Felipa Chim Tuz makes arrangements with a Bay View Funeral Home on March 12, 2021, to receive the remains of her brother in law Carlos Fernando Varguez Sosa, who died unexpectedly on March 4, 2021. Felipa is attempting to fundraise roughly $10,000 to send Carlos to his family in Tekit Yucatán.
Like so many Mayan cooks, Carlos lost his job at the start of the pandemic, but he had been finding odd jobs to send money back home whenever he could. “How could we have known that the last $1,500 pesos he sent us would be to buy him two veladoras and a flower arrangement,” said his wife and daughters.
When Felipa lost her job as a cook, she started cooking from home to sell her yucatecan delicacies at Civic Center Plaza. Like many she is terrified of being evicted—no amount of reassurance that she can get access to City resources can dissuade her that what she needs to do is make ends meet to support her daughter and mother. When we consider what is driving the “Latinx pandemic” in San Francisco, consider people like Carlos and Felipa. To donate, visit https://gofund.me/2822676f
Photo: Benjamin Fanjoy
