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St. Ann
“We were Catholics. We were going to church, whether you liked it or not,” David De La Torre reflects on his childhood. But, over the years, his engagement with his home parish — St. Ann’s Catholic Church — transformed from a feeling of obligation to a desire to develop his faith. He attributes this change…
The Story Behind the Myth
It is easy to spot Don Raúl Macias in the middle of the crowd: just look for his beret. If that doesn’t work, follow the sounds of the hundreds of children and teens that Anahuak Youth Sports Association trains weekly in parks throughout Northeast Los Angeles. His most recent position as Director of Anahuak, a…
Land Back in Los Angeles
Following the first land return in 200 years to the Indigenous peoples of Los Angeles County, the Tongva Taraxat Paxaava Conservancy was formed. Located in the Altadena hills, the Conservancy represents the beginning of a process meant to rematriate and reestablish connections between tribal members and California native plants to their ancestral and unceded lands.…
Oro
“In Guatemala, green coffee beans are called oro — gold — because the Europeans and people who bought the coffee were paying in gold coins.” Having long been fascinated by the coffee traditions of his mother’s homeland, Yancey Quinones opened Antigua Coffee Roasters in 2005 in El Sereno. Later, after an opportunity arose to relocate…
Building Los Angeles State Historic Park (LASHP)
The 32-acre plot that now houses the Los Angeles State Historic Park (LASHP) is a testament to the power of community activism. Throughout hundreds of “hearing sessions” hosted by California State Parks, nearby residents voiced their wants and needs for the land — and, by doing so, saved it from becoming the “River Station Business…
Building the Foundations
As Director and Founder of The River Project, and the former Executive Director of Friends of the Los Angeles River (FoLAR), Melanie Winter is no stranger to the many opinions people hold regarding the future of the LA River and its surrounding communities. Over the years, the development of high-rise luxury apartments, large commercial retail…
Parks and Gentrification
During the 80s, Downey Recreation Center — one of the few public parks in Lincoln Heights — was inaccessible and uninviting. Still, as the only park in the area, neighborhood kids like Lazaro Arvizu found themselves there often. Located in between the Swiss Dairy Company Plant (now home to the newly built Albion Riverside Park),…
River Playground
“My dad worked the graveyard shift, so my mom took care of us, but my mom was busy oftentimes at the sewing machine meeting her deadlines. We got to go play when we didn’t have to support her.” Helen Leung cherished the moments when she and her sister were given free reign to explore the…
Making Art in Elysian Valley
For nearly thirty years, from 1980-2010, Chicano artist Frank Romero worked out of a colorful brick studio and gallery in Elysian Valley. It was here where Frank’s art universe of bright cars, looping freeways, staggering palm trees, and brightly colored canvases came to life. It was also here where Frank found a new muse in…
The Story Behind the “Orange Bridge” Pt.1
Over the years, many pedestrian bridges have popped up along the Glendale Narrows section of the Los Angeles River in Northeast LA. One bridge has a pointy mast that soars 60 feet into the sky, another is full of love locks rivaling the Pont des Arts bridge in Paris. The newest addition? A bright orange…
The Story Behind the “Orange Bridge” Pt. 2
The Taylor Yard Bikeway and Pedestrian Bridge, better known as the “Orange Bridge,” is not easy to miss, but many overlook the history behind it. Although it was just completed in 2022, the story behind this bridge goes further back. Part 1 of this tale recounts shady practices by the Southern California Regional Rail Authority…
The River and Elysian Valley
Decades ago, Ceci Dominguez remembers a very different LA River than the one undergoing rapid revitalization by way of nearby gentrification today. The word “river” might even be a bit generous here, as “flood channel” or “sewage line” could better describe its function in those days. “My kids would ride their bikes and wander down…
La Madre Monte and El Mohan
Many of us grow up hearing stories passed down from generation to generation. Mythology can be an especially powerful force in our youth, inviting us to consider — sometimes for the first time — the interconnectedness of all things and the repercussions of our actions. For LA-based artist Carolina Caycedo, these narratives materialized quite literally…
A Glassell Park Story
A more than twenty-year resident of Glassell Park, Helene Schpak understands that civic engagement is an essential part of healthy community living. “It’s giving back. It’s being part of a society, part of a community. If you care, sitting back isn’t going to accomplish anything. Pace yourself and volunteer, put in some effort, and sometimes…
Kruegermann Pickles
Carl and Greg Kruegermann are brothers who grew up in Elysian Valley (not Frogtown!) in a East German immigrant family whose livelihood was to make pickles. Their family’s business employed members of the community to make traditional dill pickles in the German style. At the end of 2022, the brothers face the devastating truth that…
“Paayme” sung by Lazaro Arvizu
Lazaro Arvizu Jr. is an artist, educator, musician, and researcher dedicated to the culture of the First Peoples of Los Angeles. In the video he performs the song “Paayme”, meaning “West” in the Tongva language, which he wrote with his mother Virginia Carmelo. With the LA River as a backdrop, Lazaro sings about moving West…
Yancey’s (Childhood) Instacart Route
Yancey Quinones grew up in Cypress Park adjacent to the LA River. One of his jobs as a boy was to do the food shopping for senior citizens in the neighborhood. Some might even say he was an early pioneer of Instacart! Yancey learned how to navigate a safe route on his bike and how…