live away from here, we’ve learned to know the value of an environment free of disease.
STEVE LAMANTIA, 62
Beer distributor, rancher
I have mixed emotions about Abbot’s recommendations to lift mandatory mask and social distancing efforts. At the same time, I think about the small, independent businesses that are hurting a lot — the oil change business owner, the restaurant owner — and many who have lost businesses they spent years building.
Our mandate has not changed after the Governor’s announcement. Personally, I will continue to wear a mask. That is a requirement in our office. We provide wash stations. Very few non-employees enter the building. Some employees will continue to work from home. From the beginning, the directive to our employees was to be safe, for all of us to be safe. We did not want to lay off anyone. We switched people around into other positions where we had to. There was some attrition, but on the whole we made good on keeping our staff.
It goes without saying that the pandemic has brought about tragic losses.
On the business end, it taught us to be adaptable. We would never have told employees they could work from home. We would not have been willing to let Zoom-type meetings replace personal interaction or an eye-to-eye transaction closed on a handshake — human nature demands some of that. Adopting video conference calls as a business tool would probably have happened eventually, but it quickly became a necessity.
We saw productivity from those who worked at home, and we saw efficiency and reduced expenses for office space and utilities. On the national level, we learned of less greenhouse gas emissions as work-at-home employees across the country drove their vehicles less.
In some circles there will likely be euphoria about being able to get out again and to travel. Those who like to socialize in large groups, in bars, clubs or at concerts need to follow common sense practices – wear masks in close spaces, pay attention to air circulation and personal space, and wash hands frequently
As a distributor, we want to get back to on-premise venues – bars and restaurants. We are supplier-driven. Our suppliers, the big ones and the small craft brewers, have suffered through this, too. They will be ramping up production and delivery.
Our ability to ramp back up 15 to 30 percent will not be an uphill battle because we have trained personnel. We’ll be as ready as we need to be.
CARLOS VALLE JR., 74
Retired educator
CPAC’s recent circus-like antics in Orlando, Florida presented torrents of mendacity and blatant, repetitious lies. The gilded statue of Big Boy Burger’s mascot wearing striped underwear reflected inanity; speakers’ rants constituted blatant lies and absurdity.
Following Trump Nation’s gratuitous nonsense, now Governor Greg Abbott has cowed to partisanship and rescinded the facemask mandate; restaurants and bars will open at 100% capacity.His politically motivated moral trash shows he doesn’t care about people.
Fortunately, Webb County Sheriff Martin Cuellar publicly offered the educated, common-sense opinion that we continue respect for fellow Laredoans by wearing face masks and maintaining social distancing. Laredoans have suffered, friends have wound up in Intensive Care units, and too many have died. It was horrible listening to non-stop coughing when a close friend answered his phone as a patient at San Antonio’s University Hospital’s Intensive Care Unit. Working extra shifts due to colleagues’ absenteeism, he contracted COVID-19. He averred overtime work wasn’t about money, it was about patients. Training under Sister Mary Ambrose, RSM, at Laredo’s Mercy Hospital School of Radiologic Technology instilled our work ethic. I hung up in less than five minutes due to his coughing between each word spoken.
Laredoans must avert complacency regardless of Abbott’s unconscionable political misdirection. The 1918 Flu Epidemic killed 675,000 Americans; U.S. population was 106 million. Now at 330 million, we have reached over a half million deaths in one year. In 1918 federal and state authorities ordered newspapers to avoid public panic by reporting that the widespread deadly illness was “just a severe cold.” We now have electronic communication recordings of Donald Trump stating COVID-19 was “just like the flu,” that “it would disappear with warm weather.” Trump has never cared about others and keeps demonstrating this even after his ousting. Like an overgrown toddler, he thinks the world revolves around him. Why do people listen to his overt lying? Why do otherwise good people disregard fellow human beings?
MANUEL JUAREZ, 26
Director of Community Engagement
Rio Grande International Study Center
As we approach the one-year anniversary of when the pandemic hit and chaos ensued, I can’t help but reflect on what a whirlwind this year has been. For myself and so many others, the past 12 months have been some of the darkest I’ve ever seen in my lifetime.
Even something as simple as watching the news and hearing the latest updates on the number of lives taken away by this virus has become incredibly daunting, especially on our mental health.
Seeing the valiant hospital staff and first responders around the nation plead with the public to wear their masks and stay home is enough to send me into a spiral. With hospitals and ICUs at full capacity, and with health care workers pushing themselves to their absolute limits around the clock to fight the virus and bring us back to “normalcy,” it breaks my heart to see just how overwhelmed these heroes are. What’s even more infuriating and upsetting is when I see people being selfish and going out to parties, bars, and on vacation as if we weren’t living in a pandemic — people who refuse to take personal responsibility for their actions and do the bare minimum of wearing a mask.
For me and so many others striving to keep themselves and their loved ones safe, this year has been a year of sacrifices. I wish I could relax and party with my friends again, or share a romantic meal with a date. I can’t tell you how badly I long to be able to visit my grandmother, to give her a warm and loving embrace without the fear of accidently infecting each other lingering in the back of my mind, reminding me that it’s still not safe and that now is not the time to let our guards down.
Birthdays, holidays, and other celebrations spent with family and friends that once filled my life with joy and love have now become a thing of the past. Now, we compromise and gather around a laptop or smart phone to wish each other well via Zoom. I know someday I’ll be celebrating with my loving friends and family once more, surrounded by music, laughter, dancing, and love, but until it’s safe to do so, I will continue to make sacrifices to keep myself and my loved ones safe and continue to make the best of it.
In fact, despite a heavy past 12 months, I pat myself on the back for continuing to strive for an optimistic point of view. Spending so much more time at home and with myself has provided me with the opportunity to go inward and dive even deeper into my now regular yoga and meditation practice. Now I start every day with some deep breaths and a heart full of gratitude. I’ve even started teaching yoga and meditation to my parents, and it’s been wonderful to share this healing and transformative practice with them as we grow even closer together.
This year has taught me that no matter what is going on in the outside world, I’m the only one in control of how I perceive it and how I respond to it. I choose to stay positive and to see the glass half-full. I choose to put the health and well-being of myself and my loved ones over any party or get-together, no matter how much I miss my friends.
After seeing the steep rise in COVID-19 cases after the holidays and learning that Laredo had one of the highest infection rates in the state, I doubled-down on my precautions to stay safe. When I saw the number of cases beginning to decline in Laredo, I became so full of hope and joy. I began to think that this could be the beginning of the end of this pandemic, that life would soon return to normal IF, and only if, we continue distributing vaccines, practicing social distancing, and wearing our masks.
Hearing the news about Gov. Abbot opening up the state and dismantling the mask mandate so very prematurely was nothing short of heart-wrenching. It’s clear that Abbot does not care about what’s best for the people of Texas. To enact such a dangerous and reckless decision in the midst of a global pandemic of this scale is truly deplorable. Would enabling Texans to disregard the CDC’s guidelines result in another year of this pandemic? Are the 44,000+ people in Texas who have lost the battle to COVID-19 not enough? How many more people need to die before our state “leaders” realize it’s time to follow the science? How many more people need to die before we put people over profits?
Until then, I urge everyone to keep wearing their masks and stay home as much as possible so that we can flatten the curve and get back to our “normal” lives swiftly and most importantly, safely.
ROSIE SANTOS
Executive Director
Laredo Center for the Arts
I am deeply disappointed in Governor Abbot’s lifting of the mask mandate at a time that our community is finally turning the corner because of the simple life saving measures and protocols of masks and social distancing.
We all have to remain vigilant in order to see the light at the end of the tunnel.
It’s sad that masks have been politicized. There is no debate about it — science supports masks as a preventative measure to combat this airborne disease. We all have to remember that each of our actions affect not only ourselves, but also those around us. We need to begin to act as more of a collective society rather than an individualistic society.
At LCA, we have taken great steps to protect our staff, visitors, and community members. We will continue to demonstrate our deep, ethical commitment to doing what’s right. Nothing is more important to me than a human life. We have all seen the ravages of COVID-19 locally and across the world. LCA will continue to lead by example by making masks and social distancing a mandatory part of our safety measures.
I love the idea that people have used masks as expressions of personal style. Marking individual style through the masks we choose to wear is a creative exercise of freedom of expression. Fashion is art.
In the past year, I have understood well the importance of the arts in our lives. They are more important now than ever. The arts and artists offer us a way to express pain, healing, and hope in this tumultuous time. I believe artists have become unofficial essential workers of the pandemic, vital to our recovery. Now more than ever we need to support art organizations and artists.
Art and culture have proven important to our survival. Many of us have spent countless nights at home reading great literature, listening and dancing to music, cooking culinary masterpieces, watching films, television, and plays, and writing poetry. We have been expressing ourselves through the arts. Art is everywhere.
As the COVID-19 pandemic began in 2020 and continues, many arts organizations have been forced to close or shut down their operations. Overnight the arts reverted to becoming an at-home industry. LCA has been fortunate enough to keep its doors open through innovative fundraising spearheaded by our board and staff, the financial support of our generous sponsors such as IBC Bank and foundations such as the Guadalupe and Lilia Martinez Foundation, the continued support of our city government, and our loyal artists and members. We have also been able to continue operating by using and implementing simple COVID-19 CDC-recommended life saving measures and protocols for masks and social distancing. We quickly realized that as an arts organization we would have to re-invent, re-envision, and innovate in order to survive. We now rely on social media platforms and other online technologies for programming.
The social constraints of the pandemic have offered us an opportunity to develop new programming to strengthen our ties with the community. Our pivot was one of quick adaptability to changing circumstances and to expanding digital programming so that we can continue our mission.
LCA began utilizing social media channels such as Instagram, Facebook, Youtube, and Snapchat to create more digital content. Merging art with technology has kept us connected to the community.
LCA educational programming has taken on new life online. Our in-person art classes have gone digital and become LCA AT HOME. We felt the importance of continuing to support, empower, and celebrate artistic development in children and young adults. LCA AT HOME provides local and out of town children free step-by-step educational virtual art lessons. We promote artists who may not yet be household names, and we provide a short art history lesson and instruction.
At this year’s annual Dia de Los Muertos celebration we produced pre-recoded videos that offered at home art workshops for students to make several of the components needed to build a Dia de Los Muertos altar. We produced pre-recoded videos to showcase local folklorico dancers and partnered with the Mexican Consulate for a virtual Dia de los Muertos altar contest.
We have produced pre-recorded videos to continue to provide virtual art and yoga programming.
In the void left by empty performance stages, LCA created an ART & PERFORMANCE SERIES to cultivate a cultural and fine arts climate and create a platform to promote the arts and empower artists by showcasing free virtual performances by musicians, dancers, poets, and artists. These artists continue to inspire, elevate, and enlighten us throughout this difficult time.
To foster the sense of community that everyone has yearned for in this time, LCA utilized its outdoor patio for a community chalk block event and a public outdoor art installation. Both were successful because we held to the simple safety measures of masks, social distancing, and limiting the number of people in the area.
We have been able to continue presenting new and exciting exhibitions for the public to view during our operating hours.
To ensure the success of our annual fundraisers, we had to think outside the box. We were able to successfully utilize Zoom in order to host three fundraisers such as Cooking with A Twist, which featured Maite Gomez Rejón, a Tequila Quarantine with Julio Gomez Rejón, and a book- signing with Wanda Garner Cash, author of Pancho Villa’s Saddle at the Cadillac Bar.
We have collaborated with other non-profits such as RGISC and LTGI to see our community through this challenging time.
Looking back on 2020 and looking into the future, I am proud that LCA has moved forward to bring the power of art to new and wider audiences via the power of the Internet.
Personally and professionally, I have been able to connect and network with other arts organizations throughout the country. That new-found connectivity has been an asset to me and has helped me to see the possibilities of what can be executed with the power of positivity and creativity. I am proud to be part of a supportive community of arts and culture organizations, and artists who come together to support each other. I’m excited for the new programming we have in store for 2021.
RUBEN SOTO JR., 61
CPA
My six-year-old daughter started kindergarten last fall and had to attend class virtually, and still does today. It was quite an ordeal teaching a six-year-old to learn how to log on and navigate through the portal. She was comfortable after three weeks, but with constant Internet interruptions, it proved frustrating. Either her mom, I, or her Grandma, had to be there with her in case problems arose. This affected the time spent in our own occupations. The pronounced effect on my daughter was the lack of human interaction, to the point that she would cry and sometimes feel sad because she did not know anyone in her class personally as she would in preschool days.
Being a teacher, my wife met the virtual teaching world head-on and adapted very quickly to mentor other teachers on how to navigate the virtual systems. It was nice having her at home when it was her turn to be off campus.
My profession as a CPA proved daunting during the COVID-19 era. I did experience a dip in revenues compared to last year. It was very hectic with deadlines moved, getting our tax, accounting and compliance work out while at the same time learning the PPP and EIDL rules and assisting our clients in applying for CARES Act funding. It continues so to this day, but I have a great staff, and we have managed to meet our obligations.
Thanks to my hero daughter I received a kidney transplant earlier this year. Being on anti-rejection medicines for life will reduce my immune system so that any little bug I catch can have major effects on my body. This very much concerns me in the time of COVID-19. Now, even more so, I must be very cognitive of everything and everyone around me. So everyone, please wear a mask!
Excellent responses to Abbot’s irresponsible decisions. Total disregard for science and facts.