| Program builds cultural bridges 04/08/2001 By Lori Price / The Dallas Morning News Kathy McGovern was nervous.
Here she was, an American who didn't speak a word of Spanish, waiting for the four Mexican students who would live with her for 10 days.
"I knew nothing about Mexico," said Ms. McGovern, recalling the day she met the exchange students of the Zapotlan Project last year.
But in a short time, she learned enough about the young men – ranging in age from 15 to 25 – to know they would become her "children" for life.
"I learned quickly about the love they have for their family, for God and for life," said Ms. McGovern, now a coordinator with the project. "We used the dictionary a lot, but it took less than 24 hours not to be nervous anymore."
Proyecto Zapotlan, the Spanish translation for the project's name, is similar to a sister-city program. For the last nine years, the program has brought citizens of Ciudad Guzman – a city in west-central Mexico – to Denton.
Zapotlan was the name of the city when it was first settled.
This week, 34 people, including 17 music students, will come to the area to participate in the project.
The students will arrive Tuesday and perform in a number of venues, including at a concert Thursday at the Murchison Performing Arts Center at the University of North Texas. They will return to Mexico on April 20.
The goal of the project is to help improve the way of life for the Ciudad Guzman citizens, said Dr. Rafael Toledo, a professor of psychology at the University of North Texas and an organizer of the project.
The city today is a lot different than it was when Dr. Toledo was growing up there, a time when families gathered around the radio and children played in safe streets, he said.
"Now, it's like night and day, the difference," Dr. Toledo said. "The values that people lived by are beginning to disappear.
"Part of the reason for this project is to bring back morals and values and try to undo some of the mess that we're in in today's society," Dr. Toledo added.
The all-volunteer staff of the project also hopes to foster international cooperation and inspire interactions like the one Ms. McGovern had, he said.
"The final philosophy is whatever we do for somebody else, we always ask that they do something in turn," Dr. Toledo said. "Our main goal is to make people conscious of helping with the needs of others instead of focusing on their own needs."
For more information on the Zapotlan Project, call Dr. Toledo at 940-565-2671. • Tuesday 9 a.m.: Guests arrive from Mexico at the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 3000 Old North Road, Denton.
• Wednesday 12:30 p.m.: Musical performance at the Denton Rehabilitation and Nursing Center, 2229 Carroll Blvd., Denton.
• Thursday 8 p.m.: The Zapotlan Project Concert at the Murchison Performing Arts Center, Interstate 35E at Avenue D, Denton. Concert will feature the Denton High School symphonic band, the Ryan High School Symphonic Band and Chamber Choir, the Zapotlan Vocal Quartet and Musical Ensemble, and a Mexican piano and vocal duet. Tickets are $10 for adults, $5 for students and $25 for families.
For more information, call Kathy McGovern at 940-321-6045.
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