I find myself moved to write again about a little town I visited two days ago. It’s here in the state of Nayarit, Mexico, and it is fondly refferred to as San Pancho by the locals. It’s true name, as a few Mexican nationals have reminded me, is San Francisco (I felt they were super traditional, and wanted to make sure I knew “Pancho” wasn’t the real name). It’s a funny thing, my first serious boyfriend was a direct descendant of Pancho Villa, and somehow, I never internalized that it was the Mexican nickname for Francisco, in spite of the fact that he loved to tell people that he was a Pancho Villa grandson. At any rate, I suppose there some folks here who bristle at the moniker “San Pancho” the way we Northern Californians do at the diminutive “Frisco” for our own town of San Francisco.
We were blessed to be enthralled with a native point of view on our 60-minute drive north from Nuevo Vallarta, on the north side of PV. Our young but clearly educated and proud guide, Diana, spoke of the town’s history, both recent and distant, as well as pointed out how Mexico as a culture views its special places; how concern for protecting both the cultural and environmental treasures has expanded. Although she is not the first guide to educate me on these details, I always enjoy hearing each person’s point of view as they explain the recent evolution of the region where they live and work.
San Pancho has grown up as a Mexican surf town, according to Diana. The surf there is dependably “just right” for learning and perfecting ones skill, even when one is experienced at surfing. The water is warm, and the beaches broad and spotless. We saw on our arrival, as we wandered through the sleepy squares at about 10 am, that she was correct in these characterizations.
San Pancho, in spite of being lucky enough to be the site of one of the best hospitals in this part of Mexico, was languishing only ten years ago as few of its families were able to ensure their children received a full education. Resources were scarce, and the tourism was minimal—attracting mostly wandering surfers and those looking for an inexpensive and warm place to stay for a while, perhaps before heading to Tahoe or Australia to work in the ski resorts in opposite seasons.
The contribution to the community of the hospital was a good beginning, and it serves as a “better option” for PV when the infirm can’t be treated there. It is known as “Hospital General de San Pancho.” Yup, they like the term of endearment, too. But, doctors and skilled workers weren’t coming from the tiny town. Nowadays, the town boast 3,000 full-time residents, plus a large influx of “northern snowbirds” who come between November and March for the beauty, affordability, and friendly atmosphere of the town.
Still, who is ensuring the town, treasure that it is, is being looked after; nurtured; helped to grow without eating its own tail?
Let’s back up a few years. Remember the eco-concern I was telling you about? Well, in San Pancho, one of the earliest ideas was sparked by a retired Forest Service worker from California by the name of Frank Smith. In 1992, he (and others) recognized the steep decline of the sea turtle due to the scavenging of their eggs for food, as well as the practice of hunting the turtles for meat and leather. He harnessed the energy of local children to assist him in collecting eggs from sea turtle nests so he could help them survive by placing them in a protected location for incubation and hatching. The first year, he collected 90 nests with the children’s help, and paid them in rides along the beach in his truck (vehicles were not common in town at that time). His success lead him to found Groupa Ecologica de la CostaVerde, which has solidified the town—and the west coast of Mexico even—as a noted turtle conservation region. The center has become a location where other regions send conservators to learn to establish sea turtle conservation areas of their own. (Read more here).
And, in 2006, Nicole Swedlow, who, in her own words, “came for a vacation, and just kept staying,” recognized the gap in available education and activities for the community’s children, and recognized she could help. She rented a small space, and set her kitchen table out on the sidewalk and began teaching arts and crafts. Nicole envisioned offering the space for local artists and craftspeople to sell their creations at a discounted cost in exchange for teaching classes. Entreamigos was born.
Still here, giving to the community, 13 years later, the organization now houses a library, language learning center, a recycle/reuse collective (including a used children’s clothing store), education and school, and a store that sells the crafts that they produce. They boast over 3500 volunteer hours donated each year, and as of this writing, they take credit for 12 college graduates.
If you are lucky enough to tour the bodega they now occupy, you may find yourself moved nearly to tears. It is a place of incredible inspiration, vision, and a recognition that one not need to move mountains to create ripples of change in the world. The people in the building are happy, smiling as they go about their work of sorting old laundry soap plastics, glass bottles, and other components of their work. Every person in the place was investing in the effort that would yield more promise for the next generation of San Pancho children, and, for San Pancho itself.
There are amazing, even well-known people, who have wandered in to San Pancho and discovered this little center of another universe, and decided that they, too, wish to contribute. They accept everything with enthusiasm, whether it is three hours of your day, or three weeks of your life each year. Nobody isn’t helpful there; all are needed and appreciated.
One last thing that we discovered here: a co-founder of Cirque de Soleil, upon finding and settling in San Pancho for his retirement, also discovered Entreamigos. And from there grew “Circo de los Ninos,” which is his school for children to learn to become acrobats and perform the aerial moves that one might see in any Cirque de Soleil performance. Housed together with Entreamigos, they have created a formidable, enviable, lively program in which the children of San Pancho can grow.
When Nicole formed Entreamigos in 2006, her concept, or maybe better termed her mission was “Teach what you know, and ask others to do the same.”
I left San Pancho with such a light and happy heart. The town seems to be aligned with many things that are meaningful to me, too. We went other lovely places that day, but my thoughts stayed with San Pancho, and, especially with Entreamigos.
what is now called Grupo Ecologico de la Costa Verde, a Mexican non-profit organization dedicated to protecting the sea turtles and other indigenous wildlife in the San Pancho area.
https://entreamigos.org.mx
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