More than one way to earn a living in the fields
Teresa Chavez, left, prepares a full meal of meat, rice, beans and tortillas for a customer while the customer reaches out to her daughter, Maria Gomez, to pay for his plate.
MATTAWA - Like friends and lots of other folks they know, Teresa Chavez and her daughter Maria Gomez wake before dark to head to the fields.
But they don't go out to plant, prune or pick. They go out with Doña Tere's lunch truck to serve existing customers and, perhaps, find new ones.
That was the case last Thursday. They were driving to an orchard in the area of Roads 24 and L where they have regular lunch customers. Along the way they spotted a crew of farm workers hand planting a field of onions.
"We asked them if they'd likes us to come back for their lunch," Doña Tere said. "They told us to come back at 10 for their lunch break."
Doña Tere and Maria went on up the road to where they were headed, served those who wanted some breakfast and then were back with the onion crew at 10.
Crew members bought different items from the full selection of foods the truck carries. Doña Tere specializes in tacos and tortas. Doña Tere also serves complete meals. Everything is hot when it goes on the truck and is still hot when it's served.
Doña Tere is the owner of the business and the cook. Maria goes along to help with whatever she needs. It keeps them from having to do field work, but they say it's really not much easier.
"It's all work," Doña Tere said. "Work is work."
Just like the field workers, mother and daughter are affected by the weather. When they get to where they can't stand the high heat of summer, they head for shade.
Mother and daughter rise at 3 a.m. daily to start to prepare the food. They are in the field by 8:30. Depending on the start time, field workers can be ready for lunch as early as 9 a.m. They head for home around noon.
"There's not much business after that," Doña Tere said. "And there's a lot of competition."
Doña Tere noted the best time of year for business is June through October. That's when there is the highest number of people in the fields.
There may be a little business in early November, but that's the month Doña Tere puts the truck away.
"It's winter; It's time to rest," she said.
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