Participant 11

“What I do like about Fresno is that we have mountains around us that we can easily visit and camp out there if we drive about one to two hours.”

Age: 24

  • Gender:  Male

  • Ethnicity: Hispanic

  • Racial identity: Mexican American

  • Town/community (or zip code): Fresno 93726

  • Number of people in household: 3

  • Education level:  High School Graduate

  • Occupation:  Distributor for a health and wellness company 

 

Selected interview transcript

This interview transcript has been edited for clarity and conciseness.

Esta entrevista fue conducida en inglés. Para leer versión en español de las preguntas y respuestas, haga click aquí.

What brought you to the San Joaquin Valley? Is it where you would like to stay or your children to stay? Why or why not? 

It all started with my grandparents coming to the United States. They were supposed to land in San Jose, but my grandparents decided to stop at Cocoran to visit some family. There was a contest going on for the person with the best beard, my grandpa decided to join and ended up winning. So they decided to stay in Cocoran California to start their family. They started their family of 4 children which my mother ended up being born. My mother grew up in Cocoran until she decided to study at CSU Fresno, and that is when she met my father. I was born a few years later in Fresno and have been here my whole life.  Fresno is not a place where I would want to stay because the air pollution is not the greatest. I love fresh air so I plan to move out soon.