by Maggie Ybarra
Daily Lobo
University students Vanessa Garcia, Sebastian Iriart and Eric Garcia received awards Saturday at the Unsung Heroes Award Banquet in the SUB.
The event honored people for serving New Mexico's Hispanic community.
"You're no longer going to be unsung heroes," Diego Gallegos, assistant superintendent for Albuquerque Public Schools, said to the recipients. "Tonight, you're going to get your song."
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Winners received a certificate, a tin mirror and a poster.
Vanessa Garcia was part of a three-member team that started the first Hispanic sorority at UNM in the spring of 2002.
Starting the sorority was hard, she said.
"The national board had to come over here," she said. "We had to put on a lot of events just to get recognized nationally."
Iriart, a political science major and a volunteer at KUNM, said the award looks good on his rÇsumÇ.
The high school student award was presented to Gabriel Santistevan, a sophomore at Rio Grande High School, for his academic achievements.
"I feel very good at this moment, because not that many people can get this award," Santistevan said.
He said he liked the tin mirror he received as part of the award.
"I'll probably put it up on my wall for inspiration," he said. "To remember who I am and how far I've come."
Eric Garcia won for his political cartoons and paintings.
Editor's note: Eric Garcia was not interviewed for the article because he is a Daily Lobo employee.
