Faces of the Harvest

By JACE DICOLA

Jace.DiCola@gjsentinel.com

The Palisade Peach Festival featured an array of peach-themed foods and activities, from a “peach cuisine throwdown” to a peach-eating contest.

According to Mesa County Libraries, the celebration once known as Peach Day started in 1887. For the first time, in more than 100 years of festivities, the event featured the very people responsible for planting, growing and picking those peaches.

At the festival’s entrance, attendees were welcomed by the Faces of The Harvest Exhibit: a collection of 150 photographs of local migrant farm workers, accompanied by an overview of the community’s experiences.

According to La Plaza Executive Director Iriana Medina Leo, the display was a much-needed recognition of the people who make Palisade agriculture possible.

“They were saying things like, ‘I wish people here in town wouldn’t treat us the way (some of them) do when we go to the store, or they wouldn’t look at us sideways.’ That’s how it occurred to me, let’s do a project where we show … the faces and what they’re (contributing) here,” Medina said.

“We’re doing this project for the fun of it and the need of it.”

Medina added that the concept stemmed from a survey of the migrant community’s top needs, as visibility was one of the top three.

In partnership with the Palisade Chamber of Commerce, La Plaza debuted the project last year, but it had focused more on the myths around the H-2A visa program and the legitimacy of such workers.

With the success of that endeavor, Medina partnered with Palisade photographer Lisa Levy Kral — owner of Dancing in my Head Photography — to capture some of the many faces who played a role in producing the peaches and wine that play such a large role in Grand Valley culture.

Medina said the revamped exhibit’s intention was two-fold: empowering the seasonal workers and educating the community on the reality of legal migrant work.

“We want to nicely tell the people that are antagonists of immigrants, ‘We’re just here to provide for our families and become a part of society,” Medina said. “There is room here for everyone, and we’re not a threat.”

“The diversity that we bring to the community is what enhances and makes the community better,” she added. “How boring would it be if everything was uniform, that we all thought the same, had the same tastes and wanted to do the same things?”

La Plaza Community Outreach Worker Anahi Perea, who studied

See FACES, page 4A ➤

A few of the many farming faces and names at La Plaza’s “Faces of the Harvest” exhibit are seen Saturday at the annual Palisade Peach Festival, where more than 150 photographs of local migrant farm workers are displayed for festival goers to see who has hand in putting peach harvest together.

Photos by LARRY ROBINSON/ The Daily Sentinel

People gather Saturday in the shade in front of La Plaza’s “Faces of the Harvest” exhibit at the annual Palisade Peach Festival during the second day of the festival.

Anahi Perea, La Plaza community outreach worker, Stands in front of the “Faces of the Harvest” exhibit at the annual Palisade Peach Festival on Saturday. Perea accompanied the photographer who took the photos of the more than 150 faces of the migrants who work in the peach orchards in an effort to distill the migrant community experience for others to learn.

➤ Continued from page 1A

archaeology at the National School of Anthropology and History in Mexico City, accompanied the photographer in an effort to distill the migrant community experience for others to learn.

She said there are many obstacles that migrant farm workers face, like the language and access to medical care. But, she said that a sense of community belonging could be a significant first step in reducing those barriers.

Perea added that, in the past, the disconnect was clear when looking around the Peach Festival, as few of the farmers behind the produce could be found.

Similarly, she said there are many misconceptions about migrant

farmers. According to her, agriculture isn’t a last resort for many of the workers, as many people might think. Rather, it’s a passion that many of them are well acquainted with and consider a part of themselves.

“Most of the farmers, their job in Mexico was the same, in the farmers field,” Perea said. “This is why they come here and love these kind of jobs. It’s not just a job, it’s part of their heart.”

“They want to come here and work specifically in the fields because they feel safety, and it’s a (special) kind of lifestyle,” she added. “This is why Palisade has the best peaches and wins awards for the wines and these kind of things. It’s very special how they take care of the peaches.”

All the exhibit’s subjects were unnamed, given the potential security risks, but two participants spoke with The Daily Sentinel.

One of the participants said she feels that many people don’t understand the sacrifices migrant workers make to work in the U.S., sharing how one of her co-workers had to travel to the U.S. a day before his wife gave birth. Otherwise, his approval to enter the country would have expired.

By the time his 10-month work visa ends, he will have missed almost all of his child’s infancy.

“Nobody wants to stay 10 months away from their family for nothing.” she said. “It’s because they need to put bread on the table for the family.”

Another participant said he feels like the Grand Valley is much friendlier than some of the previous places he worked in Tennessee and Pennsylvania.

Still, there are many spaces in the community where he feels like his presence makes people with preconceived notions uncomfortable.

It isn’t something he holds a grudge over, as he hopes that projects like Faces of the Harvest will introduce the community to the real versions of who he and other migrant farmers are.

“I want people to know who, right here (in town), works for your peaches or your peach ice cream,” he said. “It’s important for me to say, ‘Hey, (this is me), I work for you, and enjoy your ice cream.’”

People on Saturday view La Plaza’s “Faces of the Harvest” exhibit at the annual Palisade Peach Festival, where over 150 photographs of local migrant farm workers are displayed for festival goers to see who has hand in putting peach harvest together. Some of those who are photographed said they feel many people don’t understand the sacrifices migrant workers make to work in the U.S.

LARRY ROBINSON/ The Daily Sentinel