One of ten children, Raymond Guajardo was born on December 24, 1950. His mother was born in the United States and his father emigrated from Mexico at a young age, in search of opportunity. Spanish was the primary language spoken at home and although Raymond attended public school, his teachers did not realize that he did not know how to write or speak English until the second grade. Born with an entrepreneurial spirit at eight years old he baked cakes which he sold after Sunday mass to earn money.
As a teenager he sought work to learn all about construction which he later translated into all aspects of his livelihood. After working at the phone company for several years, Raymond could no longer ignore his creative and entrepreneurial nature so he left his position and started his own construction business. This life change would later lead to his current successful business of production management and rentals. Raymond’s innate ability for actualizing his visions is what he considers one of his greatest gifts.
However, his true greatest passion is writing, a born writer can ascend into a world of his own ideas. This was true when working an event in December 2018 he learned about a seven year old little girl who died of dehydration while being detained by immigration authorities. Traveling from Guatemala she crossed the Mexican Border with her father. The child was helpless, as she did not speak English or have anyone to advocate for her. This is what the land of the free had become under a new administration. The immigration process was being attacked by extreme hard-line politicians.
Distressed over this story and many more detailed in the news he was compelled to make a personal statement. He drew a sketch of the Statue of Liberty surrounded by immigrants from different countries to symbolize what our great nation represents.
Raymond had a friend who’s wife was a local artist and was herself an immigrant. Her name was Alejandra Martinez Hernandez. She possessed an amazing talent of bringing his thoughts and ideas to life. She painted a masterpiece. He also wrote a poem inspired by the immigrant child. This poem is the centerpieces of the painting and is inscribed on the scroll held by The Statue of Liberty. He calls this painting “ The Lady in the Harbor”.
Although the painting in itself told a story. Raymond wanted to enlighten its meaning even more and decided to write an additional piece. He wrote “The Little Sprout”. It was the story of an immigrant, little girl that had touched his soul.