By Sebastian Bautista

Hispanic Heritage Month is extremely important to me because I am a first-generation Mexican American on my father's side and a third-generation Mexican American on my mother's side. My rich cultural background and the struggles of my ancestors have served as a strong foundation for many of my values and inspiration in my life. Life was much more difficult for them, but they laid the groundwork to enhance the lives of generations to come.
 
My grandparents on my father's side, Martin and Josefina Bautista, were born in Jalisco, Mexico. In their 20's they arrived in the U.S. and worked tirelessly in agriculture in Coachella Valley, California, to achieve the necessities needed to form a better life for themselves. They knew that there would be a better future for their children in America. With minimal English, my grandfather worked to get promoted to foreman and eventually started his own date palm business. My father and his brother worked on those date palms all year long along with their parents when they were not studying or in school. This meant pollinating the trees in 115+ degree weather or watering them in the middle of the night to make sure they didn't freeze during the cold winters. This risk and hard work paid off as his two sons (my dad and uncle) were able to attend and graduate from Cal Poly Pomona. Sadly, my grandfather passed away in 2016, when I was just 16 years old.
 
My great grandparents on my mother's side came to the U.S. during the early 1900s as laborers. My great grandfather Hermenegildo Lemus (my grandmother's father) came from Michoacan, Mexico to work in Simons brickyard in Montebello, California. He helped make the bricks that built many of the early structures in Los Angeles such as City Hall. My great grandfather Manuel Carlos (my grandfather's father) arrived in the U.S. from Zacatecas, Mexico to work on the expanding railroads in Los Angeles. My grandfather Jose Carlos (my mother's father) grew up in Boyle Heights. After surviving polio and then tuberculosis, he worked in public health. Eventually, he became a prominent advocate for Hispanic and community causes mostly in public health. He collaborated with people such as Cesar Chavez to create change for the Hispanic community. My grandfather also served on multiple health commissions in Sacramento and was an appointee of two California governors on the California Health Facilities Commission. The work he did had a lasting impact long after his passing in 1992.
 
The opportunities afforded to me were made possible due to the great role models my ancestors were and the foundational Hispanic heritage values that were passed down to me such as hard work, perseverance, and dedication to a goal. I'm proud and extremely grateful to be Hispanic and to have the opportunity to represent my heritage on the UCI cross country and track team. I feel lucky to have had the chance to compete in this amazing sport that I love because I know that there are countless others like me who have the same dream to run at the college level and think it might be foolish and out of reach, but I am proof that it is possible. It's surreal because I started running at the age of 7 and fell in love with it immediately. I have run every cross country and track season since then and when I found out that running in college existed, that was my goal to achieve. I have had my fair share of injuries and lows in this sport but have always persevered and kept my head high when times got tough. I did things I never knew were possible for me such as leading my high school team to qualify for the state meet for the first time in school history, being league champion in cross country my senior year, and now running for a Division 1 college team. I am majoring in mechanical engineering and the experience of trying to earn my degree while balancing athletics, school, and even work has been a difficult one but extremely rewarding.
 
Despite all the trials and tribulations that my grandparents faced, the one common element that I learned from their experiences as Hispanics is the importance that they placed on the value of education, hard work, and perseverance. I've taken these life lessons and fully realized how fortunate I am to be where I am in life because of the sacrifices they made. I am also appreciative of the fond memories and all the stories of my ancestors that I can pull strength from. Being Hispanic to me means having the rich history of my Mexican ancestors along with the wonderful freedoms of being American. I couldn't be more grateful to have both.