Meet Renee Fajardo | Cultural Activist

We had the good fortune of connecting with Renee Fajardo and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Renee, do you have a favorite quote or affirmation?

“If you can be anything, be kind.”

I hail from a long ancestry of Southern Colorado families, who have a deep connection to the land and the history of our state. Growing up with my father’s extensive family on Denver’s West Side was a magical experience, filled with love. Many of my aunts and uncles were gay, and the neighbors who were from faraway places like Greece and Italy shared their stories and food with us. I knew that once their families had been miners or farmers like my own family. Everyone tried to help each other in times of need.

My mom and dad were divorced, so when I was 8 years old, she decided to move me and my brother to an all white suburb. The neighborhood kids burned my kittens alive, called me “spic” and taunted me for having slanted eyes. It was my first experience with bigotry. It was life-changing. At that young age, I realized my “Manito” family had been dealing with hate and ignorance their whole life. They chose to use their own experiences of trauma to ease the suffering of others.

My Tia told me we do not fight hate with more hate. Their kindness was not a sign of weakness but a source of strength. They fought against injustice by living their lives in a way that set an example for others. They stood up for those who were abused and hurt by being the ones who came to their aid. If we see suffering, we help alleviate it; if we see pain, we help ease it; if we see cruelness and injustice, we stand up. Being kind is about doing something for those who need our kindness. It does not mean we accept injustice, but rather that we act in kindness even when faced with injustices. We must be the change we want to see.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?

I learned that it is never too late to improve your mind and outlook on life. We are all connected to each other and need to be patient. Our flaws do not define us, our mistakes are learning experiences, and we can work with each other to be better. Most of all, we are all a woven tapestry of many threads. We need to respect each person, have integrity in all we do, and base our judgment on a person’s character, regardless of their religion, race, gender, country of origin, or sexual orientation. We must strive to right old wrongs and be caretakers of the world we live in. We need to honor all people and stand up against injustice. We have a duty to be more than consumers and to make the world a kinder, equitable, and better place. This outlook on life has really shaped me professionally.

Since 2010, I have been with the Metropolitan State University CHS Journey Through Our Heritage (JTOH) program (a program that places university students of color into local high schools and middle schools as mentors). The JTOH program was by founded by former MSU Denver Deputy Provost Dr. Luis Torres based on his families experiences with the Odyssey of the Mind project. I was honored to be hired in part due to my work as an OM coach for 10 years in Jeff-Co. To date, the JTOH program has also helped place students into nonprofits and businesses as interns. Every year, we take our university students to the San Luis Valley to explore and interact with farmers, ranchers, the mayordomo de la acequia, sheep herders, and artists. Our MSU Denver JTOH college mentors have raised thousands of dollars to provide and run a free summer leadership program for Lincoln Park neighborhood kids at La Alma Recreation Center for 15 years. I know that by connecting these mentors to their history and community, they gain valuable hands-on experience.

As a mother of seven and a cultural activist who has spent the past 35 years preserving and promoting the Latino/Mestizo culture of Colorado through my work as a storyteller and writer, I have a lot of irons in the fire. I have co-authored numerous books in the Tummy Tale series (Holy Mole Guacamole plus seven others) that preserve family food traditions of Colorado and have written hundreds of articles about Hispanic artists, culture, and historic insights.

I am the co-founder of the ongoing Return of the Corn Mothers project (along with Todd Pierson and Ed Winograd), which is a national traveling exhibition that highlights women’s stories from the Southwest. The exhibition and full-color book with the women’s stories was featured at History Colorado from Sept. 2022 until Sept. 2023 and will travel to UNC in 2026.

Over the past 30 years, I have been part of an effort to provide thousands of school children in the Denver Metro area with the opportunity to attend free cultural concerts once a month during the school year at the Aurora Fox in conjunction with the Colorado Folk Arts Council, MSU Denver, and others. These concerts highlight the multi-cultural heritage of the children attending with an emphasis on Mestizo culture and give university students the opportunity to work alongside community partners.

I have been a member of the Cesar Chavez Peace and Justice Committee of Denver (CCPJCD) from 2010 until present. As an active member of and promoter for Danza Huitzilopochtli, we promote peace, healing, and justice through the use of Danza. The group won the Mayor’s Award for art and culture (2016).

I have been on the board of the Colorado Folk Arts Council for 20 years and am the current chair of the Chicano Humanities Arts Council (CHAC). Long before Dia de Los Muertos was widely accepted as an event in Colorado, I was a strong advocate of educating the community about the holiday statewide. I served on the Jeff-Co PTA at Thompson Elementary and the Colorado State PTA to provide insight about providing cultural programming and books relating to Mestizo culture.

My family and I continue to volunteer to help undocumented families gain citizenship and have housed numerous families who were in crisis. We are proud to have been contributors for the Women’s History Museum in Denver on the impact of lesbians from the 1940s.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
History Colorado sites all over the state
Studio of Cal Duran, Santa Fe Arts Dist, 40 West Arts Dist,DAM
Museum of Nature Art & Science
Su Teatro
Aurora Fox
San Luis Valley Villages ( all of them from Alamosa to San Luis to Antonito)
Hooper Hot Springs
Create Breck Arts Dist
MSU Denver and Auraria Campus ( AHEC murals)
Trinidad Arts Dist..
Pueblo Arts Dist,
Chicano Humanities Arts Council
Eldorado Springs
Highway of Legends
Peak to Peak Highway

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
Chicano Humanities Arts Council & late director Lucille Rivera, Colorado Folk Arts Council, editor Ed Winograd, photographer Todd Pierson, husband Glen Anstine & our seven children, graphic designer Toinette Brown, my dad John Fajardo, prima Joana Lucero, Denver Native American Indian Festival, MSU Denver CLAS, and former MSU Denver CHS chair Ramon Del Castillo, La Alma Rec. Center, Su Teatro, City Council Dist. #3 Jamie Torres, SCFD, Community Acts Fund, Denver Foundation, Leo and Jean Tanguma, MSU Denver JTOH Team, AARP, Aurora Fox, Corky Gonzales Library, Create Breck, Dr. John Masserini and Dr. Katia Campbell (MSU Denver), History Colorado, Conservation Colorado, Marc Lytle , Carl Ruby, Corn Mothers and Tummy Tale authors, Mile High Vets & Raul Chavez & Aztec Group Huitzilopochtli, Cal Duran, Pirate Art Gallery & others.

Website: https://www.cornmothers.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/chac_gallery_denver/

Linkedin: https://shorturl.at/lqvvP

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/chac.denver/