These were the elders that were a part of my daily life in Morenci. They came to the United States from Teocaltiche, Mexico, bringing their language and customs with them. None of them had an education beyond grammar school, but they were the wisest people I have ever known.

My grandmother's family came to El Paso in 1902 and later moved to Fresno where she met my grandfather. After they were married, they moved to Morenci in 1911. My grandfather had previously lived and worked in Morenci when one of the mines opened in 1905.

This is a photo of my maternal grandmother, Josefa Cruz Limón with two of her daughters, Carlota and Cesaria. Grandma Pepa, as she was known by her grandchildren and great-grandchildren, was married to Atanacio Limón and had three daughters. My grandmother, Teresa, was the oldest, born in 1893 in Teocaltiche, Mexico. Grandma Pepa was a partera and a curandera in Morenci, delivering many of the Mexican babies. Her husband, Atanacio, was blinded in a mining accident and Grandma had to support them by taking in laundry from the hospital. Later, when Carlota and Cesaria died, she raised their children. I remember her as she was after her stroke, paralyzed and unable to speak. When we visited my Mama Teresita's house, we went to Grandma Pepa's room first to kiss her hand. She sat on the edge of her bed with a quilt covering her legs. I could see in her eyes all the stories she could no longer vocalize. She was a strong, determined, and spiritual woman, so I can imagine how difficult it must have been for her not to be able to walk or talk. Yet in spite of her incapacitation, she kept her family together.

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