"comunidad del valle." i'm damian trujillo, and today a local legend in chicano teatro is here in our studio, and he has a special gift for all of you on your "comunidad del valle." male announcer: nbc bay area presents "comunidad del valle" with damian trujillo. damian: we begin today with the future of healthcare for our children, should we be concerned? with me here from the healthier kids foundation is board member rolando bonilla and a young lady who works for the organization, erika gonzalez, here on this show. welcome to "comunidad." rolando bonilla: thanks for having us, damian. damian: well, tell us first about--fill us in about the healthier kids foundation. we have a couple of segments we're doing with y'all, so we have some time to expand on it a little bit. rolando: yeah, i'll give you the board member perspective. when i had the opportunity to join the board, one of the things that attracted me to the organization was their focus on providing access to low cost healthcare

for kids that need it. and i had an opportunity to actually go to some of these vision screenings, some of these dental screenings, and see children get access to healthcare that they weren't able to get at home for different reasons. and when i saw the difference that these exams made in terms of the family getting this information, and maybe realizing that their child wasn't able to really learn for--because they couldn't see the board, or were having a difficult time eating because their teeth hurt, knowing that this organization was at the forefront of making sure that that did not happen out here in the bay area was enough for me to get involved. erika's in a much better position to talk about the day to day, but knowing that is why i fell in love with the organization and why ultimately i ended up joining the board. damian: all right, and healthier kids, is that a county agency or it's a foundation? is it just a foundation that helps whoever? erika: it's basically we help all santa clara county, and now we're expanding as well.

so, we are actually into other counties as well, like san mateo. damian: okay, and so, talk about the chip program 'cause i really didn't know about the chip program until rolando started mentioning it. but tell us about it, and why is it in jeopardy? rolando: the chip program was started in 1987 as an agreement between senator orrin hatch, republican from utah, senator edward kennedy, democrat from massachusetts. and what it does is it gives over 9 million children in the united states of america access to free quality healthcare. in the bay area alone, we're talking about 200,000 children that are provided, getting access to free quality healthcare. this is healthcare they would not be able to get due to circumstances, economic circumstances at home. so, this program is ensuring not only that kids get access to preventative healthcare, but the kids are not flooding local emergency rooms at ten times the cost of preventative care. what's happening right now in the political spectrum, given the current environment of the presidency and congress, is that chip is being used as a bargaining chip, pun intended, for immigration. so, what you have now is children who are at peril of

losing healthcare because of a game of chicken essentially by a republican congress, the republican president, who are saying, "we can go without it. but the only way to keep it in is if you give us funding for a wall." and what we saw is that we were able to get emergency gap funding up until march for chip. but come march, it is very possible that 9 million children in the united states of america, 200,000 of those here in the bay area, will lose access to healthcare. and anyone that thinks that this is actually good from a fiscal point of view is oblivious to the fact that our ers are going to be inundated with children needing healthcare that could've been done at hypothetically $10 preventative, now at $1,000 emergency care. and that's why the healthier kids foundation is at the forefront of that fight, not only providing access to healthcare, but making sure that our legislatures understand, our people in congress understand that this is unacceptable. it cannot happen. damian: that's a great speech to run for congress. when are you going to do that?

rolando: my wife will leave me, i can't do that. damian: the healthier kids foundation, again there is the web address for more information. we'll be back and expand on what this great organization does in our community, stay with us. ♪ ♪ sfx: tsfx: feet shufflingc life can change in an instant.

be covered when it does... ...with a health plan through covered california. we offer free expert help choosing the best plan for you. and all of our plans include free preventive care. financial help is available, so check for yourself to see what savings you qualify for. open enrollment ends january 31st, so don't miss out. because you never know when life... ...will change. get covered today. with the healthier kids foundation. and so erika, does that--does your foundation then, these 200,000 local kids, california kids maybe who might be without healthcare, is that where you come in the organization, the foundation, and says, "we can't let that happen"? erika: yeah, we ultimately cannot let that happen because what we're doing is we want to make sure that parents access the services that are provided. and so, if 200,000 kids here in the bay area don't have the health insurance that they need, they will not be able to get the services.

so, for instance, that vision screening, that dental screening, that hearing screening that we do out in the community, unfortunately the children will not be able to get preventative services, which ultimately can turn into emergencies like rolando said. so, we're definitely fighting for this program to stay because without this program, then we can't really move the families forward to what they need to get. damian: and it's more than a financial burden if you want to call it a burden, the fact that they're going to the emergency room. we're talking about children who, if their vision isn't checked annually, periodically, then if there's some sort of thing that--some sort of ailment in their eyesight, it just gets worse and worse and worse with each passing day. so, it's more than just the cost of it, it's the health, actual health of these children. erika: yes, so, i think great examples is, for instance, if a child's not wearing their glasses. ultimately with healthier kids foundation, what we want is prevention, prevention, prevention. the earlier the better. and so, if we get a child that's 4 years old and needs glasses

and wears them earlier in life, then he'll be able to have a successful--he'll be successful in school. and then if you look at older kids, right? and if they need their glasses, they'll be able to get their license, and they'll be able to get to work, and will be able to get to college. not only that, but for instance hearing. if they're not hearing clearly, most probably they will have language, speech delays. and so, what that will mean is that they'll also be behind in school, and that's what we don't want for our children. we don't want them getting behind at all. and then if you want to look at dental, if they're having cavities, what that could mean is that they could have, you know, headaches. they might not be going to school. the number one reason why children miss school is because they're having some sort of pain due to dental issues. so, we don't want that. and if you want to look at also diabetes, unfortunately with the latino population, we're finding that children are--could possibly--research is suggesting that could possibly one-half of all latinos or 50%

of latino children could possibly have diabetes. so, if we don't have these kind of problems, what that would mean is that these children cannot get to--get their physical, and ultimately not, you know, change their diet, and get informed and educated. so, that's how i think it will affect our families, our communities. damian: boy, that's one way to scare us straight, and you're scaring me right now. but i mean, so i guess what you all are doing now, rolando, is you're getting the word out in case it gets to that point. you have the ball rolling already, and you're able to accommodate those who might need that healthcare that might lose. rolando: absolutely, i think what we want to do is let people know we exist. but we also want to have a secondary conversation, which is there are a lot of cities and counties in the bay area, and all of them are impacted if their constituents don't have access to healthcare. so, we're looking for the opportunity to build relationships with them as well, and say to them, "we are helping your constituents. we are working directly with the people within your legal

boundary of your city or your county. how can we work together? how can you help us minimize the cost in your er room, while also expanding these services to more? because for all the talk of us being in the silicon valley, all you got to do is drive up 101 in east palo alto and there are families living in rvs, there are families living in rvs here. we have the tiny home discussion. so, we also know if you're having economic discussions, without a doubt the healthcare discussion is attached to that. so, we want those families to understand we exist, we are here for you, but equally those that are in charge, the decision makers, the people that actually do run for congress and win, that we want them to understand they have a role to play in this too. and perhaps the real resistance isn't always in dc. part of the resistance is here locally, providing us the resources that we need to actually serve more kids. that's what this is about for us. so, absolutely we want to get in front of the chip program. we hope that chip program is around for many, many years to come. but in the event that it is not or even if it is,

we're still going to be here, and we're still going to be on the ground providing those services. damian: it's personal for a lot of us. i mean, we all have children, we all want the best for them, and we can't imagine--we're lucky to be able to afford healthcare for them. and those who cannot, thank god for folks like the healthier kids foundation are able to provide that. and there's a web address again for more information to where children can get access to the preventative healthcare that they need. thank you all so much for the work that you're doing. rolando: thank you. damian: all right, and up next here on "comunidad del valle," a local chicano legend, stay with us.

here on "comunidad del valle," adrian tepehua vargas of casa vargas productions. welcome back to the show again, it's been a while since you've been on. adrian tepehua vargas: thank you. muchisimas gracias, i'm glad to be back. damian: you're here to promote something that you're offering free of charge in gratitude for all the support you've received over the years. adrian: yes, casa vargas productions has been working since the year 2001 providing artistic and cultural work in

the community to youth and the community in general, educational programs, and social action programs, and activities. and we've had a lot of support in the past. and this is a form of gratitude that i'm offering myself in particular, but through the auspices of casa vargas productions. and it's a--it's workshop that will involve activities of theatre games and music games, a 2-hour workshop for 2 age groups, where they will explore the concepts of balance, energy, and movement, kind of a little triangle of basic training for actors. but it's really how to move the body, manage and modulate your energy, and always be in balance

as you play theater games and music games with the free flow of play. and this is for adults, not for children. we have 2 age groups, the 18 to 45-year-old age group, and the 45 and up. and the younger said group will be at the hour of 11 o'clock in the morning, 2-hour workshop, 11 to 1. and the afternoon group, the other group will be from two to four. damian: all right, and you're going to give us a quick sample of what you're going to play? and it's part of this unleashing of your-- adrian: yes, i'm going to illustrate a little bit how you can evolve movement out of listening to a song. now, the verses are in spanish, but basically it talks about something floating in the air. and you can maybe imagine if you don't understand

the words what that might be. damian: all right. adrian: okay, so here's--and i'm just going to do the first couple of verses. it's called "la gente, the people." ♪ [singing in spanish] [singing in spanish] [singing in spanish] adrian: so, it talked about playing along the breeze, you see it floating. and so, you imagine what's floating in the breeze. you don't know what it is, and oh, look at my hand, it's floating in the breeze. there's my hand making the movement, it automatically did it.

it passes through playing in the clouds. the clouds, the clouds, what do the clouds look like? ooh, they're fluffy, they're--or they're big. and ooh, there goes the thing floating in the clouds. now you got your--both arms going and they're doing two images. one is doing the cloud image and one is doing something floating in the air. and then it says it's singing and floating through the clouds as if two dove birds, so you think, "two dove birds? well, how do two dove birds float amongst the clouds?" well, there's one dove bird, right? and what about the other one? whoa, look at that, we got two dove birds floating around the clouds, and they're dove birds of peace. peace, oh, peace. peace, people. you know? so, whatever your imagination is. and--or it could be give me a piece of that pie.

whatever your free flowing imagination imagines when you hear the words. damian: we have about one minute in this segment. basically, come to the workshop with an open mind. adrian: yes, come to the workshop with an open mind. and it's free, it's totally free. and because it's for adults, these are games that you can also incorporate in the home with your children or in the backyard, and then they provide the benefit of generating the sense of wellness in a human being because when you play games, you come in contact with the element of spontaneous creativity. and doing so, there's a lot of benefits to that--to the physiologically and mentally to the human body. damian: all right, well, again, these workshops are free. they're at the african-american community center on 6th and julian across from mi pueblo foods there in san jose

by casa vargas productions. we'll have more with adrian, stay with us. ♪

vargas productions here on "comunidad del valle." and we want to emphasize that, again, those workshops are free. and then you're offering extended workshops, i mean, after that. adrian: yes, based on the experience of a number of years, as well as what we're going to try to explore in this free workshop, casa vargas productions is conducting a series of workshops in the months of march, april, and may. and this will be the last saturday of each one of those months for an extended workshop. and this will be a 3-hour workshop for the 18 to 45-year-olds and still maintain a 2-hour workshop for the others, but--

damian: same location? adrian: we're exploring various venues because i also--part of the--part of the process of these workshops is to--and i must emphasize that this is for both non-professional performers and performers who have the experience of performing. everybody will be on equal footing because some things are going to be introduced that nobody's done before basically, or extensions of things that maybe some people have done. the point is that these will be exercises that will explore balance not only in the body, but in life, energy modulation and management not only in the body but in life, and movement, something that we do in life continuously even when we're asleep because the heart is still moving.

and our diaphragm is still allowing us to breathe. so, movement. and it's tied to utilizing techniques that apply to theater and performance, but that also have some foundation in mindfulness training, as well as the free exploration of expression. so, when you put all those things together, you try to have an outcome after these three sessions that we're going to have. and by the way, people will be able to take them individually, or enroll for them for the entire three series because there will be both new elements in each one and there will be progressive elements in each one. damian: and now, we imagine that it's also--it's not only

for those who are interested in theater and actors, it's for anybody who wants to relieve the stress about working nine to five, picking up the kids from school, taking them to soccer or dance practice and whatnot. adrian: it's precisely that. it's not meant to be focused for performers. it's meant to be focused for non-performers. and because, you see, adults to a large degree deal with the management of life in their families and homes or whatever you do to survive as an adult in the society or in this world. but the young play is kind of stripped away from the adult experience. and sports sometimes isn't the best way to maintain that in the long-term because you might get injured. and therefore, you will look at your ability to exercise and a whole bunch of other things start storming down. where--but safe, creative play allows you

to have that recreational activity. and the word "recreate" is in the word "recreation." so, you're recreating yourself by a simple activity, creative activity of just playing with theater games and music games both, both theater and music. so, the theater games comprise basic things like situational improvisations between people who are in different roles or relationships. activities that you can play out, environments that you can illustrate, and it's all based on improvisational technique. in other words, there are no lines to memorize, rehearse. and what people will experience in the short skits

that evolve in the theater aspect is that element of spontaneous creativity. and it's a very key thing for human beings to experience that. some of us have the good fortune to experience that in our professions sometimes, but not everybody. the majority don't. and life becomes, you know, something that brings you down. whereas if you have an alternative along with your daily activity that brings you up in the natural way and it's a group thing, it's a collective effort, and it's a safe environment, and anything goes really. damian: that's awesome. well, again, these workshops, the one's on january 27 are free at the african-american community services agency. they're on 6th and julian in san jose, and there is the email address for adrian tepehua

for more information. thank you so much, adrian. you are a treasure in this community. adrian: and i should say to sign up early because they are free and the slots are limited, so make sure you get in there with plenty of time. damian: all right, well, thank you. we're going to play the rest of that song in just a bit, but first here's what's happening in your comunidad on que pasa. ♪ ♪ damian: and our saludos to those celebrating a special day, felicidades. ♪ damian: and here's our contact information. you can follow me on twitter, my handle is @newsdamian. also, pick up a copy of "el observador" newspaper and support your bilingual weeklies all across the bay area. you can also watch us every sunday usually at 11 a.m. on telemundo canal 48, your "comunidad del valle"

in español on our sister station, telemundo channel 48. we thank you once again for sharing a part of your sunday with us on "comunidad del valle." we're going to leave you with a true treasure here in the south bay, adrian tepehua vargas. adrian: gracias para ustedes. ♪ [singing in spanish] [singing in spanish] [singing in spanish] [singing in spanish]

[singing in spanish] [singing in spanish] [singing in spanish] [singing in spanish] [singing in spanish] [singing in spanish]

♪ [singing in spanish] [singing in spanish] [singing in spanish] sfx: tsfx: feet shufflingc ... life can change in an instant. be covered when it does... ...with a health plan through covered california. we offer free expert help choosing the best plan for you. and all of our plans include free preventive care. financial help is available,

so check for yourself to see what savings you qualify for. open enrollment ends january 31st, so don't miss out. because you never know when life... ...will change. get covered today. no bargain -- and more bl

right now at 4:30, no bargain and more blame. the government shutdown continues for a second day. here in the bay area, frustration as people begin to see the direct effects. plus, caught on camera, a driver takes his car down a san francisco sidewalk. he says it was a car problem. police say it was attempted murder and more. first, big changes on the way in the forecast. a wet and soggy end to the weekend and the sierra about to be slammed. the news starts right now. as the weekend comes to a close, so will the dry weather. you're looking at a live picture of san francisco. the trans-america building, the clouds moving in right