User:Marine 69-71/Workshop

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Puerto Rico belongs (territory) to but is not part of the United States.[https://legal-planet.org/2020/06/29/dc-and-puerto-rico-are-not-the-same/ Legal Planet] According to the Supreme Court anyone born in Puerto Rico or anyone born outside of Puerto Rico with at least one parent who was born in Puerto Rico is Puerto Rican.{{Cite web|url=http://www.estado.gobierno.pr/Ciudadania_PR_offline.htm|title=(Spanish) Citizenship application. Puerto Rico Department of State|}} Puerto Ricans only have a second class American citizenship.[https://www.newsobserver.com/opinion/op-ed/article178372886.html News & Observer]

Gretchen Díaz: ponceña hasta en la luna

POR SANDRA TORRES GUZMÁN

Cuando Gretchen Díaz se apartó de las calles de su amado Puerto Viejo, lo hizo comprometida con investigar tópicos que ayudaran a la humanidad. Hoy sonríe ante la satisfacción de haberlo logrado.

Dice un refrán popular que quien no tiene padrino no se bautiza. Sin embargo, la historia puertorriqueña está repleta de innumerables hombres y mujeres que han forjado su camino a base de talento y mucho sacrificio.

Ese es el caso de la joven científica Gretchen Díaz Muñoz, quien a sus 33 años de edad puede afirmar que el éxito y el futuro no lo determinan el dinero o el lugar de dónde provienes.

La profesional, nacida y criada en el barrio Puerto Viejo de La Playa de Ponce, trabaja actualmente en un laboratorio de virología, ubicado en Nebraska. Allí investiga la manera en que se puede reproducir el Virus del Papiloma Humano en la levadura.

Esto, con la intensión de hallar una potencial cura para la enfermedad, causante de cáncer en el cuello uterino y asociada al cáncer oral.

De cuna humilde y trabajadora

Gretchen creció correteando por las calles de uno de los sectores más humildes de la Ciudad Señorial. Es la mayor de tres hermanos e hija de padres divorciados. Mas nunca claudicó en su meta de convertirse en profesional de las ciencias.

Su sueño empezó cuando cursaba el quinto grado de la Escuela Elemental Segundo Ruiz Belvis, tiempo en el que escaló peldaños sin privarse de otras oportunidades deparadas por el destino.

Al igual que otros niños playeros, aprovechó los cursos de modelaje, baile y confección de artesanías que ofrece el Centro Sor Isolina Ferré en Tabaiba y con firme propósito se cultivó para el prominente entorno que hoy se ha forjado.

Asimismo, participó del tradicional Carnaval de La Playa de Ponce. Incluso, llegó a redactar noticias para el periódico escolar, mientras se deleitaba haciendo cada uno de los experimentos presentados en la Feria Científica, por los cuales siempre ganaba algún premio.

“Yo vivo orgullosa de haber nacido en La Playa de Ponce. Mis recuerdos más bonitos tienen su base aquí, y por eso quise salir afuera en busca de una carrera con la cual algún día pudiera regresar y ayudar a mi gente”, relató Díaz Muñoz en entrevista con La Perla del Sur.

La científica ponceña además tiene claro quienes le inspiraron. Por eso, recuerda con respeto a todas sus mentoras mientras cursaba los niveles elemental e intermedio de escuela pública.

“Tuve dos maestras que siempre creyeron en mí. Miss Acevedo en quinto grado y Wisteria Tejero en sexto, quienes -sabiendo de donde yo venía- me daban consejos y me motivaron para seguir adelante con mis sueños”, recordó mientras asomaba emoción por sus ojos.

Y cuando estudiaba en la Intermedia Santiago González, supo de una escuela especializada en ciencias y matemáticas ubicada en Mayagüez. Se trataba del Centro Residencial de Oportunidades Educativas (CROEM, por sus siglas).

“Una sociedad que tiene conocimiento es menos vulnerable a que sea manipulada”, resaltó esta científica producto de escuelas públicas de Ponce y el Centro Sor Isolina Ferré en Tabaiba. (Foto: Florentino Velázquez)

Sin mediar más pensamiento, puso sus ojos en ese recinto, sin preveer que también una maestra de su escuela amilanaría -con o sin intensión- su ingreso a tan importante institución. Todo porque, según ella, ningún estudiante de La Playa “daba el grado”.

“Eso me puso bien triste. Pero gracias a Dios, tuve un ángel en la maestra Ivette Vargas y gracias a ella tuve el mayor cambio en mi carrera”, aseguró.

De más está decir que Gretchen logró su ingreso a CROEM y más adelante hizo un bachillerato en Biología del Recinto de Mayagüez de la Universidad de Puerto Rico.

“Allí estuve en la Asociación de Estudiantes de Biología y nos juntábamos para ir a los bosques de Puerto Rico. Solo íbamos a una cosa, que era retratar hongos. Eso era lo máximo”, relató.

La experiencia bastó para enamorarla de la micología -la rama de la biología que estudia los hongos- y transformarse en fuente de inspiración para nuevos estudios de maestría, también en Mayagüez.

“Yo no quería ser médico. Siempre supe que estudiar biología era para convertirme en científica, pero hasta ese momento fue que entendí cuál iba a ser mi especialidad”, indicó.

Al final, su tesis de maestría fue basada en los hongos que viven las aguas de las Salinas en Cabo Rojo.

“Conocer cómo viven esos microorganismos en aguas tan saturadas de sal nos ayuda en buscar alternativas de cultivo en países donde sus tie-rras son saturadas en sal y donde hay sequía, por ejemplo en África”, reveló la hoy especialista en hongos.

“Entonces puedes conocer la manera de ayudarles para que las plantas puedan crecer y aliviar un poco la hambruna que existe en esos países”, apuntó.

Como si no fuera suficiente, la intrépida playera completó estudios doctorales en la Universidad de Ohio, para especializarse en Genética Molecular. También ganó una beca del National Institute of Health para hacer un posdoctorado, el cual paga su sueldo en el laboratorio de Nebraska donde actualmente labora.

“En Ohio hice estudios en un laboratorio de levadura, que es un modelo para estudiar cosas que pasarían en las células humanas. Fue entonces que conocí al científico Peter Angueletti, que estaba estudiando el Virus del Papiloma en un laboratorio de Nebraska”, señaló.

“Como yo tenía un expertís en levadura, le caí perfecta al estudio que Angueletti quería hacer sobre el VPH, que aunque hay vacuna para prevenirlo es una enfermedad que se detecta tarde en quien la padece”, añadió.

Más en el tintero

Pero sus metas no terminan allí. Uno de los sueños de Gretchen es convertirse en profesora universitaria para capacitar a estudiantes en el ámbito de la ciencia y, a la vez, encaminarlos para que encuentren el área donde mejor puedan servir.

Y es que Gretchen quiere comunicar la ciencia en arroz y habichuelas, para que la sociedad común conozca las cosas que le afectan, en un lenguaje sencillo.

“Una sociedad que tiene conocimiento es menos vulnerable a que sea manipulada. En Puerto Rico, los científicos han llevado muchas luchas contra proyectos que son dañinos a la población y al medioambiente, como ejemplo el Gasoducto”, expuso con valentía.

Mas en su objetivo de educar a la población, Gretchen se unió a un grupo de científicos, crea-dores de la página web Ciencia Puerto Rico, con la intensión de orientar a las personas sobre temas de la materia y dar a conocer a científicos puertorriqueños.

“Me da tristeza que todos podemos mencionar a cantantes, deportistas, pintores y profesiona-les importantes, pero cuando preguntas sobre científicos puertorriqueños, de seguro te quedas pensando qué nombre mencionar”, indicó.

Así las cosas, la joven dedica incontables horas a la semana, de manera voluntaria, para escribir y mantener información actualizada en el portal cienciapr.org; oportunidad que le ha permitido viajar a distintos lugares del mundo para dar a conocer el maravilloso cosmos de la ciencia.

Precisamente, este encuentro con Gretchen es producto de un viaje a Puerto Rico con el objetivo de ofrecer un simposio a estudiantes de ciencia de toda la isla.

Y el encuentro se concretó en uno de sus sitios favoritos, el Centro Sor Isolina Ferré de La Playa de Ponce, donde pudo rememorar los años en que se deleitaba aprendiendo sobre su segunda pasión, el arte.

“Me acuerdo cuando la Sister (Sor Isolina Ferré) estaba viva y cada vez que la veía me metía entre la gente para poder verla de cerca y saludarla”, recordó.

“Fue un ser de quien aprendí lo que es el servicio a la comunidad y algún día quiero regresar para contribuir con el conocimiento que he adquirido para el beneficio de mi gente de La Playa”, agregó con visible emoción.

Mientras tanto, nuestra entrevistada continuará en su empeño de investigar tópicos que ayuden a la humanidad, y sueña con llevar el conocimiento de la ciencia a través de los medios de comunicación.

http://www.periodicolaperla.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=5562:gretchen-diaz-munoz-poncena-de-la-playa-hasta-la-luna&catid=121:portada-gente&Itemid=177 Gretchen Díaz: ponceña hasta en la luna; “La Perla del Sur”; POR SANDRA TORRES GUZMÁN

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{{center|1=The Marine and the Girl Next Door}}

{{center|1=(A love story)}}

{{center|1=By: Tony (The Marine) Santiago}}

center

On December 31, 2008, at 11:30 PM I was at Thunderbird Hospital in Phoenix, Arizona with my wife. She was hospitalized on Christmas Day with double pneumonia and placed in the special care unit. Our children and grandchildren were home waiting for me, but I did not want to leave my wife alone on New Years Day. I wanted to be by her side when the clock struck 12. You see, we have been married for 38 years and I thank God everyday for giving me such a wonderful wife. Even though we have grown old together, I can still remember the first day that I laid my eyes on her.

The year was 1971, the United States was still scarred with the racial riots of the 1960s during the Civil Rights movement, political assassinations and the Vietnam War. It seemed as the whole world was a mess when I was discharged from the Marine Corps. I was a native New Yorker who had served two tours in Nam. During this time my father (my parents were divorced) had moved to Puerto Rico and founded The Puerto Rico Real Estate Corp., a small business with a big name. When I was asked at Camp Pendleton, where did I plan to go upon my discharge, I had a choice, I could have returned to New York City where I had a job waiting for me in a bank or take a short vacation and visit my dad in Puerto Rico (my mother who had re-married had also moved to the island). I thought about all the horrors of war that I and my fellow men had been through for an ungrateful nation. I thought about how badly and unfair our soldiers were being treated by the media and war protesters. I thought about the discrimination which I had witnessed and been subject to just because I was Puerto Rican. I then decided go to Puerto Rico, not knowing what fate had in store for me.

The day was March 28, when I arrived at San Juan International Airport. Here I was, a young 21 year old Marine in my uniform with a chest full of medals waiting for my father to pick me up. Even though I didn’t know much Spanish, since we barely spoke it at home, and the island was hot and humid, it felt great to be in the land where my parents were born. I thought to myself "In the United States people could tell me Go Back to Puerto Rico", even though I was born in New York, in Puerto Rico, I figured that no one could be prejudice against me for being Puerto Rican". Well, my father finally arrived and after the required hugging, he loaded my bags in his car and we took off.

After about an hours ride, we were finally in the town of Bayamon where my father lived. I was busy enjoying the view and as we were getting closer to my father’s house, my father suddenly turned to me and said: "See that girl walking over there?" I looked and for a moment I couldn’t believe my eyes. There was this beautiful girl, walking alone on the sidewalk, her golden hair so nice and long, her body so perfect, she was wearing an outfit that was called something like "Coolot" which was a short pants that resembled a mini-dress. And when I saw her face, My God! I had never seen such a beautiful face in my life. She was a goddess, I kid you not. You ever hear the 1963 song "Just one look, and I fell in love, love, LOVE" sung by Doris Troy?, well, that’s how I felt. Anyway since I was so cool (at least I thought I was), I answered my dad’s question: "Yes, she is very pretty". Then my dad said: "She is our next door neighbor" My mind went wild and I thought to myself "WHAT!, Holy S--t". Then I turned to my father and I told him the following: "She is? Well you know what? She is going to be my girlfriend and my wife". My father laughed and said "Tony, you always say that about all the girls" and I answered, "Not this time, this is the one".

The next day I went out to my fathers front porch, hoping to get a glimpse of her and there she was in the front porch of her house. We looked at each other and you know that saying "I must be in heaven because I just saw a angel looking at me" well it’s true, this was love at first sight. I waved and said "Hi" and she looked at me and smiled and waved back, she then went inside her house. I went to the back yard and started shooting some hoops. That is when I realized that someone was checking me out. Yep, some one was behind the window blinds in her house starring and I knew that it just had to be her. Despite the fact that I was and still am a terrible basketball player, I tried my best to impress the stranger checking me out. Soon this little 8 year old boy from the neighborhood called "Peter" came to my door with a note from her. She wanted to know my name, the note was in Spanish! (she didn’t know English). Of course I didn’t waste any time and I sent her a note in return with my name and in turn asked for her name. Peter returned with another note and that is when I found out that her name was "Milagros" which in English means miracle. What a beautiful name, the most beautiful name that I have ever heard.

I then did what any red blooded American of Puerto Rican descent would have done in my place. I took a crash course in Spanish. I started by reading a Spanish bible and watching Spanish T.V. If something came up that I didn’t understand I would ask my dad. I found out that she was seventeen, she had just recently celebrated her seventeenth birthday that March 25th. You remember that song by the Beatles "She was just seventeen, and you know what I mean, the way she looked was beyond compare"? Well, I think that they had her in their mind when they wrote it, plus we were both born on March, I took that as a good sign.

Now let me tell you, in New York I was the type of guy who would go up to any girl, put my arm around her and end up going out with her. But, in her case she made the first move by sending me notes and I felt like a wimp, so a week later I finally asked her for a date. I didn’t dare go to her house because she was an only daughter and her father didn’t strike me as the friendly type, so we decided to go separately and meet at my mother’s house in Levittown in the nearby town of Toa Baja. I arrived first and waited for her at the bus stop. After she arrived we walked together and talked. I introduced her to my family and we went with my sister Greta and her boyfriend to this place called Isla de Cabra (Goat Island, romantic isn‘t it?). Once we were there, I whispered to my sister to get lost and then finally I was alone with the girl who would turn out to be the love of my life. We talked for a while, she had the most amazing smile and when I looked into her beautiful eyes it was as if we were the only two people in the world. Yes, it was like that song made popular by the Flamingos "I only have eyes for you". Then we kissed and I told myself "Oh my God, I am in love and I barely know her". I knew then that I was going to marry this girl and spend the rest of my life with her. I asked her to be my girlfriend right there and then. Do you know what she answered? She said yes!

We would call each other everyday and talk for hours, plus she would tell her parents that she was going to visit a friend and we would see each other secretly. During this time we agreed to be completely honest with each other and we told each other all of the details of each others lives, both the good and the bad. We promised to always be faithful and if one of us fell out of love we promised that we would break up before double crossing each other with some one else.

By May, Milagros’ mother finally allowed me to visit her at her house as long as her father was not there. Her mother was really nice and even felt sorry for me because I was so skinny. That worked out to my favor because I was invited (when her father wasn’t there) for dinner almost everyday. I also found out that Milagros knew how to cook. One day she made me a Tortilla (which in Puerto Rican means egg omelette ) the only thing was that she over did it with the salt and it reminded me of the taste that you get when the water of a wave gets into your mouth. She was so happy because it was the first time that she made something for me and then she asked "Como esta?" (How is it?) I told her "It is salty and kind of reminds me of the beach". Man, did she get mad. It was the first time that I had ever seen her mad. It was the prettiest mad face that I had ever seen.. Needless to say, she didn’t make me another Tortilla for years. Finally one day, I asked Milagros to marry me. I told her that I was very serious about this and that if she married me it would be until death do us part. You see, my parents divorced when I was a child and I didn’t want any children that we may have in the future to go through what I did. I also promised that I would find a job at a bank (I was unemployed) and go to college. You know what? She said yes! Then she told her mom. I thought for sure that she was going to kill me or something, but to my surprise she became happy as hell. The father did not know.

June arrived and I decided to ask her father for his daughters hand in marriage. Now picture this: Milagros was seventeen and an only daughter. We had only known each other for only three and a half months. We were planning on getting married in August, exactly five months after we first met. When I went to her house Milagros and her mother told me that the father was in the driveway cutting open a coconut. They promised that they were going to be behind me when I went in there to talk to him and I said "Let’s go". I quietly walked up to him and said "Mr. Rivera, I would like to talk to you" He had this huge machete in his hand and was hacking away at this poor coconut like it was his worse enemy. He looked mean and didn’t even look up to me when he asked "What do you want to talk about?" I took a deep breath and said "I would like your daughter’s hand in marriage". He just kept hacking away and asked "When?" That is when I looked around and realized that I was all alone with a man with a machete in his hand. Milagros and her mother were nowhere in sight. I told myself "Oh man, this is it! This is the end of the road, this is where I die" and then I answered "In August". He then took one great swing at the poor coconut and said "O.K.". I couldn’t believe it, I got out of there as fast as I could before he changed his mind (No, I didn’t pee on myself) and mistook me for the coconut.

File:Tony and Milly4.JPG

Needless to say, we were married at Bayamon’s St. Agustin church on August 20th. Even though almost everybody believed that our marriage wouldn’t last, it didn’t matter to me because it was one of the best things that I have ever done in my life and if I had to do it a hundred times over I would do it without a second thought. Only nine people attended our wedding (No, my future father-in-law with his machete and the coconut did not go), but I didn’t care, I mean after we exchanged our vows, the rings and we sealed our love with a kiss, I looked at my wife and as the lyrics to the song "So much in Love" by the Tymes would say: "As we stroll along together, Holding hands, walking all alone. So in love are we two, That we don't know what to do. So in love, In a world of our own." I knew that God had blessed me more then I deserved. The Marine and the girl next door will be together for evermore.

Now thirty eight years later we have three wonderful children, two sons Antonio and Jose, a daughter Nilda and two beautiful granddaughters Isabel and Nina. My wife is fine now, she is out of the hospital, but every time that I look at her, my partner, my best friend, the love of my life, I think about the tune sung by the Everly Brothers which goes "I Bless the day I found you, I want to stay around you, now and forever, let it be me".

File:Milagros Santiago 001.jpg

Note:

The Marine and the Girl Next Door was featured in "Touching Love Stories, the best love stories online"[http://www.touchinglovestories.com/marine-and-girl-next-door.htm "Touching Love Stories, the best love stories online"]

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