The ceremony was held at the XVI FAIR HARVEST San Bartolomé.

The neighbor Board, Juana Navarro Estupiñan, He was recognized for a lifetime dedicated to sharecropping, and his humble and endearing collaboration for ten years with this ethnographic sample intended to maintain the historical memory of the people on its agricultural past alive.

Estupiñan Juanita, you already have 88 years, It was a migrant for many years of his life his nearest and closest world always revolved around the sugar harvest and cultivation of tomato plants.

Each year so bend over backwards to participate and collaborate with the celebration and organization of the Fair of Zafra, “because it is an event that carries the past, it brings back memories of his childhood, of his youth, of maturity; happy and sad memories, memories that speak of life and death; memories of many events that shaped his life and the lives of his entire family,As with so many women and men who exercised the board as sharecroppers”.

Juanita was born in Taidía the Estupiñan 21 in January of 1925, within a family of 5 brothers and fathers farmers. It was just a child when she began working in tomators Los Betancores, The area Prietos, near the junction of Arinaga.

He worked in the grooves in the morning, and at night in the old warehouses of tomatoes Ciel, Vecindario, one of whose cuarterías lived. When the Civil Guard conducted inspections to detect cases of child labor employment, it's hiding, even huddled between strips of banana. Child employment was not allowed, but it is spoiled.

So I worked all week, from Monday to Saturday, until eleven p.m.. And it was growing. When Saturday came, she and a group of women and men out walking at that hour of the night to return home, sidewalks taking Sardina, Cardon, The knives, St. Lucia Town, and Rosiana to reach his home in Taidía, the it is looming almost at dawn on Sunday.

As the girls of her generation, Juanita left the family home after marrying the 20 Years in the Church of Tunte. That day, Feast of Santa Ana, He walked out of his house barefoot, and only he puts shoes at the crossroads of the cross, before entering the village. Then there was no money, and the shoes were a rare luxury that had to take the utmost care.

With her husband, He had 10 sons. He was a pastor of Maspalomas whom he met by chance, by a “carambola” life while ironing a shirt. He fell in love with a letter, He first dance was a great dancer- and going to visit it daily for three consecutive months without interruption while she worked in the tomato plants Neighborhood.

already married, the first residence of the young couple were cuarterías Count in Barranquillo del Horno, at the height of Yumbo Center, in Playa del Ingles, then planted all of tomators, from the booth Marcialito Artiles (on the back of Maspalomas) almost to the edge of the beach.

In Barranquillo del Horno lived marriage during 9 years, his first 9 zafras together, during which had 9 sons, those who cared practically walk groove, in a box of tomatoes that served as their crib and covering the sun with a blanket.

Living and working there were four children died, two males and two females, those who were never recorded because the money was not enough to eat and to climb the City Council was in Tunte.

Those nine zafras, like many other, only gave them enough to live a day. They escaped thanks to the advantage 2 fanegadas of tomato farmers to plant potatoes among stonemasons, beans, lettuce, radishes, gourds, ground beans and other vegetables for food Cauldron. They also had a pig, 14 chickens and small cattle 6 goats daily gave them milk for children and a kilo and a half of cheese.

After those first nine zafras no gain, and looking for better luck and fortune, the couple decided to pick up their few belongings and load them with their animals in a truck, and migrate with five live to plant two bushels of tomato growers in La Aldea de San Nicolás children.

For two years they worked on the villagers tomato plants owned by Los Sánchez, area Cuermeja, living in a rooming house. There were two harvests with the same result of survival and poverty, then it was usual to win just 15 from 20 pesetas (less than one euro) a week.

For this reason, also looking for better fortune, the couple decided to migrate again, comin 'this time with their belongings, their animals and their five children, Carmelo tomato farmers to plant in Mountain Lion. They did this for three growing seasons with the same result, He never left with nothing, and that the husband always used to assemble land and make any sporadic job that arise at the end of each campaign.

luck unbowed

Marriage only managed to straighten his fate when he decided to leave the mountain and come to do the harvest in Tomateros Don Juliano Bonny surrounding the small town of the Board, then also populated by cuarterías.

Before having his own house lived the village entrance, in Pilcher cuartería, next to the old pond already disappeared where it still stands up looking at that last home of Lolita Rodriguez, founder of The Board, and known as the Pond House or Mato. The tomato plants were planted marriage on the ground now occupied by the new shopping center next to the crossing of Sonnenland.

And it was planted on the board for more than 10 years began to change their luck, because they managed to collect savings with which they bought the cement blocks necessary to start to build the house on the lot that gave them his father, Panchito Pastor Maspalomas, in the call Alley Board, perhaps the most beautiful and endearing street all the people.

The holes for the foundations and footings of the house the excavated this woman and her eldest son. Up the house with sand cliff and with the help of neighbors like Gil and Juanito Juanito López, and brothers Paco and Silvano León Mejías, with marriage coincided while planting tomato plants in Mountain.

On the board they had their last child, the only one that was attended by a midwife, the remembered Juanita, comadre half the town. The rest of the children had this woman herself, with only the help of her husband.

The food was done in the tomators, because he could not waste time. The workday began when harvests were getting light the day and ended when trasponía the sun on the backs of Calderín.

Most families attended two fanegadas, woman in a groove and husband in another, walking hand in hand. Women arrejundian: They digging the earth like them; They were carrying boxes of tomatoes 25 kilos as they; tied the bushes as they, and they enguanaban and blinded herbs, and milked ... The working day for these women seemed to never end, and almost he never did before he entered the morning, because they also competed household chores like making cheese or washing clothes in the corners.

Were times when there were no yogurts and fruit consumed just because there was no money to buy. The bread was sold walk groove. The brothers took him to the tomators Galván riding a donkey.

The women were wearing the tomato farmers made a bundle with two sacks as a skorts, pamela played with a cloth and a straw hat, and gloves made of cloth sock. And also with sackcloth faltriquera to put raffia with which the plants are tied.

When Don Juliano Bonny decided to withdraw the tomators the Board before the push of the tourism industry, the marriage was to plant with the same landlord to Tomateros Lomo Gordo, which they made two harvests until the husband retired.

Juanita lives today handed over to his family. Has 17 grandchildren and 13 biznietos, but when you point invited to offer their memories and knowledge of students yesterday's Board, whose schools participate milking goats, empleitas making cheese and tomato farmers planting on specific holidays such as Canary Islands Day, so that the tradition and history are kept alive and not lost.

Juanita received from the hands of the councilors of Culture Elena Vega Alamo, and Senior and Citizen Participation, Araceli Weapons, a commemorative detail.

Juanita's story is a social photography summarized on the experience of a community of neighbors for a certain life span.