Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/418083
44 DECEMBER 2014 GOOD FRUIT GROWER www.goodfruit.com W hen José Ramirez was a child in Mexico he dreamed of going to the United States and becoming rich and famous. Though it's not quite what he envisioned when he used to watch American movies, Ramirez has made a name for himself in the Washington tree fruit industry. At the Washington State Horticultural Association's annual meeting this month, he will receive the Latino Leadership Award, one of the industry's top honors. His philosophy has always been that you can't wait for things to happen around you. You have to make them happen. Ramirez and five siblings grew up in a village in the state of Guanajuato where his family grew corn and beans. The village school only went up to fourth grade, so he did fifth and sixth grade (which he completed in one year) at a school nine miles away, traveling there and back by donkey. When he was 11, knowing his family was struggling, he left school to work on the farm. His father, Aurelio, had a couple of horses and a wagon and would transport people to town for a fee. Sometimes, the job fell to young José. The wagon's brakes didn't work well, so on down- hill stretches the horses just had to run faster and faster, with José hanging on for his life. "It was fun—and dangerous," Ramirez recalled, "But you don't see it that way when you're living in those situations." In 1985, at the age of 17, Ramirez decided to pursue his dream and left Mexico for Vista, California, where he Latino Leadership Award José Ramirez, Stein-Manzana Orchard LATINO LEADER José Ramirez feels a responsibility to represent Hispanics in the tree fruit industry. by Geraldine Warner makes things happen PHOTOS BY TJ MULLINAX José Ramirez started as a laborer at Stein-Manzana Orchard in Royal City and worked his way up to tractor driver, assistant crew boss, crew boss, and eventually orchard manager.