Building Hope in Rosarito
It took four days for young volunteer foreigners to build nine homes in the Plan Libertador and Los Ramos neighborhoods. These young volunteers belong to the group called “Building Hope.” They build housing for low-income families with a budget of about $1,800 (U.S.) per home.

Building Hope is an organization of Christian pastors who each year coordinate these events during school holidays for students from a variety of countries such as: Australia, Germany, Canada, England and the U.S. They build homes for low-income families in the Tijuana and Playas de Rosarito region.

The materials for construction are obtained by various means in each of their own communities during the entire year. This year they are building homes whose total cost amounted to $1,800 for single homes, and $3,800 (U.S) for duplexes. The families who are to live in them paid nothing. To achieve this, groups of 17 volunteers, together with the families whose home it is, spend four days building the home. Double that number for the duplexes. The families and the volunteers work together from 8:30 in the morning until 4 p.m. each of the four days.

This holiday period the volunteers camped out in Tijuana from Monday, April 10 to Friday, April 14. In response to their request, Rosarito City Councilwoman América Soto Villa gave them permission to camp out in Rosarito's City Park, as the trip back and forth to Tijuana was too lengthy. Unfortunately the park is being remodeled at this time, but they will be able to use it when they return in the summer.

The spokesperson for “Building Hope,” Rafael Vázquez, explained that the families were chosen by the pastors only need to prove that they own their property. The size of the homes depends on the family size. He also stated that all the volunteers that come to Baja or other Mexican States do so with all the necessary permits required by the Mexican government.

The president of the agency DIF (family integration agency), María Ana Medina, visited with the organizers of “Building Hope” to make an unusual request. She explained to them that school dinning halls are lacking. Since they are usually built and funded by local families, in many cases families cannot afford the materials for construction. The organization promised an answer by the beginning of summer.

Trapped Whale Survives in Rosarito
A whale measuring approximately 30 feet was reported to be entangled but still alive, some 300 yards from the beach near the “Las Gaviotas” community in Rosarito. The marine mammal was discovered the morning of April 17 when guards, looking from the beach of the tourist complex, noticed the whale frequently coming up for air. According to one of the“ Las Gaviotas” security guards, it was reported to Mexico's federal environment agency PROFEPA (Procuraduría Federal del Medio Ambiente) when they realized the whale's fin was stuck in a fish net and could not move. The net was near a very rocky portion of that coastal area. Unconfirmed sources said that divers went in to cut the nets that were trapping the whale to free it from any further danger, and to prevent it from drowning due to exhaustion. During an intense 4-hour underwater rescue effort by divers and firefighters from Tijuana and Rosarito, they were able to save the whale's life. The PROFEPA will investigate to determine if the net belonged to a local fisherman.

It is worth mentioning that this is the second time a rescue of a whale has ocurred on Baja's coast this season. The first one was on March 16 when a thirty foot female recently weaned gray whale was found dead on the beach near La Lengüeta Arenosa by Punta Banda in Ensenada. It showed signs of having struggled with a net as well.

Non-profit Created to Help Young People with Addictions
A-non-profit, or “Asociación Civil,” named “Creciendo con Dignidad” (Growing with Dignity) was created so as to assist young people and children that are in the “initial” stages of drug, alcohol or tobacco abuse. They will support efforts for the prevention of these addictions, which have been increasing, especially among minors living in Rosarito. They will offer services at no cost for the most part. Some lab tests may have a nominal fee. These tests are to determine if the applicant shows medical signs of early addiction. With the help of donations from the community and fund raising events, even these tests will soon be free of charge.

Parents of children who have detected signs of addition should contact us when they feel they need intervention. Since they are minors, we ask that the parents sign a “consent” form.

The Creciendo con Dignidad agency has an initial family orientation. Call 612-3664 for an orientation appointment. Plans are to eventually open a walk-in clinic in the near future.

5000 USD Donation to the Rosarito Red Cross
The REMAX Baja Realty team visited the Rosarito Red Cross hospital on the morning of April 21, 2006 to present a check for $5,000. Accepting the check was the local president of the Red Cross, Jorge Crosthwaite, along with other volunteer board members. The Red Cross has been collecting money over the past month as part of the yearly fund raising drive. Mr. Crosthwaite took the agents on a tour of the hospital to show them many of the improvements that have been made due to the contributions of local residents and business owners.

The agents of REMAX Baja Realty were inspired by a matching grant offered by broker Gustavo Torres which effectively doubled their individual contributions towards this important cause. The contribution by the REMAX team represented the largest, single contribution to the Red Cross for the entire 2006 fund raising drive.

The REMAX agents feel very privileged to live and work in this amazing coastal community and felt it important to give back in order to help its residents and visitors.

Plans to Widen Free Road to Puerto Nuevo
The project for widening the road to Puerto Nuevo from two to four lanes from km. 33.8 to km 44.5 of the Rosarito-Ensenada Free Road was presented by Rosa María Plascencia, president of the 20-Year Plan of Action for Rosarito. She is also vice president of the economic development group CCDE (Consejo Consultivo de Desarrollo Económico). At the April 10th meeting in Puerto Nuevo, the director of Promotora Tijuana explained the technical details for the project which would begin at Fox Studios on Popotla Boulevard and end 500 meters short of Puerto Nuevo.

Marcos Sarabia related that there really weren't any technical problems for the construction and widening of the highway, which includes a central island lane, except near the area of Calafia. “The highway has plenty of room for four lanes without a problem, but at the Calafia curves we have a space problem which will require containment walls” he said. He also indicated that the tentative start date is mid-May. The project will cost 11 million pesos. Five will come from these four agencies: SECTUR, SECTURE, Puerto Nuevo Entrepreneurs, and the City government. The other 6 million remaining: 3.6 million through the efforts of José Guadalupe Osuna Millán; 1.2 million worth of cement from the “Organización Mariana Trinitaria;” $800,000 from the City government; $100,000 from entrepreneurs of the project from Puerto Nuevo.

The only loose end seems to be the south entrance to Puerto Nuevo. A hotel owner still needs to be persuaded to join the ranks of supporters of the project.

On the other hand, the head of ZEUS, Antonio Terán Espinosa, explained that changes in State land use will provide an area for a Plaza. It will include a public rest room area, which will be named “Centro de Interpretación” and also a playground for children, an area for exhibits, and a multi-purpose area.

He concluded that once the entrance to Puerto Nuevo is agreed on, traffic flow would be determined. Building façades and color schemes will be adopted as will improvements to the pavement to be made.

Reassigning of Postal Codes in Rosarito
Though it has been ten years since Rosarito became a city, it was not until 2003 that the Mexican postal service “Servicio Postal Mexicano” (SEPOMEX) began reassigning postal codes to the city. The local postal administrator, Fernando Solís Tovar, mentioned that Rosarito has maintained the postal code 22710 for many years and that after eight years, they are now able to assign postal codes. “We began in March of 2003 with the changes, the original being 22710 and we will again begin with the first three digits 22700.” The new postal codes follow as new neighborhoods were being populated, or rather by antiquity. The center of town will get postal code 22710. These areas will get 22703: Basso, Obrera, Miramar, Tijuana, Echeverría, and Magisterial.

There are, however, older settlements such as La Ladrillera (above El Pescador) in Primo Tapia, that still do not have their own postal code.

He stated that neither the city, nor any of the other local government agencies have provided any information regarding population distribution, which has made his job an even greater challenge. “We feel they city and other agencies must provide this data to us, and hope to hear from them soon.” Between March of 2003 and today they have assigned postal codes to 92 settlements in Rosarito with 15 postal codes.

He also mentioned that the post office (SEPOMEX) has ten employees: the postmaster, a receiving clerk, an operations person, and seven letter carriers. “We need more personnel to be able to serve Rosarito due to its fast growth. The seven letter carriers assigned to Rosarito work eight hours a day and deliver an average of 3,000 pieces per day,” he concluded.

Orderly and Safe Sale of Gas (LPG) and Gasoline
The City Government (Ayuntamiento) of Ensenada will not approve further building of stations that sell either gas (LPG) or gasoline until new regulations are approved, due to their inherent danger. To build they must first have land use approval and authorization. One such construction has been ordered to stop, as it had not complied with the regulatory authorizations. The city's councilmembers made it clear the intent was not to put a stop to construction which is a source of jobs in the community, but rather for them to comply with safety approvals and authorizations. Safety and security are their motives. The city government recently received construction guidelines that address these concerns from Ensenada's College of Architects (Colegio de Arquitectos). The new regulations are under study and are soon to be approved and implemented.

BC Collector's Coins Announced
A gold coin that has 17 karats of gold in the center and surrounded by a pure silver ring will cost around $4,100 pesos.

Recently the Baja California state government and BBVA Bancomer Bank announced the release of commemorative coins for the State. These coins are minted with the precious metals gold and silver.

All the silver coins will show a relief of a cimarron sheep on one side, and the Mexican coat of arms on the other side. It will cost around $465 pesos, and its face value will be $10 pesos. The gold one will have 17 karats of gold in the center and a pure silver ring surrounding it. It will cost around $4,100 pesos.

Ignacion Pineda González, assistant manager of Banco de Mexico's Coin Mint, announced that these Baja California coins were released on the 26th of December, 2005.

The design on the back side of the coins were to have a motif representative of the architecture, art, science, flora, fauna, folk dance and dress, or geography of interest to each state. The cimarron sheep was chosen for Baja California since it is typical of the region.

Governor Eugenio Elorduy Walther stated that in addition to being a keepsake, these coins are also a good family investment. The minting of these commemorative coins preserves the heritage of each of the States as well as our contributions for future generations and serves as testimony of our natural resources, both human and institutional.

Native Peoples of Baja California: In Danger of Disappearing
There are fewer than 400 of Baja's native population of Kumiai, Kiliwa, Cochimí, Pai Pai and Cucapá. It is estimated that there are fewer than 400 people of native Baja California origin. Their mean age is between 60 to 80 years old and something must be done to rescue them from disappearing; among the five groups of indigenous people in Baja California, the Kumiai, Cochimí, Pai Pai, Kiliwa and Cucapá, the last two are the ones with the least numbers. Rescue efforts are necessary in order to preserve their values, traditions and lifestyles. We are starting a new era; it's time to bring these cultures back and enjoy their sense of ecology as well as rescue the native traditions of Baja California. Today, many of these native people no longer speak their own dialect and they are abandoning their communities.

The native population is scattered in following 13 villages: San José Tecate, Juntas de Neji, San José de la Zorra, Valle de Guadalupe, San Antonio Necua and the Ojos Negros valley. Also in La Huerta, Cucapá el Mayor, Jamau, Valle de la Trinidad San Isidoro and Ejido Tribu Kiliwa.

The Cucapá are mainly in the El Mayor area, and also in El Faro, La Puerta, Ejido Durango. These communities are south of San Luis Rio Colorado, near the border with Sonora.

The challenges these communities face are: fishing regulations that deny them access, the deteriorating ecology of their lands, and the lack of health and education to further their development.

Local Soroptimist Club to Host Regional Convention
Soroptimist International of Rosarito Beach will host the Mexico-Central America Region annual Convention at the Rosarito Beach Hotel from May 17 to 20. Over 100 Soroptimist members from clubs throughout Mexico and Panama will attend the four day event. Also attending will be Soroptimist International of the Americas President Jean Barth and several other prominent Soroptimists from the United States.

The attendees will join sessions daily to conduct the election of new Region officers and vote on various procedural and policy issues. Several special luncheons and a gala dinners are planned in addition to the meetings. Soroptimist International is a community service organization for business and professional women that focuses on issues that help women and children at the local, regional and international level. There are over 100,000 Soroptimist clubs in 110 countries. Mexico-Central American region belongs to Soroptimist International of the Americas which encompasses all clubs in North, Central and South America as well as Japan, the Philippines and Guam.

Membership is open to retired and employed business and professional women. The club meets every other week on Tuesday mornings at Maria Sabina Restaurant in downtown Rosarito Beach. Both Mexican and American women belong to the Rosarito club. Women interested in joining the club please contact Teresa Sánchez-Alvarez at 612-1715 or Jo Ann Chase at 612-4124.