Pueblo High School

Mariachi Aztlan Joins Pro Group For Christmas Concert

By Alexis Vargas

The Grammy-winning, fifth generation, and world-famous Mariachi Sol de Mexico de Jose Hernandez, visited Tucson on Dec. 15, for their annual “Merry-Achi Christmas Show” at the Fox Theatre.

It has been four years since Mariachi Aztlán de Pueblo High School was invited to perform alongside the professional mariachi group, and PHS Mariachi director Mr. John Contreras described the very special feelings he experienced.

“I know Jose Hernandez’ [the musical director’s] expectations as a musician that has grown up listening and learning from him and knew that we had our work cut out for us to be able to impress him and the members of Sol de Mexico,” said Contreras.

In preparation, Mariachi Aztlán learned three of the mariachi’s arranged pieces, including the well-known Christmas carol, “Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas.”

Clarissa Salinas, a senior violinist, said, “Performing was definitely exciting, but as the day arrived, the nerves really kicked in. Nonetheless, it was an honor to play with them and experience the concert live.”

Everybody interviewed for this story felt thrilled to be playing alongside their favorite professional mariachi ensemble.

Armonía section leader Jorge Ramirez expressed how he felt playing the final pieces to conclude the show, including “El Son de la Negra” and “Viva México.”

“The faces of the audience reminded me of why I love being a mariachi,” he said. “Even with these songs being mariachi standards, there’s such a difference when they are performed by professionals.”

Baseball In Fall…? Why Not Start Early?

By Alyvette Moreno & Jenna Twaje

As the weather changes so do the sports, including baseball season right around the corner. Although the baseball season doesn’t officially start until February, the team is eager to start. Baseball tryouts are all wrapped up, and the team players were picked several weeks ago.

With not only playing the sport but having six years of coaching experience at Sahuarita and Pueblo for varsity football, baseball, and basketball, Mr. Shamond Hoskins is working hard on hopes of taking his team to state championships.

Hoskins is a combat veteran who served in the Afghanistan war and later served in the military as security force.

Many students tried out for the baseball team in hopes of being selected, and many were relieved to hear they were chosen.

Sophomore Arian Roman said, “We bond together, and we are also having fun playing a sport we all love.”

The team has the determination to work hard but with their losing mindset and fear of change, it could affect them when up against schools like South Point, Mika Mountain and CDO.

“They are dogs in the making,” said Coach Hoskins. “They all have right in them, they just need to learn to fight together.”

One of the co-captains, senior Javier Arvizu, tried out for the team because of his deep love for the sport. He said that he and the other players feel they have a connection with both the team and the new coach.

“We [the players] are close to each other and bring each other up,” said Arvizu.

“The team feels like a family,” said co-captain Angle Iriqui, another senior

Boys Basketball: Senior Night Honors Six Players

By Kassandra Espinoza & Jose Jovel

Pueblo High School boys’ basketball team held their Senior Night on Jan. 29 against Salpointe High School—honoring six senior players and two managers.

Head Coach Daryl Jones has been coaching at Pueblo for three years, so this group of seniors have been with him the longest.

Jones said, “I will for sure miss this year’s seniors! This is the most I’ve gotten to see my players grow due to me only having been here for three years.”

Unfortunately, Pueblo fell short against Salpointe (56-49), but that did not change the celebration held after the game in honor of the seniors.

Senior basketball Captain, Jorge Franco said, “Even though I was stressed out at times during the game and throughout the season, it was also very exciting and an honor to be captain of the team.”

With plans to play basketball year-round with their own club team, Pueblo’s boys’ basketball team plans to grow during this time to have a thrilling season next year.

Senior Co-Captain Jacob Maya said, “I will most definitely miss playing games at Pueblo, as well as playing with my teammates. They’re like another family to me.”

In addition to the six players congratulated during senior night, two managers, seniors Emely Villanueva and Alexis Vargas, also got to be a part of the commemoration.

“As the season progressed, I learned more about the sport,” said Villanueva, “and I am going to miss the team more than anything because they always had such great morale. Even after losing a game, they would still be happy about being able to play basketball as a team.”

‘Time To Start Fresh’

(Campus Monitor Receives Home Through HFH)

By Aubrey Medina & Rihana Medrano-Thompson

Campus Monitor Ms. Crystal Alvarado and her two sons moved into their new home during the holiday season, courtesy of Habitat for Humanity.

Alvarado, who joined Pueblo’s security team last February, remained patient throughout the long process of qualifying for a new home.

“Once I was accepted [just nine out of 300 applicants], I actually worked 250 hours with the construction of the home,” Alvarado said. “My sons [Jacob and Estevan—a sophomore at Pueblo] weren’t eligible to help because they’re both younger than 16. They weren’t even allowed on the construction site.”

After all the sweat and body aches, Alvarado said the effort was “beyond worthwhile”.

“I have a home near Sentinel Peak [‘A’ Mountain] with a gorgeous view of the city,” she said. “Christmas this year was a little different—as we were moving and settling in.”

Alvarado finished her application to the Habitat for Humanity program a year ago, and “graduated” in July 2023 after meeting numerous qualifications. She found time on weekends and weekday evenings to meet the mandatory 250 hours of labor.

“There were a lot of times I just wanted to give up,” Alvarado said. “I didn’t, though. Working on the construction of my own home ended up being an accomplishment I’ll never regret.”

One of the many benefits of being a HFH recipient is not paying interest on a mortgage payment, saving the family tens of thousands of dollars over the life of the mortgage.

The Alvarado’s said they plan to start off “fresh”—no old furniture, dishes, and other household items.

“We are starting off with just our clothes, a few television sets and my sons’ game consoles,” Alvarado said.

[Habitat for Humanity, founded in 1976 by married couple Millard and Linda Fuller, is a partnership, not a giveaway program. Habitat’s homeowner families buy the houses that Habitat builds and renovates. Habitat homeowners also invest hundreds of hours of their own labor working alongside volunteers. As a result, Habitat for Humanity houses are affordable to low-income families around the world. The organization operates with financial support from national governments, philanthropic foundations, corporations and mass media companies. foundations.

Habitat directly helps more than four million people each year secure decent, affordable housing, and an additional eight million people now have the potential to improve their housing conditions through a range of indirect services. Our annual report provides full details.

Habitat for Humanity continues to build and renovate decent, affordable housing in all 50 U.S. states and more than 70 other countries.]

‘TRIO-EST’: Another Tool for Academic Success

by Alyvette Moreno & Jenna Twaje

TRIO Educational Search, or “EST” for short, is one of the many programs here at Pueblo High School dedicated to supporting students and helping them succeed in their education.

While the commitment is lower than Upward Bound where students meet three times a week, TRIO-EST still offers students many opportunities such as workshops, tutoring, campus tours and more. Instead, students in EST are required to meet two times during the school year, although members can meet whenever they work.

Currently, students are not required to have a specific GPA to join ETS. The only requirement to join is to be a U.S citizen or U.S resident. Students can join at any grade, but students cannot be in both ETS and Upward Bound simultaneously.

“Our main goal is for every student to graduate knowing what they want to do after high school,” said Ms. Grissel Bojorquez, the coordinator of TRIO-EST.

She decided to become the coordinator of the program because she felt a need to people just like her.

Paola Salazar, a senior, said, “It’s been helpful having a mentor whenever I need it.”

Since learning about TRIO in her freshman year Salazar got all sorts of help such as having her college essays proofread and reviewed—as well as financial aid and help with her applications.

Having been in ETS since his sophomore year, Nae Alba, a junior, hopes that this experience will help him get into his dream university. Finding out about ETS from his older sister gave Alba the opportunity to get help with FASFA, college applications, and tutoring.

TRIO-ETS is a resource many students use to help in their pursuit of higher education. The support given to students by TRIO-ETS empowers them and helps them achieve their full potential.

“It is a very helpful program that provides resources to help me in my college journey with FASFA and college applications,” said Alba.

Sophomore Breaks Girls’ Basketball Record

by Christopher Santa Cruz

The Pueblo Warriors girls’ basketball team recently defeated the Palo Verde Titans 101-16 with superstar player sophomore America Cazares setting a new school record with 59 points in a single game.

Cazares went 14-20 from the field with an impressive 10 of those shots being three-pointers. She was able to grab eight rebounds, one assist and nine steals during the game.

“Honestly, I didn’t know I was going to break the record,” Cazares said. “I just played my game, although I got subbed-out during the fourth quarter.”

The previous school record was held by Alicia Reyes, who scored 57 points during the 2015-16 season against the Cholla Chargers under the current head coach Ismael “Izzy” Galindo.

This season’s Warriors scored another 100+ points during a game against the Empire Ravens on Dec. 17; the final score: 101-32.

“Before the game, I was very relaxed and confident knowing we were facing a weaker team,” Cazares said.

Galindo said, “I didn’t know America [Cazares] was going to break the school record. I just remember she was in the high 40’s at about the end of the third quarter. Then before I could take her out during the fourth quarter, I learned that she had broken the record.”

With all these early accomplishments in Cazares’ high school career, she plans on continuing her basketball career playing at the collegiate level.