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City embraces Hispanic residents through activities
By Angela Perez

Palm Beach Post Staff Writer

Wednesday, August 10, 2005

Perhaps Greenacres should be renamed Acres Verdes.

The city has welcomed with open arms the flocks of Hispanics who have moved there looking for a nice place to call home. In the past year, Greenacres has continued to make great efforts to reach out to its growing Hispanic community, which according to the 2000 Census, at 5,858 people, makes up more than 20 percent of the city's 27,569 residents.This figure is up from 7.9 percent in 1990 and 5.5 percent in 1980.

At the July 30 block party hosted by the city's community center in the Palm Villa II neighborhood, people of all cultures gathered to celebrate the start of a new school year. Hamburgers and hot dogs grilled while 200 backpacks filled with school supplies donated by Office Depot and Staples were given to the children, who also enjoyed face-painting, fishing and other activities.

Maria Reyes, who is from Mexico, attended the event with her four boys, Rene, José, Sammy and Andrew.

"The city keeps us informed, which is good. They have a lot of activities which help bring the community together," said Reyes in Spanish.

Leisure Services, which coordinates events for the city, including the quarterly block parties, does not single out Hispanics, but instead helps them connect with other residents.

"We try to do things that incorporate the whole community," said Juan Ruiz, the recreation supervisor of Leisure Services. "We want Hispanics to be integrated and comfortable with their neighbors."

Dino Pessantes of Peru has been a resident of Greenacres for 15 years. In those years he has attended some of the community center's events.

"I work so I can't come by too often," he said in Spanish. "But these activities for the kids are wonderful. It's all about the children."

Other successful programs hosted by Leisure Services have been the adult and youth soccer leagues, basketball tournaments and concerts. According to Ruiz, about 98 percent of the adult league and about 50 percent of the youth soccer league is made up of Hispanics.

Also, at many of the community center celebrations, Leisure Services has enlisted mariachi performers and Mexican dancers as part of the cultural entertainment.

When Ruiz started working at the center five years ago, he was the only Hispanic employee. Although now there are more Hispanics in the office, Ruiz still likes to get to know the residents.

"I go around and get to know a lot of the Hispanic kids personally," said Ruiz. "It really strengthens the sense of community we have."

Greenacres Elementary School, which has a 62 percent Hispanic student body, has taken outreach one step further. After a four-year hiatus, the school last year began holding English classes for the students' parents and members of the community.

Although attendance fell off because of the hurricanes, Principal Diane Conley says there is a large group of parents eager to start again. She also hopes to start an intermediate English class for parents who are more advanced in the language.

Conley has been a principal at Greenacres for nine years and tries to gear all the school's activities to the people they serve.

"Everything we do at our school is geared toward our population. Since most of the children are Hispanic, most of our programs are for that demographic group."

Besides hosting tutoring sessions during the week and occasionally Saturdays for students preparing for the FCAT, the school offers parent training every other week in three languages: English, Spanish and Creole.

Conley also is developing a new school Web site in English and Spanish to help parents stay abreast of school events and announcements.

Reyes plans to use the Web site once it is online since she can't attend many parent meetings. Her youngest son Sammy attends Greenacres Elementary. Sammy, who is 9, used to have trouble speaking English properly. Reyes attributes much of his improvement to the school's programs. "The school has helped him a lot in his pronunciation.

"The city has done a great job. I am happy here. Everyone is very close... it's like we are all family."