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Vigil Family

Chatter

Volume 11 December 2011

“Educación es la luz del mundo”

Education is the light of the world

The Juan de Jesús Vigil Family Foundation is a

501(c) (3) organization established in 2005 by

the descendents of Juan de Jesús Vigil dedicated

to maintaining opportunities for scholarship and

grants to qualified descendants of Juan de Jesús

Vigil.

www.juandejesusvigilfoundation.com

PRESIDENT’S REPORT

Dear Family and Friends:

Congratulations to our 2011-2012 Juan De Jesús Vigil Family

Foundation Scholarship recipients: Andrew Apodaca, Benique

Lucero, Sarah Oates, Adam Vigil, and Amanda Vigil. Their goals

and aspirations make all our work worthwhile.

Welcome to our two new Board members: Phillip Vigil and

Andrea Romero. We have three more open Board positions.

Please contact us if you are interested.

I would also like to take this opportunity to thank each and every

one of you for the outstanding support for our Annual Golf and

BBQ Event on August 6, 2011. A special thanks to Carl Salazar for

planning and organizing the golfing event. I also want to thank the

volunteers: Carolyn Romero, Rosemary Salazar, Jeffrey Vigil,

Bev Sasse, Mimi Vigil, Jo Ann Phillips, Rose T. Vigil, Jose Perez,

George and Florida Vigil who were also instrumental in the

success of the event. A note of appreciation to our many sponsors,

too.

Obviously, this was another OUTSTANDING team effort that

would not have been possible without all the support of the Board

Members and the wonderful volunteers and sponsors who stepped

up to the plate on that day.

Our goal for the coming academic school year is to surpass the five

scholarships we gave out this year. We can only do that if we have

your continued support. See additional information about expanded

grant opportunities and scholarship deadlines in this newsletter.

Sincerely,

John H. Vigil

Juan De Jesús Vigil

Family Foundation

Board of Directors

2010-2011

Executive Committee

John H. Vigil, President

JoAnn Phillips, Vice President

Mimi Vigil, Secretary

Carl Salazar, Treasurer

Carolyn M. Romero, Member

at Large

Members

Rosemary Salazar

George F. Vigil

Rose Theresa Vigil

Beverly Vigil Sasse

Jose Perez

Phillip Vigil

Andrea Romero

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2011 Golf Tournament and BBQ

Another Terrific Success!!!!

A resounding success took

place on Aug. 6th

2011 in our

continued effort to promote

education in the Juan De Jesús

Family Foundation. We held

our 1st Annual Golf

Tournament. Although we had

held prior golf outings in the prior two years, this was

our 1st effort to graduate

to a full Golf

Tournament.

We had a total of 72

golfers and a wide variety

of volunteers most of

whom were Board

Members, pooling together an effort and huge

commitment. Family members came from as far as

California to be a

part of the

celebration. We

held a picnic after

the tournament

including raffles

and door prizes

which raised

approximately

$3,700 for our

Scholarship Fund to continue to promote education as

a vehicle to success.

We would like to thank our sponsors for promoting

memories and a few businesses. Our sponsors

included:

Hole #1 – Salazar Electric

Hole #9 – In Memory of Jerry Romero

Hole #10 –

LCD

Transportation

Family members,

friends of the

family, and

companies that do

business with

family

members

also

participated

in the

fundraising.

Please join

us in

thanking the

following

people and

businesses that sponsored golfers and donated prizes

and items to our raffle:

Salazar Electric * Beverly Sasse * Carolyn Romero *

Phillip Vigil * The Novak Agency (Allstate) *

Congressman Ed Perlmutter * Congressman Jarad

Poli *, State Representative Cherylin Peniston *

Ciaque Food *, Compensino (Colorado Ranchers

Dairy Products)* Valley Foods * Miravalle Foods *

Lori Grunewald L&T Properties * David Nugent *

The Omni Resort Hotel * Hair at the Village *

Mountainside Fitness * Colorado Vertical Tours *

Colorado Grande Hotel Cripple Creek * Las Brisas

Restaurant * Dave Gover * Mimi Vigil * Massage

Clinic

On Sept 15, 2012, we will be holding our next

Golf Tournament at the Applewood Golf Course in

Golden Colorado where we will again be provided

with a great facility and course for us to continue

building our scholarship programs. Please “SAVE

THE DATE.”

Carl Salazar and

Rose T Vigil

Platinum Sponsor:

Jerome Romero Memorial Team

Joanne Phillips betting on the golfer’s accuracy

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Education is the one path to success that can provide

our family members with opportunities to become

successful business owners, community leaders,

politicians, professionals, and active citizens. We

cannot do this alone; we need a concerted effort from

everyone to make this happen. So please be generous

in your consideration of 2012 Annual Memorial Golf

Tournament.

The Wilson Family traveled from California

Our Senior Golfer, Joe Apodaca (standing with John H. Vigil), is still

challenging the others to shoot their age

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VIGIL STORE

We have a few items still available for sale:

Short Sleeve Shirt - Large (5 left) $15.00

Books:

Trujillo Creek in Early Days $ 7.50

– 4th

Edition

By: Anne Lucero

Vigil Family Cookbook $15.00

By: Andrea Romero

Embracing Life: Poems that Inspire

the Heart and Soul $14.95

By: Florida Vigil

Contact Carolyn Romero at (303) 514-0620 or

carolyn.romero@comcast.net for more information.

NEW ITEMS

Early Roads to the Sangre de Cristo

Mountains $35.00

By: Phillip Arnold Vigil

Settlers of the Purgatoire River

Valley: Their Heritage and

Culture $18.00

By: Phillip Arnold Vigil

Contact Phillip Vigil at (303) 986-1022 or

Las_placitas@yahoo.com to obtain copies.

FOUNDATION UPDATE

In August 2010, the Scholarship and Grant committee

met and selected one outstanding student to receive a

scholarship from the Juan de Jesús Vigil Family

Foundation.

John Lucero resides in Thornton, CO and is currently

attending Heritage College in Denver, majoring in

Esthetics. He was recently named "Outstanding

Student" for the year 2010. John attended the 2010

Vigil Family Reunion and thanked everyone for the

opportunity to continue his education.

In June 2011, as a result of the successful reunion and

your generous contributions, we awarded 5 more

scholarships.

Andrew Apodaca will be

attending Red Rocks Community

College studying to be a Sports

Trainer.

I am honored to be the recipient of

the Juan de Jesús Vigil

Scholarship. Thanks to the

generous support, I am the first in my immediate

family to attend college. I have dreamed of attending

college since I was young and now my dream is

becoming a reality. Without scholarship patrons like

you, there would be many students such as myself

unable to pursue the career they’ve dreamed of.

Amanda Vigil is attending Trinidad State Junior

College studying Nursing.

I would like to thank you for

helping me take the first steps to

the start of my future. This is one

of the biggest steps that I will

have to take in my life, and

pursuing my dream of becoming

a nurse would not have been

possible without you. Again, I would like to thank you

for everything that you do, not only for what you have

done for me, but what you have done for everyone

that has received this scholarship. You are an

important part of all the lives that you have touched

through this scholarship.

Benique Lucero is attending the University of

Phoenix studying Accounting.

Benique is looking forward to

owning her own Accounting and

Tax business, providing affordable

services for the middle working

class families. She plans to help

people understand their rights as tax

payers, and show them how to

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budget, and save money for the future. Anything is

possible when you are determined and hardworking.

Sarah Oates is attending Eastern New Mexico State

University and is enrolled in the Pre-Med program.

Thank you so much for the

opportunity to receive this

scholarship. I am very grateful

that I am part of a wonderful

family that can offer this. It helps

tremendously with allowing me to

achieve my educational goals so I

can do what I love. I can't wait to

be able to help people with their

health and make a difference in the world. I greatly

appreciate all the time and effort you put into this

foundation.

P.S. I found out I made honor roll this semester!

Thank you so much!!

Adam Vigil will be attending the University of

Colorado, Boulder studying

Political Science and Pre-

Law.

I would personally like to

thank the Board of Directors

for investing a scholarship in

me. I am sure that there were

a great many other deserving

candidates and for that I am especially grateful. Thank

you for seeing my potential for future growth.

* * * * *

NEW NON-DEGREE GRANT PROGRAM

The Board of Directors has added grants for people

who are not attending full degree programs. The grant

committee will meet quarterly to approve requests for

funding for Certificate programs or for individual

classes to help the applicants increase their job skills.

Applications for scholarships and grants can be

downloaded from the website or contact John Vigil at

(303) 650-0470 or jhvigil1440@msn.com

Cut-off for the 2012 Scholarship

Applications – 4/30/2012

MEET YOUR NEW BOARD MEMBERS

JOSÉ PEREZ

In January 2011, José Perez (Rose

Therese’s husband) joined the

Foundation Board. Jose has an

accounting background and will be

helping with the website.

Jose Manuel Perez-Vera was born

and raised in Lima-Perú. His mother, 2 sisters, and 2

brothers that still reside in Perú.

José has 2 children: Renzo my son, is attending ESAN

UNIVERSITY in Perú studying system engineering,

and my daughter, Maria, resides in Fairfax, Virginia

where she attends Northern Virginia Community

College studying business administration.

After graduation from The University in Perú, José

studied to become a Certified Public Accountant

(CPA). He also taught Information Systems.

José and his daughter arrived in the USA 10 years ago.

“Our life here has been more than we anticipated, and

I thank God for all his blessings,” said José.

PHILLIP VIGIL

Phillip Vigil joined the Foundation

Board in June 2011. Philip was

born in San Juan Plaza, Segundo,

Colorado. He has lived in many

places in addition to Colorado

including Venezuela, Argentina,

Honduras, Argentina, New

Mexico and Texas.

Phillip married Marta Barnech Vigil in 1962. They have 2

children and 3 grandchildren. Phillip is a retired

mechanical engineer.

Phillip has published 2 books: (1) Early Roads to the

Sangre de Cristo Mountains and (2) Settlers of the

Purgatoire River Valley (1860 - 1960).

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ANDREA ROMERO

After working side by side with

her mom, stuffing envelopes and

working on Vigil events, Andrea

Romero submitted her application

to join the Vigil Foundation Board

of Directors. Andrea developed

the Vigil Family Cookbook that

was sold at the 2009 reunion.

(There are still a few copies available.)

Andrea is a sophomore at Colorado State University

studying Anthropology. She enjoys cooking and listening

to all kinds of music.

VIGIL FOUNDATION BOARD IS EXPANDING

The Foundation is searching for three more board members

who are willing to make a difference in the lives of the

descendants of Juan de Jesús Vigil through the gift of

education and youth leadership. We need people who are

just willing to just get involved. Call Carl Salazar at (303)

429-4105 for information.

WEDDINGS

DARRELL GALLEGOS and ASHLEY SHAW (Celedon)

Darrell Gallegos married

Ashley Shaw on July 4, 2011.

Darrell is Nicole Romero's son

and great great grandson of

Faustino Vigil.

YVONNE VIGIL and KENNETH BOWERS (Manuel)

Yvonne Vigil married

Kenneth (Dusty) Bowers

on July 2, 2011.

FAMILY NEWS

Jacob Vigil (Hilario)

I am currently in

graduate school in

Chicago, studying

social work. My wife,

Veronica, and I live in

the Chicago suburbs. I

am set to graduate in

May 2012 and I will go

on to get my PhD in social service administration. I

am working as a policy analyst and legislative

advocate for Latino educational equity/opportunity in

Illinois.

I will be looking for jobs this winter in preparation for

graduating, and am open to moving anywhere in the

country.

Amanda Phillips (Celedon)

Hey Carolyn!!

Things are going good up here in

Iowa! It's nippy out but snow has

yet to grace our presence thank

goodness for small mercies! My

car windows have been fogging

up but as the first trimester of my

Senior year comes to a close it

amazes me that I only have 2 semesters left! I'm

hoping to come out to Colorado for college, of

course! I'm looking at small community colleges were

I can easily get scholarships, I don't want to be 40 and

still paying of student loans, if you know what I

mean!

I started working at Arby's, it's nothing extravagant

but at least it puts gas in my car and small money in

my account. I'm pretty content with it overall. My

wonderful cat, Orion, is doing VERY well, and so is

my family up here.

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I'm involved in numerous clubs: TAG, SADD,

Bookclub, Student Government (I'm the President of

my High School) and Do Something. I strongly

encourage the kids in our family to get involved by

helping out their communities! It is rich with rewards

and feels doubly fantastic. Hope all is well on your

side of the globe!

SAD GOOD BYES

DORA CARMEN COBO (Isidoro)

Dora Carmen Cobo, 84, passed away July 30, 2010.

Preceded in death by her parents, Vicente and Easilda

(Quintana) Cobo; brothers Vince Cobo and Ernest

Cobo. Survived by sister-in-law Ann Cobo; nieces

Kathy (Norman) Baity and Doris Cobo; nephew Larry

Cobo; special friends, Linda Russ, Stacy and Jennifer

Steinbeck, Harold and Janet Steinbeck, and many

other relatives. Dora worked at the University of

Southern Colorado Library until she retired. She spent

all her time with her loving cat, Snooky, and enjoyed

going out to eat with her friends and volunteering her

time at the Cathedral as a Sacristan. Dora was

awarded the Bishop Tafoya Medallion for service to

her parish.

JOE ROMERO (Manuel)

Born: December 28, 1924

Earl, Colorado

Died: January 28, 2010

La Junta, Colorado

Excerpts from the Life Story of Tina Vigil Romero

July 23, 2005

I met my husband in La Junta.

I was with my momma down on 1st Street. He asked

my momma if I could go out on a date. I was about 14

at the time. We have now been together for 58 years.

Joe did not have much school. He went only to the 3rd

grade. Joe got a job as a plumber and was a number

one plumber. He worked about 40 years plumbing

then he worked in a gas company for another 40

years. He is one smart man. He was self taught. He is

a smart man. He didn’t need books.

GUADALUPE (“Lupe”) VIGIL GARCIA (Celedon)

Story provided by Tammy Garcia

Born: September 19, 1936

Eaton, Colorado

Died: July 31, 2011

Lakewood, Colorado

Lupe Vigil Garcia has lived a

life being everyone’s favorite.

She was the wife and widow to Tom Garcia for over

51 years, mother of 4 children (Daniel, Lorraine,

Michael, and Cheryl) their spouses (Mary, Tammy,

and Greg), grandmother of 6 (Carlos, Christina, Ken,

Melissa, Joshua and Nicholas), great-grandmother of

10 (Dominique, Madison, Vincent, Brianna, Adrian,

Gianna, Kendall, Tommy, Jaelyn, Ayden) plus one on

the way, Sister (Virginia), sister in-laws Rita, Katie,

and Lucy, Auntie, Friend, Neighbor, and Teacher.

Lupe was a faithful churchgoer and we followed her

and our dad’s lead ever since we were born. In every

step of the way she instilled in us that everything is

God. She loved God, Jesus, and Mary with all her

heart. She always had a very special devotion to Our

Lady of Guadalupe, her namesake.

Lupe has inspired all. Her creativity has no limits

from quilting and painting to her hip fashion sense.

She has always been able to amaze people with her

talents and her vision.

Our family would not be who we are without her

bravery. Our fearless leader never hesitated to be the

first person to do or say bold things. She was always

daring enough to take the bull by the horns, get on that

motorcycle, be bucked off a horse, or tell a joke at any

time. She didn’t face life with fear or with trepidation

she embraced it and all of its challenges with courage

and humor ready to shock us all.

Her bravery was not only a key component to her

infectious fun or life long memories, it has also been

the reason that she survived every medical challenge

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that she encountered. Her bravery combined with her

strength enabled her to live through Epilepsy, Breast

Cancer, Heart Surgery, Emphysema, Pneumonia, and

Leukemia.

Beyond the fun and the strength Lupe was proud. She

was proud of her family. Her love and compassion for

her family and friends was always known to everyone.

She knew all of our hearts and loved us all

unconditionally.

Though she was everyone’s favorite she always made

you feel that you were her favorite too.

WELCOME TO THE FAMILY

JAMES DOYLE GALLEGOS (Celedon)

Darrell Gallegos and

Ashley Shaw

Gallegos had a son on

August 25, 2011. James

Doyle Gallegos was

named after Darrell's twin

brother James who is

deceased. Darrell is Nicole Ellerman Romero and

Darrell Gallegos' son and great great grandson of

Faustino Vigil.

MARCUS-MAKAEUS MAXIMUS VIGIL (Celedon)

On October 30, 2011, Stephanie and Marcus Vigil

welcomed a baby boy to their family.

Marcus-Makaeus

Maximus Vigil weighed 9

lbs. 10oz. and measured

23 inches. His big sister,

Malaya, is thrilled to have

a new brother.

REQUEST FOR MORE

ORAL HISTORIES

Since July 2005, we have obtained the oral histories

for more than 70 people. If you are willing to

participate in this project, please contact Jan Lindgren

at jan@lifesreflections.com or at (303) 980-0432. If

you are not in the Denver area, we can make

arrangements to take your history over the phone.

A note from Jan Lindgren:

Since the Vigil reunion in 2005, I have given each

of you interviewed a free copy of your own tape/s.

I have kept an audio taped copy of each of your

interviews over the years and would like to offer

you an opportunity to have your story converted to

cds or a zip drive. The process is time-consuming as

it has to be played minute to minute so the cost is

$40 per tape. Once you have those CDs you can

make as many copies on CDs, zip drives, etc. as you

wish.

For those prior to 2005, I have a copy of each

person’s story, and I can make you or your

immediate family a copy, knowing you haven’t

heard your own story.

Check out my website www.lifesreflections.com to

see what has been written about the Juan de Jesus

family!

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VIGIL POETS

ONE MORE DAY By: Florida Vigil

The sun is shining through the window once again.

A new day is here,

a day to pray and give thanks.

One more day to sing a song, be strong all day long.

Write yet another poem that rhymes, without delay

while sitting by the lake.

Do another good deed, set my heart free

as I swim the high sea.

Hear the musical sound of the wind chime,

hear the meadow lark sing it’s sweet song in the

spring

as it sits on my window sill.

Smell the sweet pea in May, on a mid-summer day

while watching the children play.

Smell the fragrant rose one more time in the daytime

to last a lifetime.

To see a newborn baby, hear a nursery rhyme

in the summer time.

I want to see all the seasons one more time

before they’re gone.

Lord, I want to hold on for as long as I can

before you call upon me.

Let me see the leaves change their colors in the fall

just in time before the snowfall,

it won’t take too much of my time,

but it will fill my heart.

I want to see the snowfall on the playground

as it crowns the ground and the children horse around.

I want to buy time but I’m running out of time.

I want to be kind until the end of time.

I want to see the eagle fly above until it’s out of sight,

and I wave good-by.

I want to wish upon a star as it lights up the sky.

Lord, I ask you please spare me just

one more day.

FUNDRAISING UPDATE

On behalf of the Juan de Jesús Vigil Family Foundation Board of Directors, I would like to thank

you for your past support and contributions. The demand for scholarships continues to increase.

The Juan de Jesús Vigil Family Foundation is a non-profit 501 (c)(3) organization. Established in 2005 by the descendants

of Juan de Jesús Vigil, the Foundation honors the name of Juan de Jesús Vigil and promotes our Vigil family legacy into

perpetuity. The Mission for our Foundation is to promote educational scholarships, grants to qualified and deserving

descendants of Juan de Jesús Vigil, and to provide support to charitable causes that will benefit the descendants of Juan

De Jesús and Maria Bustos Vigil. In addition, we provide leadership opportunities for young people. The Foundation is

governed by a volunteer board of directors that represent a cross section of our community and who are committed to

making a difference for the educational success of the Juan de Jesús Vigil descendants.

Please help us by sending your donation to:

Juan de Jesús Vigil Foundation

3072 E. 136th Place

Thornton, CO 80602

Any amount will help and your donation is tax deductible. Thank you again for your continued support.

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JUAN DE JESUS VIGIL FAMILY FOUNDATION ANNUAL GOLF OUTING

And BBQ Cookout

Save the date APPLEWOOD GOLF COURSE

SEP. 15, 2012 GOLDEN, CO 80401

TEE TIME: 2:00 PM

100% of the net proceeds support the Scholarship program. Please help by: 1. Sponsoring a hole HOLE SPONSOR

2. Sponsor a team GOLD $500.00 INCLUDES TWO FREE PLAYERS

3. Be a golfer ($100 per player) SILVER $300.00 INCLUDES ONE FREE PLAYER

4. Come to the BBQ BRONZE $200.00

For Information, Contact: Carl Salazar 303-429-4105, csalazar41@msn.com

3068 W 11th Ave. Circle Broomfield, CO 80020