i'm damian trujillo, and to "today we're honoring" the legacy of cesar chavez. and the family is here on your "comunidad del valle." male announcer: nbc bay area presents "comunidad del valle" with damian trujillo. damian: and here they are in our studio, the family of cesar chavez. rita is cesar's sister, and barbara is cesar's niece here on "comunidad del valle." welcome back to the show. rita chavez medina: thank you for having us. damian: now, let's start on, if we will, kind of a sad note, rita. because we've been losing a lot of the family members, verdad? i mean, we lost cesar so many years ago, and the family members are slowly joining him. rita: i've lost my three brothers already. damian: how tough is it to be the matriarch, you know?

because everybody--you and your sister are it, you're there right now. rita: i don't know, you know, exactly what it is. just i'm the same every day. i'm the same person. damian: now, you're 94 years young. what are you eating that--because i need to know what you're doing that-- rita: if i tell you, you're not going to like it. barbara chavez aranda: can't say it on tv. rita: no, i can't say it on tv. no, just normal. you know, i do nothing special. damian: back to cesar now, we're back to celebrate the legacy. but i would imagine that you and your family, rita, it happens every day. every day is cesar chavez day. rita: i cry every day. every day of my life, i remember. and now that i have, you know, the three brothers, it's even more. and now my sister-in-law too passed away. so, just vicky and i, my sister. but you know, every time i talk about him

or something like celebration, like today, brings me a lot of memories 'cause we were very close, real close, him and i. damian: as a family member, barbara, how difficult, again, is it to--well, maybe it's not difficult, maybe it's easy to maintain that legacy because it's not just three or four family members who are continuing. i mean, the entire chavez family is carrying that legacy with them. and you guys are busy year-round, especially this time of the year. barbara: it's not real hard because we have so many family all over the state, even the country. there's probably more than 300 or 400 of us. so, we're spread out, and everybody has a different job. you know, everybody goes to different events or speaking engagements. but sometimes it is, it's hard, you know, to remembe that he's not here with us anymore. but you know, we do the best we can.

damian: and so many years ago that you started the chavez family vision. and it was--that was the premise, i would imagine, is to continue the legacy to make sure that the school kids learned about not--learned about cesar chavez because they weren't around when he was doing his work. but that's when the chavez family vision came about. barbara: yeah, this is our 20th year. so, we couldn't believe it's 20 years already, besides he's been gone, well, now it's going to be 26. so yeah, we started it to keep his legacy alive and to make sure that no one took advantage of his legacy. so that's--and then we started the scholarship fund in his name because education was so important to him. damian: we lost him in 1993. rita, what would you think he would say about how we're doing as a society right now, both as a latino community and as americans? rita: he would be glad, but you know him. first thing would be the farm workers. first would be the causa before him.

that was it. nothing for me, the causa. you know, that's what his legacy was all about really. but he would be--you know, he would be honored i'm pretty sure. one day, he told me before he died in coachella, because he went to, like i said, with some growers, and they had a dog named cesar. he said, "they had a dog named cesar." i said, "oh well." so, you know, things like this. damian: [speaking foreign language] at what age do you think when you guys were working in the fields did he start throwing terrones, and you start thinking-- rita: all the time. damian: something's wrong. not--something is in cesar that is going to come out. rita: he did, he would say all the time, "somebody has to help us farm workers. somebody has to help us, this is not right. you know, somebody has to help us." damian: and what wasn't right? what wasn't right at that time rita: the way they treat us, the way they, you know, paid us no money, and the way the farmers treated them. there's no housing, no nothing. just you're on your own. you know, whatever you do, just pick your grapes, pickers, whatever you workers, not in our day. the

i don't think they do it today, except the ones that are in the union. damian: well, maybe a little bit more, but that's because they have to now. there's a few more laws thanks to-- rita: no, we didn't have no water, we didn't have nothing, nothing. we had to do everything on our own. no place to live, sometimes under a tree, a tent if we were lucky. it was--in the car, cooking on the ground. it was hard. it was really, really hard. damian: how fortunate are we, do you think, barbara, that we were able to have family who experienced it, and at the same time not have to experience that ourselves? maybe you did, i'm not sure. barbara: i did a little. a couple of summers we did, but before i got into high school, we picked string beans and prunes, and prunes were the worst because you had to get on your knees and it hurt a lot. but i think we're fortunate, and at the same time unfortunate because we didn't get to experience of going to the fields and seeing how hard it is to work there. and fortunate because we'd able to get more education than they

did, and you know, better jobs, better paying. and some of us did have unions where we worked. so, we look back at what they had to go through and we just--like i tell my sons, "you would not survive if you had to do all that. you wouldn't survive." the legacy of cesar there is an annual commemorative breakfast that's taking place on march 29. there it is on your screen. a whole slew of events happening around the cesar chavez holiday, a march. the kids are marching también. log onto that website for more information, chavezfamilyvision.org. we'll be back with the cesar chavez family when we continue, stay with us. ♪

with the family of cesar chavez. and i remember, rita, that i hated my summer vacations in high school and in jupicked garlic, we picked wentr strawberries, we picked whatever needed to be picked. and i hated my summer vacations. but now, looking back, i think it was the best job

i ever had because it humbles you. how to appreciates what you have now. rita: it does. that's--well, we lived in a farm, but then it was, you know, my dad owned the farm and we didn't have to work like we did when we moved to california. and we started working, you know, contratistas and all them. and they did whatever they wanted with us, and we were there just, you know, hey, we need a job from one to the other to the other to the other, all year-round. one end of california to the other. i didn't go to school for that reason, just to the seventh grade and then, you know, i didn't go anymore. i worked for the kids could go. cesar and the other kids only went to seventh gre. well, lenny did for a year or two, but he quit too because then, my mom and my dad were so old, they couldn't work anymore, so my brother lenny had to, you know, help them out. so it's just--it's hard. it's nice in a way because, you know, you learn about

all the fruits, the vegetables, and things like this.but ing th. damian: i used to hate the smell of tomatoes because of the simple fact because i was there every day, but now it's one of the sweetest smells. rita: to me, harder was peaches and figs because, you know, the little thing that comes out. it itches all over and going to cover your hair. the rest, it was hard, but at least, you know--but peaches and figs would really itch all over you. and you're working and itching in the sun, hot and everything. damian: oh yeah, had the heat and all that. you're 94 years young. [speaking foreign language] "i'm tired, i've had enough. i'm going to stay home." you're still out there. what gives you that motivation to keep going? rita: i don't know, i guess just my belief that i want to do what i can do as long as i'm in this world, earth. the day god takes me, well, here i go, even if i don't want to.

but as long as i'm here, i can do as much as i can. i don't do much anymore. they don't let me do anything. "oh, you can't do it, you can't do it." but i do a lot still. damian: you showing up is a lot. we appreciate everything you do. rita: and i want to keep active as long as i can. the day i can't, i don't know, that's going to be hard 'cause i've been active, you know, especially in the nonprofit. and with cesar everything, you know, i-- and then the union when they started, and you know, all that. so, we've been, i've been through a lot. i've been through a lot, good and bad. damian: we're honored that you're able to make it each and every year here. and it's not a duty, right, barbara? it's kind of a calling for the family to put on these events, and to give out scholarships, and to do what you can for the legacy of your tío. it's a calling. you doyou have to go heret to do on a certain day. we all just do it because we want to do it. and we know that if we don't do it, who's going to do it for us, you know?

it's going to be hard. some people don't do it the way we want to do it, so that's why we come out and we do the breakfast, and we do the golf tournament, we do the march. and then we help our cousins in the foundation, which is down south. so, we all kind of work together a little bit. damian: okay, and i've asked all the questions. what do you want to get out, make sure that our viewers get across here this morning? barbara: well, just to keep his legacy going and also to support the farm workers because they're still having a hard time, especially the dairy workers th those dairy growers.e.e and just go out there and, you know, fight for social justice. you know, do volunteerism. that's everything that he would do, non-violently though. damian: right. all good-- [speaking foreign language] when you see, rita, every year the kids in alum rock, what does that give you-- [speaking foreign language] to see the five-year-olds and six-year-olds who, again, who

never met cesar or saw him do his work, but they hear about him in school and they believe in his causa? rita: it makes me very happy, very happy. and i'm glad that the kids are learning about him 'cause a lot of people don't know. one day, i went to one school and they said that cesar was a fighter, a boxer. said, "no, he was a fighter, but not a boxer." so, things like that to learn. like i have--i'm going to go speak at rudy's school, little rudy. and i said, "okay, i'll let them know." they're in the sixth, seventh, eighth, little young ones. they wanted me to speak spanish, i said, "oh perfect." so, you know, things like that.. me too, you know. damian: do you think our schools are doing enough? i mean, you mentioned they bring up the fighter, maybe not, but are they doing enough to make sure that he's part of the history books, that it's not just one paragraph in a california history? rita: i'm not sure because i'm not in around the school. but some are doing because i have calls.

i have calls sometimes from new york, from all the colleges over there, from washington. a lady called me, a girl, they want to know about cesar. and i says, "let me know your grade." they do call me, say, "i got an a." i said, "okay, good." they do call me from different colleges, especially new york. you know them. and i had another call from washington, i think it's washington or-- what's the name of it? barbara: oh, washington university. rita: university, this girl, girl said she got an a. i said, "okay, that sounds good." so they--i have a lot of calls. they want to know the story, the history. a lot of the things that i know when we're young, they're not in the books. they're not in the--so, when i go, i talk about when he was a little boy, when he went to school, and things like te day, it had everything yeah, everything was wrong. thini said, "oh, this book's tno good," i burned it.ng damian: well, again, we're celebrating the legacy of cesar

chavez, and the annual breakfast is coming up again. they do have a golf tournament throughout the year and also the annual marches across the nation. there is a web address for chavez family vision. any final thoughts, barbara, before we let you go? barbara: oh, there's so many. i just appreciate the fact that you let--you know, have us here every year so we can let people know about our events, or even to keep the legacy going. because i know you know our family. just want to make sure that people know about him. a lot of people don't know about him.u mun for gracing us here on the show. and one of the board members of chavez family vision is going to make a sales pitch, mauricio mejia, stay with us.

he's part of the chavez family vision board of directors. he's here on "comunidad del valle" to make that sales pitch. i mean, they brought you on the board to make sure that you sold tickets.

how is that going? i mean, it's a--i'm sure it's an effort that's rewarded by the cause itself. mauricio mejia: absolutely, it's my second year on the board. and the goal was to elevate and really continue the legacy of cesar chavez, and to really take it to a whole new, different level. you know, rita and barbara mentioned that, you know, they don't--there's some people that know about cesar chavez, and there's people that don't know about cesar chavez. and it amazes me, i grew up in los angeles knowing about cesar chavez. and for me, it's an honor to be a part of this board and to continue to expand on the legacy that he has. damian: and i'm not going to exaggerate when i say this, but tell me if i'm wrong that once you meet rita and barbara and rudy, you meet the family of cesar chavez, you feikerf that family. mauricio: absolutely, 100%. one of--one of the things my energy and my effortst and d

150% for rita and the entire family. but you know, i tell rita that when we put this event together, i'm going to give you the best show that you've ever seen, and really the best production. escondido deserves to be that,truly saip craftsmanship 're in today. it just feels like everything is so upside down. and we need to represent some of the people that truly made this country great. damian: [speaking foreign language] rita? how's he doing on the board? rita: keep an eye. he's a very good board member. all of our board members are real good, all of them. they'll help and they are there when you need them. i know a lot of them work, they can't just be there every time, but they still--they did their job and they come to do what they have to do, and be i know a lot of them work, they can'at the board meetings.time, they're all very good board members, all of them. we're very lucky we have a real good board, very good board.

damian: no, i think you really do. and here's your sales pitch. go ahead and make that sales pitch because we're still selling tickets for the annual breakfast. mauricio: yes, we just want to invite everyone to join us for our annual cesar chavez scholarship breakfast, which is next friday, march 29. and it's at--starts at 8 o'clock. and tickets are still available, but they're going quick. classify and this year, we added more tables just because we wanted to hit the numbers. and it's--we're going to hit 500 plus people this year. damian: wow, i mean, and it's not--i mean, it's an event at the fairmont, it's a nice breakfast. i mean, you say the fairmont and you've said it all. but bottom line is who's going to benefit in the long run by your donation to that cause? this year, we've--this year, we went up to five scholarships from the cesar chavez, and then we added an additional stem, so now we're working with other groups to really take this to a whole different level. so, we'll be giving away six scholarships this year,

which for the last couple years we've done four, about three to four scholarships. so, now we want to really take it to the next level. we've even increased the amounts, so it's really--it's not about us or the people that go to the breakfast. it's about us raising the funds to give back to the community and to give back to the students. damian: i know that phoenix, arizona brags a lot about having one of the biggest cesar chavez celebrations, breakfasts, or whatnot in the country. but i think we're giving them a run for their money. mauricio: yeah, well, we're going to--we want to definitely--well, we appreciate that. we welcome everyone that participates as long as they're doing it for the right cause because we don't want--we just don't want it to be out there and everyone saying, "oh, we're cesar chavez, we're cesar chavez," and then their intention is not what it's meant to be. damian: yeah, we saw some video, rita, of some workers out in the garlic fields of gilroy. talk about when our cameras go out and shoot video of these farm workers, we show them working,

but we don't sw and their eyelids, or the pain that's on their back. describe that pain, that pain if you will. rita: yeah, you can't see that because they don't show it. you just work and work. and even with pain or whatever, especially when you work piece work, you know, you got to hurry or if you don't hurry, make enough, you don't make enough money. damian: [speaking foreign language] rita: the hour, it's a little bit more, you know, but still. and then, you know, the growers are after you. they're--you know, everything has to be right. and after and after, it is hard. damian: here at nbc bay area, we get ten sick days a year. i don't remember my dad calling in sick to work in his 50 years that he worked in the fields, not calling in sick once. [speaking foreign language] you don't work, you don't get paid, right? rita: mm-hmm, it's hard. damian's rita: it's very hard. it was a very hard life. but in a way, it was real happy because we had good parents, beautiful parents. and all of us were real close.

cesar and i were very close, and we'd--you know, he was the one that did everything. my dad didn't even do it, he said, "today, we're going to do 1,000 boxes of tomato." my sister used to tell me, "you're crazy. you're a slave driver," she used to call him all the time. he did, we'd go. and we did, and we didn't go home till we did what he said. cesar was the one that put all--my dad never did. damian: you needed a union against cesar. he was driving--ome. i said, "no, we need five more boxes. go to the car." he would send my dad to the car, and we didn't leave. you know, and today we're making so many, wherever we were doing. and we did them, else we didn't go home. he was a hard worker, but he worked hard. he was a very hard worker. but he had, you know, "you're going to do so much today." my sister was the one that--she still does. damian: well, he worked until the very last day.nt. there is the chavez family vision web address for more information. any final thoughts, mauricio, before we let you go? mauricio: no, just support the cause and be active in the community. it's time to really get involved and give back, and go

back to some of the roots that we had growing up. damian: all right. well, thank you all very much. rita, un placer. thank you. rita: thank you too. damian: we'll see you when you're 95 here back on the show. rita: [speaking foreign language] damian: all right. up next here on "comunidad del valle," some movimiento music with noe montoya stay with us.

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 also follow me on twitter, my handle is @newsdamian. we thank you once--oh, pick up a copy also of "el observador" newspaper and support your bilingual weeklies all across the bay area. we thank you once again for sharing a part of your sunday and celebrating the legacy of cesar chavez with us. now, we leave you with los compadres here, including noe montoya with a little bit of movimiento music. buenos días. ♪ [singing in foreign language]

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right now at 4:30, presidential hopeful bernie sanders storms into the bay area, firing up a group of

supporters on what he hopes is a run to the white house. >> plus get ready for another round of rain. your workweek looks like it will get off to a soggy start. >> first after an investigation that lasted nearly two years we're now getting our first look at the highly anticipated mueller report. the news start right now. thank you so much for joining us. i'm vicky nguyen. >> and i'm terry mcsweeney. trump declaring exoneration tonight as they release the findings of the mueller investigation. mueller found no collusion between russia and the trump ca