
APPRECIATION
AND THANKS goes out to our Christmas present donors: Dean Sher, El Milagro
Tortilleria, Toys for Tots Motorcycle Clubs, Uno Uno Uno Mexican Grill, Little
Village Rotary Club and Attorney Martin Castro. The motto of the Toys for Tots Chicagoland
Motorcycle Clubs is “Every child deserves a toy at Christmas time.”
EVERY
YEAR, on the first Sunday of December, the Chicagoland Motorcycle clubs sponsor
a colorful Christmas parade. The parade starts at the Dan Ryan Woods, 87th
St. & Western Ave., goes north and ends at the Lane Tech High School
parking lot, Western
and Belmont Ave. More than 20,000 motorcyclists
dress-up their motorcycles with Christmas decorations and carry toys to the drop
off point, the Lane Tech parking lot. At the parking lot the United States
Marine Corps receives many of the toys. The motorcycle clubs donates toys to several
non-profit organizations; every year the parade is a huge success. “It doesn’t
matter how many bikers were in the parade. It's the thousands toys we collect for the
kids,” said Robert “Cooch” Kuczera.
SANTA’s
HELPERS: a.k.a. the Cristo Rey Jesuit High School students helped wrap all the
Christmas presents at the Little Village Council all day Saturday, Dec. 7, 2013.
Manuel Martinez |
MANNY
WAS BORN in Rancho El Charco, GTO (Guanajuato, officially Free and
Sovereign State of Guanajuato, is one of the 31 states which, with the Federal
District, comprise the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico)
is a small town with no running water or electricity in Guanajuato, Mexico. “At
the age of 7, I heard and understood the concept of the American dream and I
wanted it. I goal was to reach the American dream by graduating from High
School, college, and one day own my own business,” said Manny.
AT THE YOUNG age
of 10 years old, Manny was delivering the Little Village Community Reporter newspaper
for a penny a paper. “I would get 200 papers and received $2.00, said Manny. By 12-years-old Manny delivered the Chicago
Sun-Times newspaper for $15 a week and saved the money he earned. To pay his
way through college and for paramedic classes with the Chicago Fire Dept. for 2
½ years, he did factory work.
MANNY SAID, “I think I got my drive from my
grandfather who was an outgoing, charismatic person who loved to socialize and
worked hard. He would load up his three donkeys with vegetables [onions,
tomatoes, cucumbers, and cabbage] and sell them, going from one village to the
next. “For my grandfather, during those years there were no roads, he could only
get around on foot or by donkey,” said Manny.
MANNY IS A MEMBER of the newly organized Little Village Rotary Club who held its’ Charter Night in July, 2013. The Rotary Club sponsors a garage sale, donated 5,000 dictionaries to children in the local schools, and hosted a Career Day with speakers who spoke with students at the UIC College Prep High School. The Rotary Club’s motto is “Service Above Self”.
Rosa Ibarra |
THE ROTARY Club meets every second and fourth
Wednesday of the month at 2nd Federal Savings, 26th &
Pulaski Rd. [conference room] at 8:30 a.m. Rosa
Ibarra is the President of the Little Village Rotary Club. Manny also works with
the “Gift of Hope” to raise awareness for more Hispanics to become organ
donors. For more information, call Manny Martinez at 773/521-3972.
ATTEND LITTLE VILLAGE COMMUNITY MEETINGS
BE INFORMED, BE INVOLVED
CALL 773/522-2552