My friend and Queen of Community Service, Linda Medina invited me to talk at Saturday’s Hispanic Futures Conference. I think she already knew I coudn’t say no since I serve on the community advisory council. I’m looking forward to it not only because I can talk to kids in their language (yes, I am a big niño) but because I can talk to them about creating possibilities through entrepreneurship which for me just means being creative, innovative & dreaming big!

I’m a late bloomer. I didn’t know what I wanted to do when I was young and I kind of just landed in the work I do. The good thing is that I enjoy it, am passionate about it and that’s what keeps me going. If you have that, the creativity and the ideas will follow. I want to make the connection between the “real world” and going to college for the kids at the conference. This is a message kids don’t really hear too much about but I think it’s an important one; it’s a way to connect the dots to the longterm benefits of finishing school.    I think if we had more teaching moments like these, we would have more kids understanding the importance of finishing high school and going to college, especially the kids that really need help in our communities.

I’ll let you know how it goes or you can check it out yourself and join us at the Hispanic Futures Conference.

Hispanic Futures Conference

Travis High School

1211 E. Oltorf

8:15am – 1:00pm

Y’all know I’m all about community and especially on the weekend cuz I like to have fun. I’ve got a full plate this weekend and want to see my peeps out there too. So estan invitados! Check out what’s in store!

7th Annual Conference on Economic Opportunity
Saturday, October 24th
Time: 8:30 – 3PM
ACC Eastview Campus
Cost: $15 per ticket

PeopleFund’s Conference on Economic Opportunity (formerly the East Austin Economic Summit) unites community members, business leaders, and policy makers throughout the region in a dynamic dialogue about our region’s evolving economy. From adult education and job opportunities to affordable housing options, the Conference addresses the key issues facing low- to moderate-income communities, and highlights strategies for creating opportunity for Central Texans. Come join the conversation on October 24th, 2009 at ACC’s Eastview Campus and learn more about resources available in your community!

This year’s program features:

• Twelve interactive sessions led by expert panelists on topics including Affordable Housing, Foreclosure Prevention, Marketing, Small Business and the Credit Crisis, Urban Agriculture, Art and the Local Economy, Transportation and many more!
• Fantastic keynote speakers including David Hinson, President Obama’s newly appointed National Director of the Minority Business Development Agency.
• Interactive density presentation by HousingWorksEconomic Outlook presentation and discussion with Suzi Sosa, President of MPOWER Foundation
• Closing Kuumba performance by ProArts Collective

To learn more about the Conference on Economic Opportunity, go to www.peoplefund.org, email ayleen@peoplefund.org, or call Ayleen Perez at 472.8087.

Mac and Cheese Smackdown and Children’s Festival

Benefiting Theatre Action Project

Saturday, October 24th

12:00-6:00pm

Central Market North

Mac and Cheese Smackdown: 4:30-6:00pm

Three of the best Macaroni & Cheese dishes in town and the Executive Chefs who created those dishes will be going head to head in a smack down competition on the Central Market North Lamar Cafe deck!

Hoover Alexander of Hoover’s Cooking, Lou Lambert of Lambert’s Downtown Barbecue, and Stewart Scruggs of Zoot Restaurant will compete in a friendly cook-off for bragging rights of Austin best Macaroni & Cheese dish.

The judges will consist of Addie Broyles, Austin-American Statesmen food writer, Mando Rayo of tacojournalism.com (now I’ll have to start a Mac and Chees blog – Ahh no!), the award-winning Austin food blog and Austin restaurant review writer Rob Balon from Fox 7 News and KLBJ Radio.

The Smack Down emcee is Sam Armstrong, food writer for Austinist.com, L Style G Style Magazine, and Austin Monthly Magazine.

Xemumba – Un Festival de Musica Latina

Saturday, October 24

10:00am – Midnight

Kenny Dorham’s Backyard

Xemumba is La Madre of all Bemba Entertainment events. This is the one that inspired founder, Brandon Badillo, to go into the event promotion biz.

Labor Day weekend of 2007, Xemumba was born. Pronounced She-moom-bah, Brandon created this festival as a means to raise funds for Francisco Badillo, his Abuelo. Francisco was battling cancer at the time and had accrued quite a debt from hospital bills. Brandon had a knack for throwing great themed parties and had wanted to create one that would embody the many sounds and cultures of Central and South America and do it for a great cause. Xemumba 07 will forever live in the memories of those who attended.

Xemumba began as an idea and was planted. With love and passion to nurture, it sprouted into a beautiful annual event. It continues to give back to the community as the community gives to it. Each year, a portion of Xemumba’s proceeds are donated to non profit organizations. This year’s beneficiaries are Lupe Arte and National Hispanic Institute.

This is an all ages festival that will take place at 1106 East 11th St. This is the perfect location for this all day event.

Get your tickets here or check out more information on their Facebook page.

Plaza Saltillo Volunteer Work Day

Saturday, October 24, 2009

9:00 AM – 12:00PM

Plaza Saltillo in East Austin

Join my friend and Futuro Fund Founder, John-Michael Vincent Cortez in keeping East Austin beautiful.

From JMVC’s Facebook page:

We have another fun work day planned for Saturday, October 24. This will be the second major volunteer day in the larger effort to revive Plaza Saltillo. Thanks to a Keep Austin Beautiful Grant and Landscape Designer Ilse Frank, we have a new planting plan for the Plaza and trees and plants ready for us to put in the ground. Join us on the 24th do show everyone your green thumb and to learn more about the project’s future goals.

Bring: Water, Hats, Sunscreen

Wear: Clothes to get dirty in.

We will provide: coffee, tacos, tools and directions

Learn more or sign up on their Facebook page.

Hope to see you out there!

Mando

Stepping up to lead is not an easy task. It takes courage, commitment and ganas, especially in this town. Yes, it’s hard to step up when there aren’t a lot of us in leadership roles in this community. Just look at the make-up of our City Council (1 Hispanic) and the make-up of our boards in the nonprofit sector. But we must step up if we want to change our representation and tackle the issues facing our community.  That’s exactly what my friend and Futuro Fund co-hort, Raul Alvarez is doing.  Raul knows that we all have a role to play and he’s doing his part for Austin; from community organizer to Austin City Council member and now to Travis County Commissioner.  Raul is running for Travis County Commissioner Precinct 4 and he needs our support!  Let’s show Austin that Latinos are civicly involved and we have the people power and the ganas to lead this community!

Feliz Diez y Seis! I was playing around with Garage Band last night and came up with this cool Mexican/Xicano playlist. I took out my vinyl coleccion to share some good Diez y Seis inspired musica – El Chente, Los Lobos, Javier Solis, Linda Rondstadt y mas! So shut down that Pandora and give El Mundo de Mando a try!

Warning! This was my first attempt so don’t get distracted by my ums and background noises. There’s even a surprise ending!

To start jammin’ out, just click on the player!

!Ahora Si! – Austin American-Statesman’s Spanish newspaper just published an opinion piece I wrote for 9/11 United We Serve and Latinos giving back. Si Se Puede, right? Check it out…

Un pueblo Unido, jamas sera vencido

“Un pueblo unido, jamas sera vencido,” We all know the rallying cry; it’s part of our history, our culture – it’s what gives us the ganas to fight for our rights, opportunities and our freedoms. It’s as old as Latin American revolutions to ‘Yes We can’ campaigns of today. We know it, a lot of us live it and we need to not only continue the mantra but take action!

And we must because our community needs our help. We have families living in poverty, managing two or more jobs and trying to put food on the table; our workers are earning non-livable wages; our kids aren’t prepared for school and dropping out; families are living with out health insurance and benefits. Yes, these are daunting problems but what we have in common is our Si Se Puede attitudes, ganas y el pueblo unido! It is for these reasons; we’ve been able to overcome many obstacles in our history.

Today is no different, in fact, we might have tougher battles to fight but we can do it if we come together as a community. We can make things better for our families, neighbors and generations to come. We can reach out to our neighbors & stay connected and we can volunteer and inspire our friends & family members to give back. As director of community engagement at United Way, I’ve seen what Latinos can do when they give back. We started with VIVIR UNIDOS this summer and can continue with United We Serve – Austin.

President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama have announced a nationwide service initiative, United We Serve, spanning 81 days, culminating with a National Day of Service and Remembrance on September 11. These 81 days will be the beginning of a sustained, collaborative, and focused effort to meet community needs and make service a way of life for everyone.

So why don’t you join me! Answer the call – Help your community & become a volunteer! At United Way, we have volunteer projects and trainings that will help you get started. Call 2-1-1 or go to www.vivirunidos.org.

Help make Austin, un pueblo unido!

By Armando Rayo

Director, Community Engagement

Hands On Central Texas – United Way Capital Area

Opinión: Si te conviertes en voluntario, serás la solución

“Un pueblo unido jamás será vencido”. Todos hemos escuchado la consigna, es parte de nuestra historia y cultura.

Es lo que nos da las ganas de luchar por nuestros derechos, oportunidades y libertades. Ha sido tan popular durante las revoluciones latinoamericanas como las campañas de hoy y su “Sí se puede”. La conocemos, muchos la vivimos y ahora sólo falta pasar del dicho a los hechos.

Debemos actuar porque nuestra comunidad necesita de nuestra ayuda. Tenemos familias que viven en la pobreza y que trabajan dos o tres turnos para poner comida en la mesa. Nuestros trabajadores ganan sueldos que no alcanzan para cubrir las necesidades básicas. Nuestros hijos no están preparados para la escuela y desertan.

Hay familias que no tienen seguro de salud ni beneficios laborales. Cierto, estos problemas graves ¡pero tenemos en común la actitud positiva del “sí se puede”, las ganas y el pueblo unido! Es por esto que hemos logrado sobrepasar muchos obstáculos en nuestra historia.

Hoy no es muy distinto. De hecho, quizá tendremos que luchar batallas más duras pero podremos hacerlo si logramos unirnos como una comunidad.

Podemos aliviar la situación de nuestras familias, vecinos y futuras generaciones. Podemos conectarnos con nuestros vecinos y podemos convertirnos en voluntarios e inspirar a nuestros amigos y parientes a devolverle una mano a la comunidad.

Como director de participación comunitaria de United Way, he visto lo que los latinos pueden hacer cuando trabajar por el prójimo. Empezamos con “Vivir Juntos” este verano y continuaremos con “Juntos Servimos” (o “United We Serve” en inglés) en Austin.

El presidente Barack Obama y la primera dama Michelle Obama anunciaron una iniciativa de servicio nacional, “Juntos Servimos”, que durará 81 días y terminará con un Día Nacional de Servicio y el 11 de septiembre.

Estos 81 días son el comienzo de un esfuerzo sostenido, colaborativo y focalizado para satisfacer las necesidades de la comunidad y hacer del servicio una forma de vida para todos.

¿Por qué no te nos unes? ¡Atiende la llamada, ayuda a tu comunidad y ofrécete como voluntario! En United Way tenemos proyectos de voluntariado y capacitación que te permitirán empezar este camino. Llama al 2-1-1 o visita www.vivirunidos.org.

¡Ayuda a que Austin sea un pueblo unido!

Armando Rayo es director de Participación Comunitaria, Vivir Unidos – United Way Capital Area

Yeah, go Latinos! I did a round up of Latinos getting some love from the Best of Austin Chronicle 09. Muchos props to Austin Chronicle staff (see critic’s picks) for highlight the good work of the hardest working Latinos in Austin. We’re movin’ on up!

From the Best of Austin Chronicle 09

Critics Picks…

Best Municipal Rocker: Bobby Garza (far left)
The demands of being a City Council aide are tough enough – with a scant seven council members for a city of almost 800,000, aides act as de facto council members themselves, sussing out the issues for each office. Despite the workload, Bobby Garza, family man and executive assistant to Mayor Pro Tem Mike Martinez, finds time to – what else? – rock. He’s a singer and percussionist with reunited Latino indie rockers Maneja Beto, and also sat on the high-profile Live Music Task Force. Crank the agenda up to 11, Bobby!

Best Ode to the (Namesake of the) Road on Which It Resides: Rayo de Esperanza

photo by Sandy Carson

Right outside the Terrazas Branch Library she looms. The César E. Chávez Memorial Project – awarded by the city of Austin Art in Public Places program to Connie Arismendi and Laura Garanzuay – is a literal nighttime beacon as brilliant as its potential to inspire hope. Like a (no disrespect intended) bat signal to justice, freedom, and equality, this soaring United Farm Workers phoenix ignites the night and reminds us that: ¡Sí se puede! … because yes we did! And with due diligence and the dedication to create a better world, yes, we will again!

Best Place to Discover Latino Music: Austin
From such old-school promoters as Jerry Avila on Primetime Tejano and Isidoro Lopez on KOOP Radio’s Fiesta Musical and the Premios Texas awards hosted by Austin’s Univisión affiliate to longtime Horizontes host Michael Crockett on KUT, to Johnny Ramirez’s Indie Live Austin, to Paul Saucido over on ME TV (and beyond), to youngblood promoters like Brandon Badillo, to Alba Peña’s Conexion Rockera website, to new festivals like Pachanga Fest, and the monthlong events of Latino Music Month — there’s no reason, no way, no how for anyone in Austin to say they don’t know what’s going on in Latino music. And let’s not forget Alicia Zertuche’s work pumping up the Latino music presence at South by Southwest. Old, new, cutting edge, folky, funky, and fabulous, Austin is quickly becoming the city to watch for what’s happening in Latino music outside the usual places of New York, Miami, and Los Angeles. Pachanga Fest, which had its second successful festival earlier this year, promises to be the next must-hit Latino music festival in the nation. Yeah, that’s right. You read it here first.

Best of the Fests: Pachanga Festival
With a lot of ambition and heart, Pachanga Fest ‘08 showed a lot of promise to annually showcase Latino musicians in a fun festival setting. In ‘09, however, Pachanga Fest truly lived up to its potential with a dazzling array of acts that included the edgy Mexican Institute of Sound, the all-female Mariachi Las Alteñas, the eclectic Los Bad Apples, and hot hot hot singer/accordionist A.J. Castillo. That’s what founders Rich Garza and A.J. Vallejo were hoping for, and it’s a good indicator that for t

Hardest Working Vato in the Music Biz: Paul Saucido
Remember last year when ME Television started to go down in flames and laid off everyone? Well, ME TV is still around (barely), and when it started to get its act together, the first thing it did was rehire VJ Paul Saucido. Even if ME TV goes away, Saucido will survive. VJ job? He don’t need no stinkin’ VJ job! As soon as the ground started to crumble, Saucido went to work on his own website (saucidoslant5.blogspot.com), providing regular commentary on Indieoma.com, hosting music shows all around town, and generally working it. Most people would have ditched Austin. (In fact, Saucido pulled a good April Fools’ prank on Facebook when he announced that he was leaving Austin and going back to Los Angeles. The response was swift, forlorn, and heartfelt. Funny, Paul. Very funny.) Who knows what’s going to happen at ME TV. But for Saucido, the only way to land is feet first, facing the sky.

Most Socially Responsible Hip-Hop Crew: The Cipher

Best 3am Grocery Shopping, 1997: Fiesta Mart

Best Way To Keep the Conversation Going: Southwest Key

Best On-Air Mayor of East Austin: Isidoro Lopez, KOOP-FM

Best Mayor of South Austin: Mayo Pardo, Jovita’s

Best Cool Down With a Cold One: Rabbit’s Lounge

Best Museum Refreshment: Mexic-Arte Paletas

Best Drowning Flautas: The Screaming Goat

Best Eastside Juiciness: Veracruz All Natural

Best Farmers’ Market Maestra: Suzanne Santos of the Sustainable Food Center

Reader’s Poll…

Best Council Member: Mike Martinez
Community: It’s what he saved in his many years battling fires and what focuses his vision during his years thus far on Austin’s City Council. His leadership on diversity issues, including spearheading the Hispanic Quality of Life Initiative and his continued visibility as a firmly entrenched East Austinite make Mike Martinez a continued favorite of our readers and beyond.

Best Bathroom: Vivo

Best Bar Staff: Nomad – Peeps from EPT!

Felicidades to everyone! Check out all the ganadores at the Austin Chronicle!

Mando

The long awaited results are in! Last Spring the Austin City Council commissioned the Hispanic Quality of Life Study to find out how Latinos fare in this fine city. Well, we’re about to find out. Although some of us already know the results; just take a look at our income & educational attainment levels & poverty rates! Adelante Solutions was hired to conduct the study through a series of forums and surveys and now they will present their finding’s tomorrow at Austin City Council chambers.

So why don’t you take an hour break, step out of the office and your casita & show your support for this very important community initiative.  I’ll be there and hope to see nuestra gente there!

Mando

Hispanic Quality of Life Presentation

Thursday, August 27, 2009

10:30am

Austin City Council Chambers

I was recently on a social media panel with some pretty amazing nonprofiteers (Neff, Turner, Davenport & Adams) at the 501 Tech Club. We discussed how we use social media (FB, Twitter, YouTube, Linkedin, etc.) to engage our volunteers, donors and peeps.  I was amazed by the turnout. There are lots of people utilzing these new tools and even more wanting to know how to best use them. I am a big fan of social media so I’ll be the first one to tell you to start picking it up!  Interested in learning more about it?  Here’s an article I wrote for GivingCity Magazine – The Guide to Doing Good in Austin.

Any nonprofits using social media out there already? How do you use it? How does it help your nonprofit?

Inquiring minds want to know!

My friend Jorge shared this great video with me on Facebook. It was so good I had to post it. And now for all you MJ & Mariachi fans, I present…Yas Beat it!

I just received an invitation to the White House Initiative Community Conversation featuring Juan Sepulveda, E.D. of the White House Initiative on Educational Excellence for Hispanic Americans. In collaboration with Austin Community College, they are hosting a community conversation to discuss the following items…

1) How Latino education attainment can and should be improved; and

2) what the White House Initiative should be doing.

The information gleaned from these sessions will be recorded and/or collected and will serve as the foundation for the new presidential executive order that will govern the White House Initiative and will be signed by President Barack Obama.

White House Community Conversation

Wednesday, July 15

Session I 11:30 – 12:20pm

Session II 12:30 – 2:00pm

ACC South – 1830 W. Stassney Lane, Room 1130

Please RSVP to Linda Young, Special Assistant to the President for External Affairs, Austin Community College District, 512 223-7070 or lyoung@austincc.edu.  For more information about the event, contact Glorimar Nosal, marketing-communications manager, White House Initiative, at 202-401-0078 or Glorimar.Nosal@ed.gov.