damian trujillo: hello and welcome to "comunidad del valle" i'm damian trujillo. and today wreaths across america they're back on your "comunidad del valle". ♪♪♪

♪♪♪ damian: and we begin today with covid. yes, covid has not gone away, it's still here. dr. krishna surasi is the assistant health officer for the department of public health in santa clara county. doctor, welcome to the show. dr. krishna surasi: yeah, good morning, thanks for having me. damian: hey, so i thought covid was so 2022, 2021, what's going on here? krishna: no, covid is definitely still circulating in our community. we know that especially now during the winter season, we're seeing increases of covid transmission. damian: on a personal note, i just got over it a couple of months ago. my daughter's friends at school have it right now and so how seriously should we take it and how seriously do you think we are actually taking it as a community? krishna: yeah, we definitely have to take it seriously. and the good part about the transmission, the transmission

mitigation methods for covid is that they also apply to other respiratory diseases that are being transmitted this season, like flu and rsv. and so the protection measures we recommend for everybody, is to first of all, stay up to date with all your vaccines. everybody six months and older should at least be receiving an updated covid vaccine and a flu vaccine this year, and certain groups should be receiving an rsv vaccine. wash your hands, stay at home if you're feeling sick, and when you're in indoor spaces, especially if it's crowded and there's no open windows, consider wearing a mask. damian: i know that the rates fluctuate given sometimes the time of year. you mentioned that we're getting into the cold season and so, i don't know if you've seen the wastewater tests results yet, but how are we looking, how do they look as we were looking into the crystal balls into the near future? krishna: yeah, day-to-day, we see some fluctuations between the high and medium levels but we've definitely seen more days

with high wastewater concentrations of covid since we saw in the summer. damian: and they--we saw a video clip there of the home test kits, those are vital now. i know the schools have plenty of supplies. tell us about the importance of having those at home just to make sure that you're, you're aware of where you're at. krishna: yeah, testing at home is a great way to understand what your risk of being sick is and transmitting infection to other people. so these are good tools to use, for example, if you're getting ready to go home and visit family members, some of who may be very young, very old, have chronic medical conditions that increase their risk of developing severe covid. and every household in the us right now can actually request for free home test kits for covid from the federal government. damian: what, tell us what's happening like over the last couple of years for those of us who might not understand, the transgressions of the covid. it goes away and then we get a new strain and then we're dealing with that as well.

tell us how that's working. krishna: yeah, so covid, similar to other respiratory viruses, does mutate over time. meaning that the more it changes, the less our immune system recognizes it, and the less prepared our bodies are to fight off an infection. so similar to the way that the virus changes, our vaccines also have to change in order to keep us up-to date and keep us protected from the types of virus that are currently circulating. and so, the most recent covid-19 vaccine which was authorized in september of this year, is the only one that's available. anybody who hasn't gotten it yet, who's six months and older should get it regardless of if you've been vaccinated with a prior vaccine or if you've had a covid infection before, this current vaccine will best protect you from the types of covid that we're currently seeing in the community. damian: so is that vaccine different than the one we were taking a year ago? krishna: it is, yeah. this vaccine, since any vaccine that's been out since september is different from prior vaccines and it's protecting against the predominant types of covid that are being transmitted.

damian: wow! some important information and again, you should log on to the website for the public health department in santa clara county because they do have some valuable information there. there's a website on your screen there, you'll find out more about this latest strain of covid and how you can protect yourself at home and as the doctor mentioned, you are eligible to receive four free home test kits from the federal government. wendy will show you how to do that in our next segment. so stay with us here on "comunidad del valle". ♪♪♪

dr. krishna surasi, the assistant public health officer for the public health department in santa clara county. and so again, i recently took the vaccine and i also at the same time, the same day, the same visit to the pharmacy, i took the flu shot. is there a fear that not enough of us are doing that doctor to protect ourselves? krishna: yeah, first of all, i wanna thank you for bringing up the fact that you can receive the covid and flu vaccine

at the same time. that's an important point. so you can get 'em both when you make one trip, and you can get those vaccines at your regular doctor or at any local pharmacy like walgreens or cvs. and yeah, i think there is definitely, we've seen a decrease in the percentage of santa clara county residents that are vaccinated. currently, we're only seeing about 70% of residents in the county are vaccinated with the most up-to-date vaccine against covid, and that percentage is even lower, about 8% in the latino community. and so you know, one of the main obstacles in that community to getting vaccination is a lack of access to healthcare, and a lack of access to, you know, receiving medical care from clinics, being able to go to those places. and so again, i would recommend that people who are interested in getting a vaccine for free, or getting enlisted in healthcare, if you're uninsured, can visit our website, it's sccphd.org/protectthem and we have resources for people to get those things.

damian: and that's an important point because i'm lucky enough and fortunate enough to have health insurance and it pays for prescriptions as well but i know the county is very stern that no person should go unvaccinated whether they have health insurance or not. so you made that point and it's important for them to log onto that website. tell us also the other important thing doctor about you being on this show and your office getting the word out, why is it important to put the face in front of the cameras and get this message out about where we're at right now? krishna: yeah, i mean, i think you alluded to it earlier, which is that we've already had multiple different types of covid vaccines. people may not understand what the need is for all those different types of vaccines. so it's really great anytime we get an opportunity to talk to people especially in a longer format like this, and explain a little bit more of the details, a little bit more of the science behind it. i mean, as these viruses are changing, our immune system has to adapt to that as well and the best way to do that is to get a vaccine.

being vaccinated is more protective than just having been infected in the past or having outdated vaccines. and so this is really important for people to understand. and--pardon me. damian: no, i know that once you're positive, the restrictions vary from workplace to workplace, from school district to school district and what does the public health department think we should do if we are testing positive as far as isolation and all that? krishna: yeah, so for the general public, the current recommendation is that anyone who tests positive should isolate. that is say, stay in their home and avoid contact with other people for at least five days from either the date of symptom onset if they had symptoms, or from the date of the positive test if they didn't have symptoms. and then wear a mask when outside from day 5 to day 10. the masking recommendations are different depending on the workplace so i won't comment on them here because you'll have to talk to your employer about that and currently schools in the

county don't have--schools in the county follow the general masking guidance that i just described. damian: and your office, i would imagine because it's a public health office masks are encouraged, i would imagine. krishna: of course, yeah. the public health department, we're almost all wearing masks here all the time. damian: is there anything else that our public should know though, maybe something that i haven't asked you that you feel that they should know about where we're at and what we should be doing? krishna: yeah, i think the most important thing for people to hear from this interview is that there are low and no cost ways to get vaccinated for covid-19 this season. so like i said, if people already have health insurance, they can go to their primary care doctor, they can go to a local pharmacy, and they should be able to get that vaccine for a low or no cost. and for people that are under or uninsured, there are two different programs. one program for adults called, "bridge access program," and another program for children called "vaccines for children program." information about both of these programs and information on how to get registered for health insurance can be found at our

website, sccphd.org/protectthem. damian: all right, doctor, thank you so much. a lot of great information for our community, appreciate you being on the show today. krishna: yeah, thanks for having me, appreciate it. damian: thank you, and again, for more information, let's give that website once again, this is the public health department for the county of santa clara and remember, if you do want your for free covid test kits from the federal government, you should just google that, federal government free covid kits. it'll come up. you can get your free test kits that way as well. up next here on "comunidad del valle," wreaths across america, stay with us.

is a cadet with the rotc program at santa clara university. he joins us now on "comunidad del valle". marco, welcome to the show. marco diaz: i appreciate it, thank you for having me. damian: thank you for being here. so you're gonna graduate soon from the rotc program, santa clara university. you're gonna graduate as a first lieutenant ready to hit

the ground running. marco: yeah, so it's actually gonna be a second lieutenant. so i'm actually looking forward to it. yeah, so you start off as a second lieutenant and then you work your way up, you know, until you decide to, you know, retire or you know, wherever your career takes you but yeah, i'm looking-- damian: well, i just gave you a promotion then. marco: i appreciate it. damian: well, talk about your interest in the military. why go the route of the rotc program and then into the military? marco: yeah, absolutely. so, obviously, so beforehand, i actually started as an enlisted soldier. so i worked my way up to a sergeant. so the reason why i first just decided to join the military was just because of the opportunity. i knew that they helped cover, you know, my school tuition but on top of that too, they also help you prepare for any career outside of the military which i'm really appreciative of, specifically for rotc why i wanted to transition over to the officer standpoint, was because at the end of the day they do make the final decision and for me, it's really focusing on, you

know, taking care of my soldiers. and i think by, you know, having and focusing on doctrine or all these policies that you know, officers have the ability to make for their company or for their battalion level command, i have the opportunity to make an impact, a positive impact on those soldiers so that they can continue to make those positive impacts on their soldiers once they become non-commissioned officers and make their way up through the ranks. so i think at the end of the day, i wanna be somebody who makes, you know, that impact, that positive impact and i look forward to it. i'm hopefully going to branch aviation specifically to become a pilot but at the end of the day, there's of course many opportunities. whether it's through the air force, rotc, of course, i'm army rotc and then there's many more other programs. so it's really something that's very beneficial just because it's not just the opportunity for you to be a lieutenant or be in the military, but at the same time it teaches you different characteristics of what it means to be a good leader in and

outside of the military. so if you're working any sort of sector in the industry, being a good manager, a supervisor, you know, the military will definitely help you with that. damian: so if i have it correctly, as an enlisted soldier, you were given orders and as an officer, now you'll be giving the orders, is that correct? is that how it works usually? marco: that's correct, yeah. and typically, non-commissioned officers, they're the advisor to the lieutenant, just letting them know at the end of the day, you know, they do have the most experience so letting them know, "hey, these are the recommendations." the lieutenant will then go ahead and make those decisions based on those recommendations. so it's you know, obviously everybody's working together as a team. damian: all right well, your story is an inspiring one, marco, and appreciate your dedication and service to this country. thank you for doing that. we're here though to talk about wreaths across america, and it's a wonderful event happening at the los gatos memorial park this coming saturday, talk about your interest in wreaths across america and why it's important. marco: yeah, of course.

so obviously wreaths across america, for those that don't know, is a non-profit organization that started back in 2007. they help obviously help us remember our fallen heroes, honor those who have served and of course, educate our future generation of the value of freedom. so i think it's something very important that everybody should really think about. in addition to that for those that don't know, wreaths across america has grown to over 3,700 different locations across the nation, which i think is something very beautiful because it helps educate millions of people, you know, in the nation to really understand, you know, hey, these people served our country and because of them, you know, this is why our country, you know, why we live, you know, that freedom, that we have today. so i think it's something that's very beautiful. and one thing that they really emphasize right, is you know, a person dies twice, right? the first time they die is when they stop breathing. the second time they die however, it's when you know,

somebody says their name for the last time. so i think it's something that with this organization, right, they're remembering these fallen heroes and making sure that their names never get forgotten. so i think it's something that's very beautiful. damian: it really is and i know that you would lay the wreath on the headstone of the soldiers and then you say their names out loud. that way as you mentioned, that's the way they are remembered. and it's a way to keep them alive in our memories and thank them once again for their service. marco: that's correct and another thing too, specifically for los gatos memorial park, right, this year is the first year that we were able to raise enough wreaths to cover all 2,800 sites, right? so they've been doing this for over seven years now. santa clara university has been one of the first programs to, you know, participate in these events so it's something that's very beautiful to know that, you know, past or post pandemic, right, we're still able to, you know, remember our fallen heroes.

so it's something that's very beautiful and something that, you know, i highly encourage anybody to volunteer or to support to learn more. damian: yeah, i certainly agree that has been instrumental in making sure that happens there at los gatos memorial park, and they are--it is hallowed grounds there, there's some veterans there from the civil war who are buried on those grounds. any final thoughts? i'm gonna call you lieutenant. any final thoughts, lieutenant, before we let you go? marco: no, honestly, i just, you know, don't forget, you know, december 16, 11 a.m. the ceremony's going to begin and then after that, we'll begin starting to lay out the wreaths shortly after. so feel free to come out and join us and for those that have any questions, always feel free to, you know, contact us at, you know, santa clara rotc program. we're always here, go broncos. damian: all right, well, sir, as i mentioned, your story is an inspiring one. thank you again for your dedication and service to this country. marco: thank you for your support. damian: thank you, thank you so much. and again, wreaths across america, happening this coming saturday at los gatos memorial park. it's actually across the country but the local one is at los gatos memorial park, one of the local ones, december 16, 11 a.m.

is a program about 12 o'clock we'll start laying out the wreaths, los gatos memorial park there is a website for more information. we'll have another special interview here on "comunidad del valle" when we continue, stay with us. ♪♪♪

if you wanna get ahold of us, you can follow me on instagram. it's @newsdamiantrujillo. we thank you for sharing a part of your sunday with us on "comunidad del valle". we're gonna leave you with a special interview. it's near and dear to my heart. i went into the deep into the archives. this is a time of year where el teatro campesino performs, la pastorela. but on even years they'll perform, la virgen del tepeyac. my good friend, my late friend, noe montoya, played the role of juan diego many times and i'm gonna take you back memory lane and play a little bit of our interv mtaya and el teatro campesino. we'll see you next week.

[speaking foreign language] [speaking foreign language] [singing in foreign language] [singing in foreign language] damian: what a powerful segment there. that's noe montoya, who is with us here on "comunidad del valle" playing the role of juan diego, who is now son of juan diego. he's a veteran of el teatro campesino. adrian torres is the director of this year's production of la virgen del tepayac. they both join us here on "comunidad del valle". welcome to the show. adrian torres: gracias. noe montoya: thank you. damian: i told you noe, that scene there just gives you a lump in your throat when you watch it. is it the same--how hard is it for you to get the lines out when you're feeling that emotion? noe: it was difficult because, you know, it's an

emotional song and of course, i have to stay in character and of course, and as a singer, i know i have to sing it well. so it was always powerful, you know, it was one of my favorite scenes when i was doing the role of juan diego. damian: all right, and now it's on your shoulders, adrian this production, what can those who go to enjoy the performance in the old mission in ta juan modista, what can they expect this season? adrian: they expect inspiration. i remember the very first production that i ever saw from el teatro campesino was actually this one when i was going to cabrillo college. and to be able to see people that i can easily see around my community up there becoming these moving mirrors was just jaw dropping, jaw dropping, inspirational. [speaking foreign language] even the space that we are performing this scene which is inside the mission of san juan bautista, allows for everyone to

be submerged into the story that we're creating. so it's very, very, very inspirational and then being [speaking foreign language] and with all the veterano from [speaking foreign language] damian: i mean, it's gotta be it's a lot of credit to you to get [speaking foreign language], you know, to be at the finger point and say you're the man in charge. 'cause it's a big production, it's a very big deal. adrian: it's a huge production, it's a blessing. it's the responsibility definitely, i mean, most of the el teatro campesino production, obviously, there's some type of undertone, some political undertone of some sort, some message. what is the message we're trying to get out to the audience? so the responsibility is heavy [speaking foreign language] it is something that i am el teatro campesino i was, and everything about me is el teatro campesino. so i knew that this is some something that eventually will have to get passed down for myself or, and then once i get to that age when i have to get passed down to the next generation, it's something that's very much needed.

damian: i guess it's easier to work for someone who has that kind of passion for that as a director. noe: of course, you know, and the beautiful thing is, most of the people that come to the teatro have some of that passion already because they know this is more than a just a community theater. the history of el teatro campesino, dates back to 1965 to the leno grave strike, you know. and we still hold that commitment to the community. our stories need to be told by us and with the help of luis and then some of the other young directors and writers, now, adrian is one of our new talents, el teatro gonna continue for another 50 years. damian: and it's not glitz and glamor that this is old school grassroots. noe: old school, you know, i go to professional theaters and i go, "wow, look at that." you know, we use cardboard and duct tape, man, but we make it work. adrian: we do, we do, it is very, very much like that. damian: and talk about picking the staff in the cast and making sure, because i mean, you rely on them and they rely on you to put up a quality production.

i mean, it's, it's a mutual bond i guess. adrian: it's familia. [speaking foreign language] and there's different age, the beauty about the production that there's, it just transcends cultural barriers. we have people in production who are not latinos, but nonetheless, they feel that the story. i mean, the story just transcends ages, transcends cultures. everyone is in the sense going through their very own juan diego story, whether you're male or female, you know, whether you're latino, not latino, syrian, right, or not. so it's beautiful. and like any family, we do have our disagreements. we do have people saying, "we should do it like this. about 5 years ago, about 10 years ago, 15 years ago." damian: "well, i know luis and luis says." i mean, you go back, i mean, you started right back in the 60s [speaking foreign language] noe: i actually joined el teatro campesino when they first moved to san juan bautista and i joined in 1970.

i was a junior in high school there in hollister but i saw the group perform at gavilan college, and i just fell in love with it. damian: you never let go. noe: and when they moved to san juan, i said, "i've gotta be a part of this." and i've been with them off and on, since then, you know, i did go away for about 25 years to work with other groups, sharing what i had learned from el teatro. but then it was time to come back, come back home. you know, and i've been there since 200 damian: and when you first started playing the role of juan diego, you're not juan diego anymore but when you started that role, he wasn't a saint, he was regular juan diego. noe: back in the seventies, the "la virgen del tepayac" was performed every year and then eventually they incorporated la pastorela and so we alternated and so i had the pleasure and the honor to be asked by luis to play juan diego in the 70s and i did it for four consecutive years. i was young in my 20s and then i went away,

and i came back in 2002. and now it was every other year. so i performed at 2002, 4, 6 and then i retired in 2008 and like anybody that retires prematurely-- adrian: like jordan, you retired and came back. noe: i came outta retirement in 2012 to do it one last time. and now i'm back as a musician playing the native instruments to give that indigenous flavor that it needs. damian: that's beautiful. talk about the authenticity, if you will, of the actors and of the music and whatnot and i mean, you can't say it enough when you're performing at the old mission, you can't help but going back to those roots. adrian: one thing that i'll always trust are goosebumps, always. noe has incorporated many new instruments into the

underscoring of juan diego that you can't help it but feeling the goosebumps. ♪♪♪ ♪♪♪

happy birthday, zoe! talk about rallying the troops. everyone we called, everyone when we talked to, literally just got in line to help us. - wow. - wow. this is amazing. oh, my goodness. look, zoe.