My name is Yaneira Romero and currently working with Lara Media Services as their Cause Marketing Assistant while also contributing to the Spanish Yellow Pages on the side. I would like to take this time to let you know more about myself being that I am one of the new staff members here at Lara Media Services. I graduated from the University of Portland this past summer with my Bachelor’s Degree in Social Work and minored in both Spanish and Sociology. Currently I am working on my Masters in Social Work at Portland State University while interning at Gresham High School (where I graduated from in 2008) with the Step Up program which supports 9th graders who have been labeled “at risk” and receive special tutoring and counseling. I have a great passion for community service and social justice and have had extensive experience working with Latino youth and domestic violence survivors. My ultimate goal is to continue to work with the Latino community and hopefully attend Law school in the near future to work in the field of Immigration Law.
Using my experiences in community service and internships as a social worker I have been able to gather great resources and information for our Latino community to utilize. One of these great resources is a program called Arts for All. This is a program dedicated to making $5 tickets available to Oregon Trail Card (Food Stamp Card) holders in the Portland, Oregon area. It collaborates with 32 theaters, music and dance organizations including the Oregon Symphony, the Portland Ballet, and the Portland Children’s Museum.
The Arts for All program was set-up and organized by members of Go Classical PDX (GCPDX), an association of classical music organizations in the Portland tri-county region. Support is provided by Regional Arts & Culture Council (RACC), Work for Art, the City of Portland, and All Classical 89.9 FM.
While growing up, I was never able to attend art exhibits or dance or music performances. The expensive prices created a barrier for my parents whom made it difficult for them to expose me to the arts and to help me learn about various cultures and ways of thinking that are expressed through music, dance and theatre. Now as an adult, I am very proud of what Arts for All is doing to open the doors to absolutely everyone who wants to learn about the beauty of art.
Being that Christmas is around the corner I wanted to let you all know about one event in particular that is coming up at the Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall this Saturday December 15th, 2012 which is called Fiesta Navidad. This event features Nati Cano and his exceptional Mariachi group Los Camperos who will be performing Christmas music al estilo Mexico. Arts for All is collaborating and offering $5 tickets for this event when you present your Oregon Trail Card (Food Stamp card) maximum of 4 tickets per card. Just drop by the box office with your card to purchase tickets or call the box office and just mention the promo code “Chuy” and you’ll also be able to purchase tickets for $5 each. This is a great opportunity to enjoy a great performance at a beautiful concert hall that you don’t want to miss.
Throughout the year I will continue posting resources and events for all to attend so stay posted!
For more information about the Fiesta Navidad, visit the Oregon Symphony website or call them at 503-228-1353 for more information.