Hundreds gather in Española to mourn the death of 5-year-old Renezmae Calzada
ESPAÑOLA -- As Ben Sandoval looked over the crowd of 500-plus people who gathered Wednesday night to commemorate the life of 5-year-old Renezmae Calzada, two contrasting thoughts came to his mind.
"It was beautiful to see pastors, community leaders, politicians and people — whether they knew the girl's family or not — come together," he said.
That spoke to Española's ability to galvanize in the wake of a personal tragedy, he said.
At the same time, he said, he considered the other side of the coin — that perhaps these people wouldn't come together again until there was another human crisis.
"It dawned on me that our community struggles to come together outside of a tragedy," said Sandoval, 47, director of the Española YMCA Teen Center. "And I think that is what is contributing to some of the disarray in our community. People are selective about who they are going to help and when they are going to help. We have wonderful people in this valley, but if an issue doesn't affect them in a significant manner, they don't get involved."
Sandoval's comments were echoed in large part by several other community leaders as they continued to mourn the death of Renezmae, whose disappearance one week ago led to a massive search by private citizens and law enforcement officials. The search ended Wednesday, when her body was found in the Rio Grande. Many wondered if the death of someone so young and innocent could encourage a unified, long-term movement to improve life in the Española Valley, long caught in a grip of violence and drug abuse.
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Or would that strong force built to rescue and ultimately mourn a little girl dissipate quickly?
"I can tell you that the community is poised to begin to focus," said Roger Montoya, co-founder of the nonprofit Moving Arts Española, which provides arts education, food and academic support for youth. "My prayer is that this tragic loss will further fuel that focus."
The Rev. JD Miera-Martinez of Victory Faith Church in Española also said he hoped for the best.
'Enough is enough'
"Unfortunately, sometimes it does take something like this tragedy — just horrific — to make us snap and say, 'Enough is enough,'" he said. "I am certainly hoping that will happen now."
Many said it will take more than words to make that happen.
As investigators continue to look for a suspect in Renezmae's death, community activists are trying to build a foundation that will help eliminate such tragedies. To do that, they said, they have to focus on what's happening in the community that's good and work from there.
The Española YMCA Teen Center, for example, recently took ninth place in an international robotics competition held in China that drew 700 teams. Montoya was recently named a CNN Hero for his efforts to help others in the community. Former homeless addicts like Ralph Martinez have turned their lives around and are now working to open a private, nonprofit homeless shelter in the city for those living the life he once had. And Presbyterian Española Hospital was among six New Mexico hospitals that received a four-star rating out of five stars in an overall quality report issued earlier this year by the U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services.
"This is a community full of culture and faith and love," Miera-Martinez said. "The people of this valley are humble, in some ways reserved, but very giving. You will meet people who will give you the shirt off their back to help you."
But it's also a place where you'll see panhandlers with no shirts on their back passed out on traffic islands and where locals post photos of such people on social media platforms such as Española's No Rule Gossip Facebook forum. That group's motto is, "The place you rag on your town since you're too lazy to fix it."
Recent crime statistics
According to FBI crime data for 2017, the most recent statistics available, Española — a town of more 10,000 people — experienced nearly 300 violent crimes that year.
Some crimes draw more media attention than others. For example, Renezmae's death comes less than a year after the community suffered the loss of 18-year-old Cameron Martinez, who was killed in a drive-by shooting in which, police say, he was simply in the wrong place at the wrong time. His death led Mayor Javier Sanchez to call upon community members, parents, teachers and others to come together to create a plan to end the violence.
Roughly a year later, it's tough to say how successful that initiative has been, but organizers say a youth forum and survey showed young people want better opportunities for college and jobs and want a chance to help the community.
"We are trying to drive hope and give them pathways to a career," said Montoya, who took part in the forum.
Sanchez did not return calls seeking comment. An aide said he was out of town.
City Councilor Justin Salazar-Torrez, who attended Wednesday's vigil for Renezmae, said he did not think the anti-violence initiative has died out. But, he said, "We have to keep that energy going. There's some momentum behind this (Renezmae's death) and we have to continue unity and focus to address these issues."
To do that, he and others said, everyone who showed up at the vigil — as well as a lot of others — must start pitching in day after day, week after week and year after year.
"Her death didn't have to happen to us to finally bring us together as a community," said 20-year-old Cristian Madrid, an Española native who has seen a lot of problems firsthand: an addicted father, homelessness, depression and attempted suicide.
Ralph Martinez, another Española native who survived drug addiction and homelessness to become a community activist, said Renezmae's death shines a light on the valley's problems with drugs, alcohol and violence, and it could make people overcome their reluctance to acknowledge those ills.
Calling for change
As they did after Cameron Martinez's death, he said, people this time around have "their ears up, more willing to listen" to the voices calling for change.
His sense from talking to people all week: "Everybody is ready to stand up and do something to create change."
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Among the ideas pitched by these activists to move things forward: more neighborhood watch groups; more people willing to confront strangers or those in need who are wandering their neighborhoods; programs to develop preventative measures to offset childhood trauma and abuse.
In the meantime, a lot of people are hugging their children more and keeping a closer eye on them. Martinez said he felt good putting his 4-year-old daughter to bed following Wednesday's vigil, knowing she was safe.
Lupe Salazar, president and founder of Barridos Unidos — a nonprofit working to address the cultural and psychological aspects of addiction and recovery — said she cannot imagine life without her 5-year-old granddaughter, whom she began taking care of three years ago.
She held her a little tighter Wednesday night.
Salazar would like to see the community come up with a three-month plan for how to take care of the area's young ones.
"Let's not make that plan so far out that it will get lost," she said. "If we stop and wait for the politicians to do it, we're gonna have a lot of dead people."
For now, as Española mourns, some are just grateful that the town bonded for a time in an effort to find a missing child.
"The sky, it's crying," wrote Cecilia M. Ortiz in one online Española post.
"If for a moment, a little girl brought a whole town together," she continued. "We fight against ourselves, against the neighbor, against the drugs and panhandlers. For a few days Española fought to bring a little girl home. Española, you fought hard. You brought her home."
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