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Highlands Today

Former Migrant Worker Advocates For Farm Workers

Sue Ann Carpenter/Highlands Today

Santos De La Rosa is a farm worker specialist for Florida Non-Profit Housing Inc., which is based out of Sebring.

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Sue Ann Carpenter

Published: October 1, 2007

SEBRING –– Santos Guadalupe De La Rosa likes to say that farm work is his college education.

If that's so, then his education started when he was 7 years old and continues until today as a farm worker specialist for the Florida Non-Profit Housing in Sebring.

De La Rosa's family members were all migrant workers. His parents, aunts, grandfather –– the whole clan –– traveled together like gypsies to wherever there was something ready to pick. At age 5, De La Rosa was babysat by his 9 - and 11-year-old sisters. By the time he was 7, he was working alongside his family in the field and traveling the crop circuit.

The family was based in the Texas border town of Mercedes, in the Rio Grande Valley.

The town and its cemetery were created in 1900. It's where his parents and grandparents were born

and the place where his ancestors are buried.

In West Texas there was cotton.

In Oregon the cucumbers, strawberries, blackberries and bean harvests awaited them.

In Utah, sugar beets were hoed by hand for $2.50 an acre back then.

In Wisconsin, they hoed and picked cucumbers, and later graded potatoes.

They came to Wauchula when the oranges, peppers and tomatoes were ready.

When De La Rosa's family settled permanently in Wauchula, he attended sixth grade and then graduated in 1973 from Hardee High School.

Graduation was stressed in order to have a better life.

In 1969, his father, Rogelio, who still lives in Wauchula, was one of the first Hispanic crew leaders to buy his own equipment for harvesting oranges in Hardee County: a goat-high lift, 70 tubs and 40 ladders.

Although De La Rosa helped his dad with citrus after school, he found time and was one of the few Hispanics to play football. At 5 foot 7 inches he had the size and power to play full back and linebacker.

It was when he turned 18 that he met his wife, Lucy, of 33 years. Ironically, she was born and raised in a small town eight miles from his home in Texas. In fact, she and her family traveled the same circuits.

The De La Rosas have one 9-year-old grandson, Mikey. Their daughter Frances also grew up helping to pick fruit and tomatoes, but now works for Rock Solid, a granite counter top company.

Besides being a citrus loader for his dad and harvester Paul Garcia out of Bradenton, De La Rosa has been a fruit picker, irrigation worker, watermelon loader, produce pin hooker, an equipment operator and cleared land.

In 1982, he was making $29,000 in phosphate mines. He tackled their lowest level jobs and rose through their ranks as a master control operator and shop steward.

Never resting, and always challenged to improve himself, De La Rosa has been a part-time real estate agent for Sun 'N Lake Realty and Development, Inc. for 16 years and a mortgage broker for 10 years with Premier Mortgage of Central Florida, Inc.

In 1994, the day his mother died, he was accepted as a farm worker specialist with Florida Non-Profit Housing.

It was an ideal fit because he was familiar with the farm worker world, and was bilingual. De La Rosa was the first farm worker appointed by Gov. Chiles to the Highlands County Housing Authority.

Later, Gov. Jeb Bush appointed him to the State Affordable Housing Study Commission where he continues to serve under Gov. Charlie Crist.

Today people make $8 or $9 a bin for oranges or 80 to 90 cents a box. Forty two years ago it paid 25 cents a box.

Farm workers do lots of nursery work and receive minimum wage. Sod work is piecework, and when construction slows down, sod work slows down also.

Farm work is not steady work. A typical day for picking oranges might start at 8 a.m., but they have to wait till 11 a.m. for the dew to lift when picking packing house fruit. They may only be able to work till 2 p.m. filling 2 bins, for about $8 or $9 each.

Normally there is no paid travel time, health insurance, retirement, sick leave, overtime, holidays or vacation with these jobs. When it rains you don't make money unless you get wet. You work in all kinds of weather conditions because you need to.

De La Rosa feels Hope Villas off of Youth Lane on Hope Circle in Sebring is a success story with its 52 rental units for farm workers.

The Housing Authority Board that helped build Hope Villas came from farm worker backgrounds.

"A lot of the farmworker families have been able to move up and become homeowners." It was
important that they be located close to services, shopping, schools and medical. It has been opened for nine years and is well maintained.

In '94 the NAACP and Men of Vision presented him with the Humanitarian Martin Luther King Award as a voice for the farm worker community. Many of those members also grew up doing farm work.

"They are my friends, my brothers," De La Rosa said. "You're only able to move up with the help of others."

De La Rosa's hobbies are gardening, using a push mower, sharing his knowledge with others, counting his blessings and dreaming. He says he is most fulfilled when making others happy by helping them solve their problems.

De La Rosa knows that you can't make it in society without an education. He takes his godsons and shows them big homes on the lake and then smaller homes. He asks them to guess the difference between the two. Usually the only difference is a higher education. He feels the more education you have, the better your chances are of becoming successful and providing your family a better economic life. Having worn glasses since he was 10 years old and carrying his books, he was often made fun of. "But nerds make more money!" he quipped.

Florida Non-Profit Housing is located at 3905 Kenilworth Boulevard in Sebring. Hours are 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday. Call Santos at 863-385-2519 for information or contact him at hipoteca1@comcast.net.

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