Borderlands Theater Presents BARRIO STORIES TARDEADA IN BARRIO ANITA

It's time for another Tardeada in Barrio Anita. Borderlands Theater's quarterly series honoring Barrio Anita's history celebrates the heritage of summer in the barrio with an oral history talk from Ramon "Chino" Quiroz.

Beloved by generations who grew up in Barrio Anita in the 1980s and 90s, Quiroz served as program coordinator at Oury Neighborhood Center. His programming of athletic tournaments and other cherished events made Oury Center the heart of Barrio Anita's neighborhood activity. His youth mentorship went above and beyond impacting countless young lives. Quiroz's lifetime of service was honored in 2001 when Oury Park was renamed after him and his predecessor, David G Herrera.

Oral History Talk

On June 8, April Cruz, life-long Barrio Anita resident and Oury Center alumni, moderates a discussion with her mentor, Chino, as they recall the role Oury Center and its programs played in the life and health of the neighborhood. The tardeada coincides with the grand re-opening of Oury Pool. Closed for nine years, community efforts (accelerated in part by last year's Barrio Stories in Barrio Anita event) along with help from council member Regina Romero/Ward One resulted in needed repairs to open the pool in time for the 2019 summer season.

Heritage Website

Current and former Barrio Anita residents fondly recalling their memories at Oury Pool are featured in a new website which contains oral histories, documentary videos, archival photos, and other historical research generated for the production of Barrio Stories in Barrio Anita, a heritage and performance festival presented by Borderlands Theater in 2018. Through a grant from the Arizona Humanities, all research and documentation generated by the Barrio Stories project is now available to barrio residents, Tucson, and the rest of the world on the new website. Borderlands artistic director, Marc Pinate, gives the new site, projected large scale, a test drive for residents and tardeada attendees.

Food and music round off this free event, open to the public. For more information call Borderlands Theater (520) 276-9598 or visit www.borderlandstheater.org Tardeadas in Barrio Anita are made possible through the has been supported in part by the AZ Creative Communities Institute (AZ CCI). The AZ CCI is an initiative of the Arizona Commission on the Arts and Arizona State University's Herberger Institute for Design and the Arts, with guidance from Southwest Folklife Alliance, an affiliate nonprofit of the University of Arizona. Made possible by a grant from the Surdna Foundation.