The Primitivo Garcia and Guadalupe Bribiesca de Garcia

The Primitivo Garcia and Guadalupe Bribiesca de Garcia's Fundraiser

Esperanza, fortaleza, familia, fe y compromiso. image

Esperanza, fortaleza, familia, fe y compromiso.

Join me and help make a difference, please give today.

Share:

$2,160 towards $5,000

Esperanza, fortaleza, familia, fe y compromiso.

Hope, strength, family, faith and commitment. The story of Primitivo García and Guadalupe Bribiesca de García, affectionately known as Papa Tivo and Mama Lupe, exemplifies all the aforementioned, as they lived lives dedicated to love of family, and supporting and inspiring others. Uplifting all, during tumultuous times was their way of life. It came naturally to them to always reach out and extend a helping hand to all, including newly arrived immigrants to the Kansas City area.

They never forgot their roots, and lived lives of service so notable that their legacy is cemented in the consciousness of their descendants, and all who knew them or knew of them. A wonderful example is Guadalupe’s inclusion as one of only 13 notable Kansas City women honored on the Women’s Leadership fountain on the Paseo and 9th.

Primitivo and Guadalupe left their native Salamanca, Guanajuato home amidst great strife and turmoil. He was a professional of the arts and employed by the registro civil, who was forced to leave due to threats to his life as he refused to renounce his Catholic faith. They both, as in the case of many migrants fleeing the region during that time in history, had every intention of returning to Mexico once the conflict/war subsided. However, Kansas City was where they ended up creating strong family roots, a family foundation based on love of traditions, culture, faith, education and always being present and showing up for others.

They were a couple who loved and lived a blessed life. He was a watchmaker, gifted musician and calligrapher, and with his wife, opened the First Mexican Restaurant in Kansas City and named it Las Palmas. Guadalupe filled many roles in her daily life... as a loving mother, savvy businesswoman, talented singer and musician. She was instrumental in the establishment of the Guadalupe Centers along with sisters, Dorothy and Mary Louise Gallagher in the 1920’s. A woman of unshakeable faith, Guadalupe used her energy and talents of organizing, cooking and the arts to contribute to the growth of a dynamic and thriving Mexican-American community on the Westside. She taught traditional Mexican folkloric dance, and to the present day, her great-grandchildren carry on this tradition of love of dance and music.

Their most lasting legacy is their family, and the roots they planted which have been so strong that they serve as omnipresent guiding principles to sustain and empower, no matter what the circumstance. Their belief in education, is demonstrated by their descendants who include many professionals, such as, teachers, doctors, lawyers, artists, journalists, architects, entrepreneurs, and most pronouncedly strong, loving mothers and fathers who inherited that great concept of “una gran familia.” This is evident through their actions of love for one another and their community. Without a doubt, Mama Lupe and Papa Tivo would be proud that “professions of service” dominate their descendants’ lives in one way or another.

Above all, family was first, paramount and fundamental in their resiliency in the face of obstacles. Theirs is an American story with Mexican roots, strong, enduring and unapologetically so, y con ganas de triunfar. In their spirit, we as their family honor their memory of “showing up” for our community and future generations via this scholarship, lifting each other up.

Cambio para Cambio (Change for Change) is a community-led campaign that realizes the philanthropic power of Latino students, local businesses, and professional organizations. In celebration of Hispanic Heritage Month, every dollar donated from September 15 through October 15 will be matched 100% by generous HDF donors, doubling the giving power and impact of your gift.

Please show your support of the Kansas City Latino community and donate today. Your support will make a real difference! Together, we will use change to create change! #cambioparacambio