Even as Donald Trump rails about immigrants, Wisconsin dairy farmers build bridges to Mexico
IMMIGRANTS NOW MAKE UP MORE THAN HALF OF ALL DAIRY WORKERS. SAYS JOHN ROSENOW: 'THEY ARE SENDING US THEIR BEST.'
Madeline Heim
Published 12:00 p.m. CT Oct. 17, 2018 | Updated 12:02 p.m. CT Oct. 17, 2018
John Rosenow is photographed with the family of his employee, Roberto Tecpile, at their home in rural Mexico in January 2017. Rosenow made the cultural immersion trip with a program sponsored by Puentes/Bridges to meet his employees’ families and learn more about their lives.
(Photo: John Rosenow)
Roberto Tecpile often puts in 70 hours a week at the Rosenholm dairy farm in Cochrane, Wis. — a place where winter days are short and can be bitterly cold. It is a job that farmers say most Americans refuse to do.
Tecpile, a native of Astacinga, in the Mexican state of Veracruz, has spent nearly 20 years in the United States, the past four working for farmer John Rosenow. According to his boss, Tecpile is the “go-to guy” for fixing farm equipment — whether it be a lawnmower or a gauge. Tecpile said the job is going well, and right now it is the most important thing as he prepares to return home in a year or two.
Tecpile is saving money to build a kitchen for his wife, Veronica, “with cabinets and everything.” She currently cooks outside in their mountain village for their two sons, Kevin, 15, and Aaron, 9, and their daughter, Megan, 4.
“I want to work a little bit more … I want to buy a kitchen for my wife, and for the kids, I want them to have something better,” the 39-year-old dairy worker said. “At times we say being able to be together would be much better, but at the same time, we still don’t have everything arranged.”
More:
https://www.jsonline.com/story/opinion/contributors/2018/10/17/wisconsin-dairy-farmers-build-bridges-mexico/1670444002/
