Caroline Mendoza and Mandy Curo de Quintero

00:04 My name is Mandy curo de Quintero. I am 40 years old. Today is January 15th in the year 2020. We are on the Barona Indian reservation and I am with Caroline lachappa who is somewhat my aunt.

00:22 My name is Caroline Mendoza. I am 75 years old. Today's date is January 15th 2020. I'm on the Barona Indian Reservation.

00:34 And I'm with Mandy.

00:37 So you're saying that tortillas are your favorite food and that growing up there wasn't a whole lot of choices are some good choices though. My mom made your tears everyday. Did she teach you how did she teach you how about fried bread and know that time family that's funny something that we as native people.

01:10 Introduced into our culture we came up with it because we've been given poor rations. You know, what Commodities and large was one of them and flower was one of them and we may do with what we could so I believe that was in the 70s. Can you remember about the 7th will I mean it has been around for hundreds of years like when frybread took off cuz for me I'm 45. It has been a part of our my culture for 40 years. Don't remember one fry bread took over your house because my mom always made flour tortillas.

01:47 And that was breakfast lunch and dinner with pot of beans.

01:55 Rabbit rice or something. We always we always say deer meat rabbit beans rice macaroni spaghetti. Cool. What was your favorite out of the beans or sorry out of the the hunted food deer and deer deer taste like a little Bland rabbits good habits got taste to it taste like chicken. So yeah, there were those days when we had side dishes, but if we didn't have my dad and my brother and they going out and catching something while we were going to have with side dishes was that how it was for you growing up cuz my brother just to go out and hunt all the time. Yeah dear rabbit. My mom likes squirrel.

02:55 How would she spray by that interesting?

03:01 Never knew that. So it was your mom's name Marie. Shivaya. She married Chapa. My mom was from La Posta Indian Reservation. Okay, and my dad used to

03:15 Work making the roads through.

03:18 I ate 294 he worked in that dirt road on the reservation.

03:24 And his water Watershed going up to my grab my grandma's house and drink water and he seen my mom there and then he started going to get water all the time that Mary and he bought her down here to Barona.

03:40 And at the time we have the house are world summer lips. We had that house are we never really had a house?

03:50 That was my grandmother's house. So we stayed here at the pier and a half of the house. We lived here and over there at Jim Bob benegas. We stayed in that house because we never really had a house and find it that house over there was available for my brother Frank lived and they gave us that house for our that was our house and that's our family home. So tell me about your siblings. I have four brothers and three sisters.

04:26 That's a lot. What are the names of the name, David?

04:32 Okay. Old tiny.

04:36 Okay. I need Franklin Shopper Clifford lachappa.

04:41 And your sisters Joanne Joan which APA?

04:46 And there was me.

04:48 And there was a shared child from Vegas booty Venegas.

05:01 Cynthia I didn't realize there were so many. Yeah.

05:15 I've seen her at Gatherings made a couple purchases. So tell me about into.

05:26 The the cooking the cooking of that like you make fry bread and people are pretty partial to you and your families a little business there.

05:36 You know, I don't remember no cactuses. Like we always had fibroid and when I was young we always have tortillas so I don't remember when the fry bread came in.

05:47 What else did your mom teach you?

05:50 How to make we wish we silly

05:55 So, you know about that from the beginning to end like going out and picking the I'm always of years before the rain came and picked up acorns how good it was at that time and was like to get the big ones. What are they called him the Corpus to round ones. And where would you go to get a Laguna Mountains? Yeah Camp along the roads are under the trees with pick the green acorns a long ones that called on the snow.

06:38 Would you store them if we stored up in 30 SEC? Skip a year to make sure that when I give my speech is at the museum that I'm telling all you know accurate information. So they said that the natives would go up in the fall to the Kalia Mack of mountains and they would gather the acorns and they would store them for a year. Give him a chance to dry out cuz they're pretty would you do that? You would do that. If I remember let them dry out but not for years even though I can you dry out and then after that would crack I'm going to let them dry out, you know and then peeling and so you peel and then what do you do? Cuz I've actually never been to a Chevy class. I've asked to be taught and they told me there.

07:33 The pickings went very good after you peel them and you let you know you clean all the little fine covering they have on it and my grandma used to put them on the back.

07:46 Basket for Chuy's or acorns and she put it in a little coat it around the corner come off. She was okay. And then after that you grind it how would you grind it at that time? But I remember now. I don't know how my grandma grind at. My mom had a regular Branding Iron Wichita, but she got her mouth.

08:15 Mexico put them in the top in the garage cuz it used to be that they would sit on the other grinding stones. And yeah and turn them into powder. So what's the step after that if you're going to be having your powder and

08:32 Curtis it through that get their little hard knocks the little big ones out and it's ready to go. You would lie chat that they talk about reaching at right. There's like we wanted to put my mommy to put it in a

08:46 Oh look a little round pot like that, you know and put a cloth over and hold of cloth with clothespins and put the acorn in there and then they would yes multiple times and then just cook it over fire on the stove until it started to bubble. And remember they said when it's done you could get it and drop it in a glass of water like that and see if you drop it in there. It turns to a ball and it's done finished dropping it goes down. It's not done but it turns a little ball and it's done. My dad is a man that you know, put it on a tortilla with some honey, and that would be perfect and I'm going

09:40 So people always ask what does it taste like going to go? Well, it literally tastes like Acorn mush. It's a staple to get buy, you know, it's all right. Yeah, my mom went about everything but it did taste like dirt. That's for sure will now we got the casino. What do you like to eat over there?

10:06 I got my favorites shipping fish and chips. Oh, yeah.

10:14 So when I was going up there was nothing out there that was a field full of cattle and every now and then we would go out and we would golf before there was even a golf course, they just do it cuz it was a flat land and we have golf balls and we had clubs and they go out and just you know, hit stuff. Did you have horses growing up? No. Okay. We did we would ride the horses all over there and run around. So what would you say has been?

10:54 The biggest change that you've seen in your lifetime here in Verona.

10:59 But the biggest changes a casino. Yeah, that's the biggest change now. We have all this traffic coming through and you know, did you vote for it? Or you could thank ya When We Were Young we should pay the dip down there the water ran through and we made a big spot clear it all out. And that was our fool Hardy no cars or come by and I would play in the water and all that. That was our swimming pool. I dip with your swimming like you just swim. They're not expecting anyone to 1000 man. What are two cars? I could buy that's all by with shovel all the dirt dirt away. And you know, it's not a swimming area but a place to go to I was talking to

11:50 Some visitors who come and see the museum about how you know, we used to not lock our doors and to our culture's more like when you live in a 9 mile radius, everyone's your family something. I might need to come in tomorrow something and I may not be home. So while the car doors it's you know, they can't get in that way. But now you're so many strangers, you know, making their way up here always say since we never used to lock car doors either just maybe in the past 4 years. I started locking my door me to it was a hard change to make that I would forget even cuz I grew up here and then I went to college and found a house in Colorado. I forget to lock the door. I was not a big deal to me like cuz that's the way that I was raised. Have you ever lived Off The Rez?

12:47 After I graduate from high school, I went to live in India with Jermaine virginie. Was it really different? Oh, yeah. It was it was like I didn't realize what we had. I didn't realize how special and secure this is to have my neighbor be a distant relative and then there's my aunt and uncle everyone on your street is family and there's always somebody who knows your name and always somebody who's willing to lend you a movie if you're going to board or play a game with you or whatever, you know, and then I went and lived Off The Rez and nobody knows your name and nobody they think you're weird if you borrow a cup of sugar and I just thought that's

13:31 That's just what neighbors do you know, I felt it was it is definitely like an eye-opener for me like oh, you know, it's it's very different. So when we need reservation When We Were Young we run all over these Hills all over here to go out in the morning and come back in the evening before dark and we weren't scared of snakes or anything if we just go would be gone all day good hungry. Come home. Yep, and nobody worried to me. We were never poor anything. We always have something to eat. But when we started school, that's when I realize that we didn't really have what they had out there like nice pretty dresses of shoes you do.

14:13 Rio's different room. How was school for you?

14:17 I was backward, you know, we were backwards or so. It was kind of hard for I wish I was more open and spoke more when I was in school. I probably would have learned more but I was and I was kind of shy and scared of all these white people.

14:36 But you aren't alone you went with your family, right? Yeah, I love that we stick together.

14:42 I went to school.

14:46 Nello Montreal was my age. But Damon is a year older and one time he saw some kids bullying. Me and Junior High nude makes fun of me every morning. I can't remember why or what they would say that they were boys, and they would I would wait to go into my classroom. I wasn't shy but I also just kind of didn't talk to too many people.

15:09 And when they came and saw that he went and grabbed that guy and picked him up by the neck and put him against the wall. He said are you making fun of my cousin and the guys like I didn't know she was your cousin, you know, cuz I got the red hair in the white skin and they never touched me after that. That's very cool. Danielle is looking for call or no high schools now and I think she's going to pick El Cap because she's like I want to go and you know be with my cousins special.

15:44 So

15:47 How many children do you have? I have four children.

15:52 Harold Hill

15:56 It's going to be 53 James Hill is going to be 51.

16:01 Dancia Mendoza, she's going to be 38 and Kyle who's going to be the 40 while yeah, he's piled just a little bit under me. Awesome and grandkids. I have 14 grandkids and great-grandkids. So

16:29 What do you what would you say Your Role is up here, like everybody's kind of finding their way of.

16:37 Surveying or helping out my roll up here. Now. There's a relax and take it at all there when I was younger. I used to like teach classes at the Museum to fry where the classes Cartier glasses and

16:52 You've recently retired also from school board. Yeah, I was on the school board running for how many years I was on the aroma committee for about 30 years and I just found out and backed out and be able to give it up. So what's a typical day for you typical day for 32 years, and now I'm older and I said, I'm going to start my grant. My daughter said my granddaughter said Grandma. Are you going to watch TV and do what?

17:32 Games on my on my iPad. It's nice to have no schedule right? I love waking up and go in. There's nothing it hardly ever happens, but you crave it. It's it's great to have a week where you can just do, you know, if I want to go I'll go and if I don't then I ain't going that rarely happens for me. I like staying home with the circle of Elders. I don't like to fly or I don't like to be in a ship.

18:04 So, where have you been with them? And what's been your favorite place? I think was a

18:10 We went up to a

18:12 Canada and took a bus across the United States to I think North Dakota. That was fun fun.

18:22 We were on a train everyone on the plane and we were the only worn on the ocean was nice to Elsa free to fly. I don't think I'm going to go fly anymore cuz you know.

18:39 Yeah, it's a little complicated. Yeah, unfortunately, I married a foreigner so

18:45 Travel is

18:47 There's no good way to get to Venezuela except for the fly. But that's the planes get smaller cuz you have to take three different planes usually to get to his little village. It becomes more and more like voice threatening afraid to do that. So you said that you were not afraid of snakes. I'm afraid of snakes. I hate snakes to verify me but it didn't stop you from running all around these days when you were young and I would just go up on the hills and my mom never said watch out for snakes are using like that and I would just go and if you ever had any encounters with the snakes know nothing, huh now and my grandkids grow up and have to be careful. Watch out for snakes. Take your cell phone. Call me. Yeah. Yeah. Daniel's not very

19:41 He's not crazy about letting our kids out of his sight, but he has grown up in a very dangerous part of town and Venezuela and everybody has bars on their doors. And so anytime we go to visit. We cannot visit once the sun goes down. They the taxi will drive right up to Grandma's door. They open the door unlock it me and the kids running close the door and lock it and we don't get to go out and take a walk on the street. He can go out and see his neighbors. But once it's getting it's like four or five so that's kind of how he grew up. So to him, you know, every every house up here has a Polaris and the kids 12 and up know how to drive it and they go all over it and he's like caught Danielle in the field with Erika Osuna her best friend and she has a Polaris and I was like, yeah go for what they wanted to go up on the hill at Sunset and look at the lake that you can see from the border of Verona I said,

20:41 Have fun, you know and he caught he said do you think our daughter should be out rested? Oh, yeah when I was in sixth and seventh grade, that's when you come home from school jump on the jump on the three wheelers and race. I beat Anthony every time.

21:00 And then later we got cars nice cars and then go to the home and we would walk. Yep and Hardy and it home just is all home from house to house to house and go back to know nowadays just cards Jam in the roads are more dangerous a little kids running around.

21:36 For the fruit. We got that house see Carmen. I think I was in that house 3 days before I gave birth to her. So 8 and 1/2 years. We've had it I've had three trick-or-treaters there and it was family members who were like, let's go see you at Mandy's do and you know, but

22:00 They don't go, you know, it's it's become let's go show all that lets go see the elders is what it seems like it's if you you live on that the Dogpatch, is that what they call it? Yeah, right, but that's a still-high populated area cuz you can get the house as quickly but over where we live. No one would come to my house and my parents would be like literally ran out of bags and I was like what so it's become obvious to me that think they go to that older people's homes to see you know, it's a pleasant time. I used to get frightened. I remember when uncle benny scared us they had on their porch and there's a big penis we are poor. So hey access to free candy, that's cool. Cuz I never wanted to ask my parents for more than you know, what they could afford. I knew that, you know, you're probably not going to get a candy like nowadays Daniel gets in the car and says go Starbucks.

22:57 And I'm like that with our New Year's resolution is kind of stop that on a daily basis. But anyways back then, you know, we didn't ask for much but it was a great night to go out and get sweets and we would make up our own costumes because we couldn't afford so I might be wearing something that I've been burned for the last three years. I was a fairy for who-knows-how-long and then we'd go out. I had these sheets that were cheetah cheetah material like cheetah looking print we'd go out in the field and grab old dead bones. Cuz remember that's where dead horse tree was and now that I think that and I think the trees been fenced in so nobody does that anymore but we've go grab the cow bones or the horse bones and put them in our hair and walk around like there are big clubs like we were right out of the Flintstones and we'd be cavewoman that was a cheap and easy way to go out and get candy. But anyways, Uncle Vinny

23:54 On his porch there were three ghost sitting in a chair and he was one of them but they were all sitting very still as the kids would come up and then when you knocked on the door, he jump up and scare you.

24:09 What's your favorite holiday? My favorite holiday. I think it's Christmas. How do you guys spend it? I like Christmas and family get together and

24:21 I don't like shopping, but I just like Christmas.

24:26 Well, I love you know, how pretty lights and all the decorations and yeah, we was when we were young. We always used to have a Charlie Brown tree going to wait till I think 24th or so. I had to go buy a triggered and just all all was a left turn should get a tree or tip or they probably gave during and Charlie Brown trees. So you said your dad worked on the Highway 8 before it was a highway he worked on the road that you're going and I ate and you're turning to Campo know the dirt road behind but wasn't sure but he working that I wrote it into Cap won't come out on 94e work. They're doing matter what it was over here over here.

25:14 Yeah, and the reservation cap was right in the middle of credit. Do you go up there often know we used to when we were young we need to have fiestas and stuff McGraw. My grandmother would have a Ramada in Celtic Heroes and I remember one time she sold snow cones and me and my sister were there too. We had a little a little thing like this. They had to cut the bottom of the ice baking stuff.

25:57 So you raise up shade the eye for that thing, you know till we had enough for snow cone and we spend the whole weekend up there and that's no help with her mother. You'd be at Camp all the time, you know.

26:18 Visiting all the time.

26:20 Parenthood visit with with my mom and my grandma

26:26 My grandma lived up there, but you wasn't from Campa at that time to post to their reservation didn't have any electricity or or water or pretty far back there and then they were going to build the new I8 coming through to check to see if there's anybody was partially on the I8 so they bought the land that they used to make the new I8, you know for my mom my mom.

27:03 My grandma and my two sisters they were enrolled. Are they let me know.

27:08 So they gave him money. I don't know how much they gave him. My mom Butter trailer. My grandma bought a trailer and they booed on the reservation and started do.

27:19 Bia will go there and put electricity at and Roads and stuff like that.

27:24 Yeah.

27:27 Very little poster at that time just my mom and grandma lived on there and had electricity. But to me, it was scary. I saw the middle of nowhere, you know, two trailers into women.

27:42 That can be dangerous. So your your parents spoke up I did they speak it to each other and did they speak it to you? They're spoken to each other when you sit there and I want to watch it then try to listen to see what they're saying. They would stop and they tell us to go outside so we couldn't stay in there cuz it's kind of like me and my husband was Spanish that yell is catching on real fast, cuz they would deliver my mom didn't teach us any a pie or not. I think it's because we were going to a public school and we had to learn how to speak English and she didn't want us to speak, you know, Indian and she never taught us. Yeah, that's very common with your generation. Earlier.

28:31 Yeah, but you probably have a great accent cuz you still got to hear it, you know, which is a leg up for the rest of us.

28:42 I didn't I think my accent. Okay, but it's because I invest as much time as I can hanging out with the people who will still speak, but it would have I can see.

28:54 How

28:57 Beneficial it is like for my children that the Spanish like Daniella. We really I spoke to her in English, but just being in the house just hearing her parents go back and forth every now and then is she she just one day understood and it was like, how did you do that? You know because he's taken a few classes, but we really haven't pushed her to be bilingual. I know that that will come but I think that she's got a leg up because she's just heard it even though she may not have known at the time but we now she does like what did I say yesterday? I said something to my husband.

29:38 And I was really impressed with the fact that she was like, oh, yeah. Don't forget that you know or something like she she understood basically was the thing and so Carmen

29:49 Well, spend most of our time at my dad's that's just a special relationship. But you know with him speaking a pie. I hope that they get a little bit of that to down there. I've been going through.

30:02 Classes for a pie and I even learned anything.

30:11 I haven't learned anything I say.

30:14 A good way of learning is like your daughter. You're not being around tearing them talk and stuff like that. But in the book looking at a book.

30:21 Yes, those opportunities are few and far between there. So that's that's rest. Yeah, I wish we had.

30:32 Like little CDs or something like this songs. Not not not burn songs, you know, cuz I know that those are sacred but things we can just like pop in and he like you want to learn in any language you just turn on your TV and you can set your I want it to be French and then start listening start hearing it, you know, so yeah. I really worry about I think that we're doing a lot to try to

30:57 Keep do what we can you know, but but I do worry that we need more exposure. We just need to hear it everyday all the time.

31:10 I understand a little bit. Yeah, I took Spanish in high school got a really nice, but I learned the days of the week the colors and Pat's and all that stuff and you cut a separate language is a little with a Spanish. So I'd say one third of our language is Spanish bar at so that's that was helpful.

31:33 Where did God come from Rincon u17 map here in Verona girls and took them all over to play ball and enjoy that. How did you meet him my brother tiny?

32:00 Nice, your head. Come around seat are dating.

32:04 My first husband was I met in La Harrell on Foster's death.

32:10 At that time they were having relocation for the Indians to get him off the reservation and they have to Tatum me up. So I did did that and I met him there if he came from Minnesota, he was a triple engine. I didn't know that.

32:24 SSI back and being like a paper and all that interesting.

32:30 And them

32:32 How did Harold get into music you're not musical right know, you know long time ago the Indian guy. Just have you targeted member Blackie and my uncle hacking or they just play the box guitar and saying and all the stuff that I don't know how they got into it. Huh? Cuz he is pretty good. He said he went back to Minnesota to see his people and they stayed back there for about 2 or 3 days and he said he got they did a ritual and gave him an Indian name is it didn't know what he doesn't know what it is.

33:15 It's cute. And so Dandy as your only daughter that's pretty special.

33:22 My only daughter yeah.

33:25 And she seems to be following in your footsteps. I hope so. I'm a great cook them. I took a couple girls out to dinner.

33:42 And they were talking about who's the most beautiful girl on the rez and my name didn't come up at all that's been right there. But maybe I could see that she was she goes to language class and has the tattoo on her neck and I went that Stan Thea I said don't talk to yourself up. I told you no don't do it cuz 17 she wanted to know if I should put her someplace where you can expose your social and she got older she put that tattoo. And as soon as you don't be doing that I said doesn't look good, you know.

34:24 Cuz she that's all she did but she took over my job in the

34:30 Enrollment committee. She's only enrollment you need to know that I drop down. She took my place. They had another our family and also she took my place. I dropped out of the charter school. Yeah, and she took my place and I dropped out of the election Kyle took my place.

34:52 Should I do see Kyle in that?

34:58 So what are your plans for your future?

35:03 My future

35:06 Yeah, my plans are on what my future is almost over is there that's not true. You look great like to enjoy myself in tire and do nothing as you have anywhere that you want to see in the world know your consent. I'm content with what I have now, you know before it's you are young are you probably want to see more and more I feel guilty about it, but I can't wait for my kids to to grow up so that we can do some of these things together. You know, something's are just you can ask an eight-year-old to go on a hike like that, you know or to travel so far, but we're very excited about

35:48 Our future so

35:52 It would you have any advice for somebody who is Young? Let's say Carmen's age, you know who didn't get to live through everything that you have we were here but BC before casinos we were here in those hard times when and when there was so few of us. What would you say to a little kid like that? I would tell them to get an education. What's a good education for what we never got in and out. I don't think I could a good education cuz I was always shy and backwards and never bought it out of me, you know, and I stayed like that and for somebody like that I would have asked him to the doctor or something, you know, I'll call take an opportunity.

36:39 I don't know where I'd be out there for a great. I wish they would do all these kids would do something with their lives instead of you. Don't live off a check. Yeah. Yeah. That's what I told my kids. I know you did a good job for the other ones are ready to hear all going to work Potts. He's Bern's reservation to post it and what he does but he works in the poster list of this casinos are not going to last forever. Yeah. I need to get a job and work. I work for a long time. I worked all my life. I used to be able to Shannon doing that for 14 years up an hour. He went to beauty school nights at the location that went to Beauty College.

37:39 Yeah, so wasn't that where you would like to sell your your land and then go do something it would just wake up getting yours off the reservation to get him educated and you know relocate them whatever. So for you that turned out to be that was good. Okay cool, and they never told us about it is on the reservation. Like I think at that time Kathryn Welch was the chairman and I do know about going to school in the bi paying for it. My friend Susie Susan Peter. She told me about it. I said really cuz you got to go ask Catherine about if you need to sign a paper so you can go so I went over there. I had to pay Prader she gave me the paper and what it was but I don't remember but went to her house and ask her to sign if she does do you want to go to school, huh?

38:37 Turn the papers in it or was she being more sarcastic? I mean a big thing up here directly. I hear she was feisty cuz they called that feisty Kate's at the casino that's named after her. Yeah. Well, I didn't either that's why I'm asking like I don't I don't think we overlaps in our lifetimes are if we had it was it was short? Yeah, but I said I'd heard that feisty Kate's was named after Katherine banegas and I said and I hear she was feisty and them meisterman nodded his head but no one's ever given me like details or whatnot. So I never heard that.

39:28 Did you ever run for office? Do you ever take office? Where you ever on Council or thought about it?

39:38 Did you think about it? No, I never thought about her. Yeah.

39:43 Whenever I first moved down here from LA.

39:47 To get a house with your doing Holmes and all that. So I had to live on reservation. I move down here and my aunt Frances. You should take me to meetings bring me to meeting. She said you need to get involved in the reservation need to go to meet go to meetings so I can come to meetings with her. Then I started my going to last today and I appreciate you and all you've done for the people up here and your example my family.

40:24 That's a nice recorder.