Latino Spotlight Series: Stepping Out of the Shadows

Irving may have only been eight years old when he crossed the US/Mexico border, but he can still remember running from the sweep of the helicopter search lights... trying to find sleep under the cover of a thorn bush, curled in his mother’s arms. He can still feel the cracked lips and swollen tongue of severe dehydration. Can still hear the harsh whispers of the Coyote Smugglers, “Follow my instructions exactly, or be left behind to die.”

Fourteen years later Irving Aquilar has become an inspiration in the Jackson Community. Here is a story of an undocumented immigrant stepping out of the shadows and into the spotlight. Through raw determination, and the support of the Jackson community, Irving elevated himself from an immigrant with no official identity, to a Wyoming soccer star and now a community leader with big dreams for the town of Jackson.

Last year, Irving was awarded a grant by the Latino

Resource Center to pursue a lifelong dream. The grant allowed him to enroll in the Start-Up Institute, an intensive graduate level program providing driven individuals with the tools they need to launch a successful business. Today, Irving is in the final stages of planning an indoor recreational space for year-round sports and activities.

“A lot of people in this town, especially Latinos, can’t afford to ski at the village, but almost anyone can afford to spend a little money to join a team and play soccer, lacrosse, ultimate frisbee, or whatever it is that they love to do. I want to create a space for these people to come together!”

With this gym, Irving hopes to bridge the gap between groups of people that don't typically occupy the same social spheres. From personal experience, Irving understands that strong friendships are forged on the soccer field. Latino or Anglo; it doesn’t matter when you are playing side by side.

In the Fall of 2013, Irving was finally granted legal status under the Dream Act. With a proud sense of belonging, Irving is working hard to give back to the community that brought him a better life.

Fourteen years ago, Irving would have never imagined a life so full of success. Life in Mexico City was anything but easy for Irving and his mother, Veronica. In order to make ends meet, Veronica was forced to take on night shifts. For two years, Irving slept in a pile of blankets on the floor of a T-shirt factory while his mother worked. She was trying her best to support Irving, but their living situation was getting desperate. They applied for a U.S. work visa several times, but were denied at every attempt. It was only after a gang of armed men broke into the factory, that Veronica decided to take matters into her own hands. In the spring of 2000, she hired “Coyotes” to smuggle her and eight year old Irving across the border. With nothing but a small backpack of clothes, and a crumpled photo of the Tetons sent by a distant cousin, Veronica and Irving became two of the estimated 7.5 million Mexican immigrants who poured across the border between 1990 and 2010, searching for a better life for their children.

As a single mother crossing the border with a young boy, Veronica was taking a risk most American citizens couldn’t possibly imagine. Like so many before them, Veronica and Irving could have been robbed of their life savings. They could have been caught and deported. They could have been beaten and killed or worse, sexually assaulted and left to die. But as Irving said “We always seemed to have someone watching over us.”

In the early spring of 2000, Irving and Veronica arrived in Jackson, totally alone, with no money, no knowledge of the English language, and no legal identity. Despite their lack of resources, their drive to forge a better life never wavered.

In their first weeks in Jackson they were introduced to the founder of the Latino Resource Center, Carmina Oaks. With Carmina’s help, Veronica established a network that enabled her to find a job as a housekeeper. The pay was minimal, but the benefits included modest employee housing - a major upgrade from the factory floor, and scorpion infested shoebox apartments she and Irving were accustomed to in Mexico.

While his mother worked, Irving devoted himself to making the best of his new situation. He learned English by watching shows on PBS and talking to friendly Spanish speakers at the public library. Carmina gave him permission to start a lemonade stand in her neighborhood. She explained, “What impressed me most about Irving was that none of this money was going in his own pocket. All of his earnings were shared with his mom. An eight year old kid, working to support his family. Veronica instilled the value of hard work in Irving from a very early age... It’s part of the Latino culture.”

In the Fall of 2001, Irving enrolled at Jackson Hole Elementary where he was one of three Latinos in the third grade. Feeling lonely and isolated, he sought something familiar from his home in Mexico. At the beginning of the school year, he marched to the principal’s office, and in broken English, asked how to join the school soccer team. When he learned that the $400 fee was well outside his mother’s budget, he marched back to the principal’s office and demanded financial assistance. Astonished by the tenacity of this nine year old, the principal directed Irving to the Jackson Hole Youth Soccer Club. One week later, Irving was granted the first of many scholarships that would enable him to pursue his passion.

Since that day, he has never looked back. In order to maintain his scholarships, he was motivated to earn a high grade point average. Even though he was the only Latino on the soccer team, making friends came naturally. On the soccer field, it didn’t matter where you came from. Irving worked hard, and his dedication was obvious. Within no time, he was a respected member of the team, and people in the community began to take notice.

As an eighth grader, Irving was awarded a scholarship to attend the U.S. Olympic Development Program in California. Once again, Irving found himself the only Latino on the team. Unfortunately, his supposed teammates were not nearly as welcoming as those in Jackson. Irving was clearly one of the best players, and yet as a Latino, was met with raw hostility. On the first night, his teammates dumped a box of crackers in his sleeping bag and they urinated in his shampoo. But Irving wasn’t there to pick fights. He was there to play soccer. And play soccer he did, making the final cut onto the US Region IV All-Star Team.

In his first year at Jackson Hole High School, Irving became one of the few freshmen in history to make the state’s number one ranked varsity team. By senior year, he was elected team captain. University team scouts took notice of Irving’s abilities, and in 2010 he was offered an “under the table” scholarship to UC Santa Cruz. As an undocumented immigrant, it was impossible to obtain a scholarship in the official manor.

Two weeks into pre-season training in California, he received a call from home. The Special Olympics Soccer team that he had been volunteering with for four years had just qualified for U.S. Nationals. He scraped together what little money he had to accompany his team to Lincoln Nebraska. At the Special Olympics, each team is allowed to play with two non-intellectually disabled athletes. In the semi-final game, Irving was slide tackled by an opponent, completely tearing his ACL. Before leaving California, the UC Santa Cruz soccer coach warned Irving that if he was injured he would lose all funding for his college education.

To make matters worse, as illegal immigrants, Irving and his mother had no access to health insurance. Medical expenses had to be paid out of pocket and they were still paying back hospital bills from his mother’s brush with ovarian cancer in 2006, further overwhelming them financially. Where most people would wallow in self-pity, Irving redoubled his efforts. Sympathetic to Irving’s situation, Doctor Neal agreed to reduce the cost of the knee operation by half. Irving rehabilitated his knee by performing exercises described in Youtube videos in the hotel pool where his mother worked. During the recovery process, Irving enrolled at the Central Wyoming Community College. The following semester, Irving began pursuing scholarship opportunities at the community colleges with the top ranked soccer teams. In 2010, he accepted a partial scholarship to Salt Lake City Community College. The following semester he received an invitation to play on the nationally ranked Northwest Community College soccer team in Powell, Wyoming where he took his team to Nationals. In the spring of 2013 Irving became the first in his family to graduate from college. He was eager to return to his home in Jackson.

“After being in Santa Cruz, After being in Salt Lake, After being in Powell, and Denver, I realized that Jackson is home. People wouldn’t believe me when I talked about how much I love Jackson... This is where I feel comfortable. This is where I belong."

In the fall of 2013, Jackson officially become home when Irving was granted legal status through the Dream Act. “I felt free. Like I had finally broken through.” For fourteen years, Irving and his mother Veronica existed under the radar, shielding their identities from all but those closest to them.

“Growing up without papers, I couldn’t help but feel less worthy. What most people don’t understand is that without a social security number in the United States, you don’t really exist. I tried not to show it, but in a way I felt less than other people. I think that’s why I am so hungry now.”

Irving has become a role model for second generation Latinos growing up in the Jackson community. Whereas his mother, Veronica Aquilar, a first generation immigrant, depended on the Latino Resource Center for the most basic help: translations, taxes, obtaining a visa, and searching for jobs; Irving struggled with finding his own identity as a Latino in an Anglo community. With the support of the resources available in the Jackson community, Irving lifted himself to accomplish more than was ever expected of him. Unlike their mothers and fathers, young Latinos today have access to an incredible array of services in Jackson: the Successful Latino Entrepreneur, Cuenta Conmigo, College Bound Latinas, scholarships to play soccer, the Teton Mentor Program… the list goes on.

“In Mexico, where I came from, I never would have had these kinds of opportunities. Ever since I got to Jackson, I have always been given wonderful things from the community. They didn’t know who I was or who my mom was, but the people were always trying to help us. … Now it’s my turn. I’m working hard to give back.”

Before the end of the year, Irving Aquilar will graduate from the Start Up Institute. His dream of creating a community space is becoming a reality. Longtime friend and supporter of Irving, Joe Rice has agreed to invest in Irving’s dream. A plot of land south of town has been purchased and a two story facility hosting studios and physical therapy offices upstairs and two soccer fields downstairs is currently in the design process.

If Irving can do it, others will surely follow.

If you find this story inspiring, share it!

{ Sharing options just below }

This story is the first of a series called Latino Spotlight, which features real stories of Latinos in our community. The series is sponsored by Latino Resource Center and created by Think Picture Productions.

A Message from Latino Resource Center:

Help us create more success stories by supporting programs like the Successful Latino Entrepreneur. Together, we can create a community that we can all be proud of. Make a donation today.