"It was extremely dangerous jumping out of a moving Mexican Police bus, but I knew that I had to do it, my family needed me. We lived in Guatemala at the time and drove through Mexico trying and reach the United States. My wife and I wanted a better life for our two kids. Trying to cross the Border I was arrested by the Mexican Police and detained. I did escape and eventually we made it to the Washington DC area. This is the job that I found and I have been working here ever since." .
Manuel Castillo told me this incredible story the second summer that I had worked for this heating and air conditioning company. I really didn't realize this until he told me about his struggle but I started to feel out of place. I looked around the job site and I saw plumbers, welders, roofers electricians, road pavers, and other men from various tools of the trade. They all came together for a purpose, to build something not for themselves but for someone else. I looked around harder; I was the only Caucasian there. Everyone else had a different background, either from Mexico, Guatemala, Panama, Venezuela, Peru or one of the many other countries in Central and South America. They were all Hispanic.
I started to notice a lot after this incident. Many of them talked amongst themselves as if they were family. They also were all very willing to assist me if I didn't understand how to complete a job. After talking to Manuel he told me that after work many of them go to the park and participate in a big soccer game. Having a little fun helped them to unwind after a day of hard work. After that, they"d go home, knowing that they put in the early hours at 5 or 6am and worked 8-12 hour days just to support their family. .
After working two years in the construction field I have to say that I take my hat off to all of the men working in the manual labor occupation. Especially to the Hispanics that I worked with. They would take a 15 minute break in the morning, not an hour.
