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Wednesday, July 25, 2001 Nine-year-old Pierson Elementary pupil wins national art contestBy CLAUDIA MOSCOSO | News-Journal Staff Writer PIERSON — A 9-year-old Pierson Elementary School boy went up against almost 10,000 other budding artists from around the country and emerged a winner.
Lewis Americo Espinoza was one of only 14 artists nationwide who won the "Este es mi Mejico" competition, a national art contest organized by the Mexican government. Using green, blue, yellow and red markers, the young artist created a figment of his imagination: "a snake god," a greenish animal-like creature. Marcela Estevez, community programs coordinator for the Consulate of Mexico in Orlando, didn't have a copy of the painting, which was sent to judges in Mexico. She said, however, that winning drawings are featured each year in a calendar the Mexican government publishes. She expects Espinoza's drawing to be featured in next year's calendar. The calendars are sold at Mexican consulates nationwide, including the one in Orlando. "I had no idea I had won until this weekend," Espinoza said. "I like to draw. My favorite subject at school is art." Estevez said winning this contest is "very difficult because there are thousands of drawings submitted by children nationwide." Actually, Espinoza was among several children from Kathy Biferie's art class at Pierson Elementary who submitted works. She said this year contest organizers received 9,882 drawings, 250 from Florida. Over the last five years, only one child from Florida has won this contest, Estevez said. Nationwide, the "This is My Mexico" contest has become famous among youths of Mexican heritage because of the hefty prize it offers to the winners: a free trip to Mexico and the chance to meet the Mexican president. No confirmation has been received so far that President Vicente Fox will continue the tradition this year, however. Participants in the art contest must be Mexican-American children or children of Mexican origin, and fall between the ages of 7 and 13. After that, Estevez added, "the only thing they have to do is draw something about Mexico." Espinoza, who has overcome some obstacles at his young age, comes from a family of Mexican-American blue-collar workers. A drunken driver killed his mother, Yolanda, just days after he turned 1 year old. There also was a fire at the mobile home where he lived about two years ago, and Espinoza lost most of his soccer trophies. His dad, Joaquin, now a legal resident, first entered the country undocumented and almost died in the Texas desert. He decided to come to this country after his parents told him they didn't have money to pay for his schooling beyond sixth grade. Since he moved here, he has held various jobs, such as picking vegetables, cutting fern and working at a chicken processing plant. Currently, he is a construction worker in the daytime. But at night, he plays in a local band, Scorpio, that performs a variety of Latin American music. Joaquin Espinoza says he has come a long way. He has been able to buy a mobile home for Lewis and himself. And, he also said he learned to speak English by taking lessons at night after work. Although Joaquin Espinoza is proud of those achievements, he is even more proud of his son. "It's a great honor for me to know that my son won something so great," he said. |
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