2023 Felipe de Ortega Y Gasca Lecture “The Lost Ones: Recovered Memory and Creative Storytelling.”

The 2023 Felipe de Ortego y Gasca Lecture is scheduled for Wednesday Oct 4, 5:30-7:00 MDT, at WNMU’s Miller Library. This year writer, poet, performer Tim Z. Hernandez will deliver the talk: “The Lost Ones: Recovered Memory and Creative Storytelling.”

THIS EVENT WILL BE PRESENTED ON WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 4, 2023 The lecture series is named in honor of former WNMU scholar-in-residence. Dr. Felipe de Ortego y Gasca was a legendary figure in Chicano/a studies and the pioneer of the Chicano Renaissance in literature. Besides being a prolific writer, Ortego was an actor, musician, activist, university professor, and a U.S. Marine who saw action in three conflicts and served in the U.S. government. The son of migrant farmworkers, Ortego went on to earn a Ph.D. in English and published work in numerous genres, including journalism, fiction, theater, essays and academic papers. He died in December 2018. Gasca was a legendary figure in Chicano/a studies and the pioneer of the Chicano Renaissance in literature. Besides being a prolific writer, Ortego was an actor, musician, activist, university professor, and a U.S. Marine who saw action in three conflicts and served in the U.S. government. The son of migrant farmworkers, Ortego went on to earn a Ph.D. in English and published work in numerous genres, including journalism, fiction, theater, essays and academic papers. He died in December 2018.   Tim Z. Hernandez is an award-winning author, research scholar, and performer. His books include fiction, non-fiction, and poetry, and he is the recipient of the American Book Award, and the International Latino Book Award. His work has been featured in major national and international media, and in 2018 he was recognized by the California Senate for his work locating the victims of the 1948 plane wreck at Los Gatos Canyon, which is chronicled in his book, All They Will Call You. Hernandez is an Associate Professor with the University of Texas El Paso’s Bilingual Creative Writing program. His presentation, “The Lost Ones: Recovered Memory and Creative Storytelling,” will focus on the author’s decades-long journey to uncover stories that have been lost, omitted, or erased from popular American narratives. Centered on his previous award winning books, Mañana Means Heaven, All They Will Call You, and most recently, Some of the Light, the author will speak about the process of story-gathering, and turning research into creative narrative, utilizing a wide range of tools from multiple genres.