Don Rogelio's Benefit Dinner

Saturday, July 3rd 2-8pm Mariquita Farm Home Ranch, Watsonville

With this dinner, which was a fabulous, delicious success, we were able to gift to Don Rogelio enough to cover his living expenses for a few more months while he continues to heal.

For yet more photos and George's story about the dinner

Michoacan Feast Photos
More to the right at the bottom

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nopal salad

Jessica stirring the cauldron of beans. Yum! Hector eating a taco, grilled onions on the homemade comal
Pico de Gallo

This is a photo of Don Rogelio at his niece Angela's first birthday party.

Thanks to Jane Wong for the lemons, Yi Ling for the chiles perones & cucumbers, Happy Boy Farms for the tomatoes, Tom and Mima of Carried Away for the huge cooking pot, Kim and George for the chairs, Jessica and Isabel for cooking, Rosy for making the nopal salad, and many more donations.

A big big thanks to Don Gerardo and Don Miguel for taking the lead on the goat cooking and prepping!

In June 2004 an employee of Mariquita Farm, Rogelio Barrajas Aguilar, was injured in a traffic accident. Rogelio was not the driver but a back seat passenger. The driver, Jeremias Espana, also an employee of ours, was driving westbound on highway 129 when another driver pulled out from River Oaks Saloon directly into their path. She was drunk. She had been refused drinks at River Oaks and was on her way to a friendlier liquor store. Witnesses at River Oaks said she was despondent and had pulled out in front of a big rig earlier in the day. Jermemias and his wife Domitila were bruised and shook-up but grateful to be alive. The drunk driver was o.k. Don Rogelio took a hell of a blow to the chest where the safety belt crossed his sternum and broke some ribs. Rogelio is glad to be alive but he is still in too much pain to return to work. At present it still hurts him to pick up a gallon jug of juice from the refrigerator. An operation after the accident served to drain fluid from the wound to the chest and he is getting better, but slowly. He is falling behind on his rent and can't send money home to Michoacan. Julia and I have decided to put on a benefit dinner at our home to help raise money for Rogelio. I have in mind to cook up a kid goat and all the trimmings with the help of Don Gerardo, Roge's friend and brother in law. Isabel, Don Gerardo's daughter and Rogelio's niece will help, as will her sister Rosy. Some of you will remember that Isabel taught a memorable class on making tamales from scratch in our kitchen. She is a great cook. Some of you will remember Rosy who helped us at market all winter long while there was no work in the strawberry fields. The food at this dinner was great with everything coming from our farm except the tortillas and chilis. All money earned from the dinner goes to Don Rogelio. -Andy

THANKS to the following folks for donating to Rogelio's 'fund' (this is in no paticular order...)

Brenda & Thomas Schmida, Katie Peck, Noelle Blau, Jean Doyle, Ralph Riddle, Pim, Victoria Smiser, David Forer, Martha M., Jenny Overstreet, Richard Sears, Tonia Baker, Barbara Berkeley, Virginia Phillips, Sylvia M. Reader, Anne Mitchell, Robert Harris, Cornelia Woodworth & Rodney Brown, Kat Caffall & Cynthia Morris, Thomas & David Daley, Marshall & Judith Connell, The Reader Family, Michael & Devera Witkin, Holly Henrickson, Michelle R.-D., Carla Fried, Carol Henry, Ron Critchley, Anonymous, Patty U., Greg Muck, Anonymous, Annabelle, Katherine Niven, Familia Kohler, Krista & Zach, Anonymous, Kurt Schaeffer, Kathy Shikatami, Ellene Shapiro, Arezoo & Doug, Carol Vega, Julie Skilton, Marisa & Gary Gratny

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Isabel Vargas
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Dinner!
grilled onions & Rosa click to enlarge to the left is salsa roja