Though his feet are firmly planted in the Wood River Valley, sometimes Sergio Ruiz's gaze travels 2,000 miles away.
The Mexican emigrant had reunited with two brothers in Idaho and was determined to have his children join him.
Now, after an adjustment period filled with tears, arguments and exasperation, his family sits smiling around him.
Sergio Ruiz Jr., 24, gathers news for "Estás en la noticia," "You are in the News," the valley's first Spanish-language television program. He has met with state Sen. Clint Stennett, D-Ketchum, and Rep. Wendy Jaquet, D-Ketchum, to discuss issues facing the Latino community.
Daughter Lizbeth Ruiz, 26, co-hosts the show with her father. "Estás en la noticia" airs on KSVT, Channel 13, Tuesdays and Sundays at 7 p.m. and nightly at 11 p.m.
His oldest daughter, Wendy Young, 28, works at Head Start, a program that assists children of low-income families, and often volunteers in the community.
Taking a moment with his family Friday at a Hailey coffeehouse, Sergio must have felt content. But the man from Mexico City did not always have it so good.
Moving the family to a new country was one thing; integrating them into a new culture was another.
"The culture, the valley, everything in the beginning, it was kind of hard," Wendy said.
She added, with some regret, that she used to lash out at her father for making them come to the United States.
"My uncle would say, 'Don't be like that. He's trying to help you,'" she recalled.
But how could he understand how hard it was to sit in class at Wood River High School, not speaking English, having to take the bus, not knowing where to get off?
Initially excited about the prospect of free school bus rides, Sergio Jr. found himself in a state of panic his first day when posed with a question from the driver.
"I didn't know what she was saying," he said. "I thought she was mad at me."
He bolted off the bus to get a friend to help him translate. It turned out that the driver just wanted to know where he needed to be dropped off.
Finding jobs and transportation can be troublesome for any Wood River Valley resident. But some issues are particularly difficult for Spanish-speaking newcomers, Sergio Sr. said.
Things natives take for granted—finding health care services, understanding social norms, learning not to shop for a dress two days before Prom—can be challenging and frustrating to others.
But it was the very difficulties the family experienced, and the unquestioning help from strangers, that motivated them to help others.
"We're very lucky," Sergio Sr. said. "The American community helped us, the Hispanic community helped us. Now we're trying to help other people."
Rebekah Helzel, founder and director of Ketchum-based Advocates for Real Community Housing, is a recipient of the Ruiz family's civic mindedness.
"We needed to get the word out about affordable housing," she said, so she called upon the Ruizes for help.
Wendy volunteered to staff the phone to answer Spanish-speaking callers' questions.
"They're just wonderful," she said. "They're all around pretty special people."
The family, however, isn't looking for credit; they're seeking to create opportunity and make improvements in their adopted valley.
"We try to get the Hispanic community to get involved—to really be a part of the community," Sergio Jr. said.
"We're trying to get better. We're trying to do better," Wendy said. "We're trying to work hard for the people who believed in us by giving something back to the community."
The Ruiz family, who call Gannett home after moving from Mexico City, share a moment together in Hailey last week. From left: Sergio Ruiz Sr., Wendy Young, Angelina Young, Sergio Ruiz Jr., and Lizbeth Ruiz. Photo by Willy Cook
