The Dancer by Maria Stephens

I was born in Pachuca in the state of Hidalgo, Mexico. Back then, it was a miners’ town. When I turned 10 years old, I moved to Mexico City with the rest of my family. Moving from a small town to the big city was a big change for me.

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Final Concert and Hidden Dream by Olivia Callanta

When I was a little girl living in the Philippines, I loved to draw, color and sketch. I vividly remember sketching coconut trees with nipa huts by the seaside, and columns and altar of the church. I liked drawing the profile of a woman. I did all these but never seriously had a desire to be an artist nor an architect.

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Emigrante/Emigrant by Esther Pineda

Hola. Mi nombre es Esther Pineda. Soy mexicana, les voy a relatar un poco de mi vida, desde que llegué a Chicago.

Hello. My name is Esther Pineda. I am Mexican. I want to relate a little bit about my life since I arrived in Chicago.

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My Edgewater Story by Dawn Olderr Montalvo

I first came to Edgewater in 1984, with my soon-to-be husband.  Having been priced out of the rental market in Lakeview, we were searching for a location that was convenient to downtown, affordable and still had a young vibe.

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How Did I Get To Edgewater? by Marssie Mencotti

I was raised in the Irving Park and Portage Park neighborhoods of Chicago and my knowledge of other neighborhoods was very limited. Frankly, I had no idea where the Edgewater neighborhood was located. Anything east of California Avenue and north of Irving Park Road was uncharted territory.

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Growing Up In Hull House by Eva Glixon Cecchini

My grandparents were itinerant farmworkers from Mexico who came across in 1913. They walked and worked the farms and eventually settled in Gary, Indiana. My grandmother started a rooming house, and my mother married a Spaniard, a businessman from Mexico.

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My Story by Marisa Gast

A suburban house with white picket fence, great backyard, wonderful friends, great neighborhood.  Everything seems in place. However, life is not only that. Where are the new experiences? How can we be more active in the world?  When can we make a little corner of the world better? 

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Beard Out, Belly Up by Kyle, Jim, and the Beard & Belly Team

Beard & Belly's story begins not in Edgewater, but in a walk-up food window at The Long Room, a beloved Chicago bar in Lakeview with a focus on local craft beer. Kyle "The Beard" and Jim "The Belly" (creative nicknames are clearly our forte) had a simple approach: Share quality bar food at a fair price.

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