To walk in someone else's shoes ‘Under My Sombrero'

Florida — When you have a great idea, you don’t keep it under your hat. Migrants from Mexico who come to this area for temporary farm work are often shy, speak little English, and tend to stay to themselves. While people in the surrounding communities are aware of their presence, the language and cultural barriers are rarely, if ever, crossed. There is a feeling of isolation among the migrants. It is intimidating for them to be a minority in an English-speaking culture that appears merely to co-exist with them. Some of the children attend local schools and have learned to speak English and have become involved with Hispanic clubs that allow them to share their heritage with their American-born schoolmates. The “Under My Sombrero” project extends that opportunity to the wider community — an idea whose time has come. The project is the brainchild of Eileen McMann, former director of the ABCD Headstart Program at the Alamo in Florida, N.Y. Judy Duboff, an art therapist who volunteered at the center, said McMann wanted to conduct workshops with the migrant workers and their children. Duboff found she was volunteering more and more time and in fact had gotten her art therapy intern to volunteer as well. She decided it would be a good idea to apply for a grant from the Arts in Orange organization to cover some of the costs. Another art therapist and painter, Pat Quinn, thought of the name “Under My Sombrero” as the Mexican equivalent of the expression “to be in my shoes” — a way for the community to enter into the experience and culture of migrant workers. Duboff and the adults in her clay workshops began making bowls at her Amity Arts studio on Route 17A in Goshen. The workers and children at the Migrant Education Center gathered to paint them. They decided to fill the bowls with soup and sell them for $5 each at the Florida Farmers’ Market to raise money for the hungry. The idea was a spin-off of “The Empty Bowl Project,” in which potters raise money for the hungry by selling handmade bowls filled with food. An amazing thing happened at the farmers’ market. A woman named Janet, who sells her homebaked bread at the market, donated enough jalapeno bread for the 70 people who purchased the soup-filled pots. Another woman, Dominique, who has an organic farm, donated the flowers that she grew. More and more people wanted to get involved. “What’s incredible,” said Duboff, “is how many people have gotten involved since we started this.” Their efforts were so well-received, they were invited to give a bowl-making workshop, titled “Art and Compassion,” in Westchester for the Mustard Seed Ministry, which has an order of nuns on Mountainside Road in Florida. The nonprofit ministry sponsored a grant to allow the group to offer more workshops. The group will spend $700 left over from last year’s grant and fundraising efforts to buy supplies for future workshops. Marji Zintz, a guitar teacher, will conduct music workshops. Pat Quinn started a mural workshop with the help of Kevin Buckland, a recent college graduate who spent six months in Puebla learning Spanish. The mural depicts Puebla, Mexico, the hometown of many of the migrant workers. Duboff is conducting a clay workshop to make replicas of Puebla’s houses and its clay church. One of the workers, who helped build the original church in his hometown, made a drawing of it for the workshop participants to copy. Marilyn Bridges came up with an idea for an exchange program in which migrant workers would share what they know in their own workshops and attend workshops given by volunteers. Spanish speakers who wish to learn English will be matched with English speakers who would like to learn Spanish. A man from Honduras named Pedro will be conducting a workshop to show how hammocks are made in his native country. This workshop will be open to all. Other ideas include knitting, needlepoint, cooking, herbal cures and healing techniques, traditional storytelling, and dance workshops. By learning more about each other’s cultures, the organizers believe, everyone in the community will grow together in a bond of understanding and acceptance. With all of the bad things happening in the world, Duboff said, it feels wonderful to be a part of something this good. For more information, call Duboff at 651-1170.