Regarding the debate about immigrants coming to the San Luis Valley
I am disturbed when folks here express fear of people coming to America from other lands, first, because most of us have ancestors who did, and second, because I see these newcomers as future citizens, contributing to the prosperity and inventiveness of our great nation.
I have a stake in this local debate because my great-grand parents, Sabina and Fred Hillary, were immigrants who ran a boarding house in Del Norte for over 50 years. Fred was from England, and Sabina from Austria, and they are buried in the town cemetery.
We have Sabina’s family Bible, in which she recorded their marriage in Leicester, New York, the birth of their son Arthur, his marriage to Edith Lampson, and the births of their children, Shirley and Richard.
We have other Hillary items, including a grandfather clock with a delightful tale attached to it, a picture of Arthur and his trumpet in a Denver-based band, and a drawing of the Hillary family in England which shows Fred’s parents and siblings. Most of these artifacts are now at the Rio Grande County Museum for anyone to view to confirm my claim.
Shirley Hillary Rechel, my mother, told me many stories of visiting Sabina and Fred in Del Norte during the summers. She especially loved the Hooper swimming pool.
I don’t recall any stories of Fred or Sabina being agents of China or Russia, or fomenting revolt against our government. They, like most foreign nationals, were hard working people who wanted to make a decent life for themselves and their family. This valley would be less without them.
In honor of my own family and ancestors, I welcome immigrants.
Published in The Mid-week Message, FUMC, 31 January 2024
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