Deltona merchants looking for Hispanic leadership
ROSA RAMIREZ
news-journalonline.com
Dec 5, 2007
Deltona merchants looking for Hispanic leadership
When 46-year-old Santiago Vasquez decided to open a business in Deltona about four years ago, he looked for local Hispanic support groups to provide advice.
He found none. "I was the only Hispanic business owner (here)," said the Dominican immigrant, speaking over Reggaeton music in the background. "Look around. It's very different now."
Most of the business in the Deltona Boulevard shopping center is now Hispanic-owned, evidence of a demand for goods and services, and, one might think, leadership, among the area's growing Hispanic community.
But rather than formal organizations, Hispanic businesses like Vasquez's barbershop serve as hubs for advice and information to newcomers.
Meanwhile, Vasquez and others still wonder who the Hispanic leaders are and what they are doing to help. Surely there are some leaders among the area's large Hispanic population, they say. Why aren't they reaching out?
Several leadership groups have emerged in the Orlando area, where a large Hispanic community thrives. But locally, one of the oldest organizations struggles.
The Volusia County Hispanic Association was created more than a decade ago as a service organization but is now plagued by infighting and perceptions the group exists only to stage festivals.
Two other local groups focus primarily on youngsters but feel they get little support from elected officials and Latino leaders.
And members of yet another, Hispanos Unidos de America Inc., which works exclusively to raise money for funeral costs for low-income Hispanics in Volusia, say they have little communication with other groups.
"We focus on an issue that we see is important in this community," said Lucio Ramirez, vice president of the DeLand-based group. "We're proud to say that since we've had this (group), we've never turned one family down."
Privately, some say the lack of communication between local organizations hurts Hispanic residents, as outsiders may perceive the community as weak, less organized and unable to exert political pressure or hold elected leaders accountable.
That shouldn't be mistaken for apathy, an Orlando Hispanic advocate said. Organized or not, residents watch local issues, such as property tax reform, and will vote their interests at the polls, said Wilfred Benitez, Central Florida field organizer for Democracia USA.
The Miami-based national organization says it has registered about 56,000 new Florida voters so far. It registered 1,000 in Volusia County with no help from any local group, Benitez said.
Leaders, he said, can help bring hospitals to the community, fight efforts to erode civil rights and provide education on health issues.
Harry Wilkins, public information officer with Deltona United Church of Christ, said Hispanic leaders here are missing opportunities by not speaking out on high-impact issues such as new cases of HIV and AIDS.
Not a single Hispanic leader came out to support the church's efforts on World AIDS Day and National Latino AIDS Awareness Day, he said. "There are many issues in the community that they're just too afraid to talk about."
Leaders in the Volusia County Hispanic Association dispute perceptions they don't do enough. The association's annual festivals entertain but also provide Hispanics with a place to congregate, meet local business owners and build a sense of community, vice president Carlo Rivera said.
The group has raised thousands of dollars for school supplies and scholarships and assisted families after natural disasters.
"Everybody's got one goal in common -- the desire to help or improve their communities," Rivera said. "My goal is to give back."
He said current group leaders are young and new at running an organization, compared to previous leaders. The group is working with Deltona Parks and Recreation to stage a holiday celebration Dec. 15 with free food, music and giveaways of five bikes and 100 to 200 maracas.
Anyone who wants to contact the association might want to attend. That's because its Web site doesn't indicate when or where it meets or the name of the president. The phone number on the site cannot accept messages.
Ana Nin, owner of Tips and Cuts Dominican Salon in Deltona, says the local Hispanic population "es una voz importante que no se escucha" -- an important voice not being heard.
Ramon Ojeda, president of the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce of Metro Orlando, sees that voice one day merging with those of chamber members from Puerto Rico, Orlando, Kissimmee, Casselberry and other cities -- but not overnight.
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