SkiP HappEns Podcast
Skip Clark is a dynamic and captivating podcast host and radio personality who has left an indelible mark on the world of broadcasting. With a voice that can command attention and a personality that oozes charm, Skip has become a beloved figure in the world of entertainment. His passion for storytelling and his ability to connect with his audience shine through in every episode of his podcast and every moment on the airwaves.
Skip’s journey in radio began decades ago, and he has since evolved into a seasoned professional who effortlessly navigates the waves of the media industry. His deep knowledge of music, pop culture, and current events keeps his listeners engaged and coming back for more. Skip Clark's enthusiasm and authenticity make him a trusted voice in the world of podcasting and radio. His dedication to his craft and his commitment to providing quality content continue to make him a standout in the world of broadcasting.
SkiP HappEns Podcast
Celebrating Hispanic Heritage Month: A Vibrant Cultural Journey with Fanny Villarreal
What if one month could transform your understanding of a vibrant culture? Join us as we celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month with the dynamic Fanny Villarreal, a beloved Latino leader in Central New York. This episode is an enlightening journey through the rich tapestry of Hispanic and Latino contributions, set against the backdrop of the independence days of several Central American countries. Fanny shares her personal anecdotes which highlight the beautiful cultural exchanges within our community.
Over her 33 years in Central New York, Fanny has made a significant impact, particularly through her work at a local radio station now celebrating its 31st anniversary. We discuss how Hispanic culture has enriched mainstream American culture, likening it to a vibrant, diverse salad. Fanny clears up common misconceptions about Cinco de Mayo and Mexican Independence Day, and the terms Hispanic and Latino. She passionately talks about the importance of non-Hispanic participation in Hispanic Heritage Month, fostering a deeper cultural appreciation and understanding.
In the final segment, we celebrate the infectious energy of Hispanic music and dance, showing how they bring unity and joy to community gatherings. Fanny details her role in educating others about Latino cultures through her radio show, Nosotros Radio, which features community events, music, and spiritual well-being segments. As we wrap up, Fanny shares her gratitude for the opportunities she's received and her hopes of reconnecting with her roots in Peru. This episode is a heartfelt tribute to the diverse and vibrant Hispanic community in Syracuse and beyond.
Thanks for listening! Follow us at youtube.com/c/skiphappens
Come over, let me have a seat. Can I have my coffee? Of course you know I got to tell you and you know, we used to house the players and stuff, the baseball players, and we always had the Latinos, hispanics, venezuela and Colombia and stuff, and when one of them, their family, came to visit, they brought me coffee. It was the best Colombian. It was like it was strong, but it was so good, so good.
Speaker 2:So tasty, right, tasty, very tasty. All right, here we go.
Speaker 1:Coming to you in three, two, one. Hi everybody. It is Skip Clark from Inner Harbor Media, and right now we're with the Inner Harbor cast. It's a podcast that keeps the community informed as to what's going on, and I am joined by one of my good friends, fanny Villarreal. I said it that way this time because we talked before we went on. I said how do you want me to say your last name Now? I can't roll my tongue with the R's, but Fanny villarreal is here and she is one of the many latino leaders in the community here in central new york and I want to say welcome. Thank you for taking the time, uh, to come in and talk to us a little bit thank you, thank you, this is great.
Speaker 1:Thank you so very much for bringing me over I am so excited that I get to do this because, uh, the latino community, the hispanic community, very dear to my heart, uh, those that know me and we've talked before, we uh a big baseball family and I see you at the ballpark quite often, by the way, yeah, it's a great great connection. It's a lot of fun, but we housed a lot of the hispanic or the Venezuela, colombia and Dominican Republic. Dominican Republic.
Speaker 1:Yes, and it was such a learning experience, the culture, the cooking by the way the food is great, the food is good, but we're here to talk about what is happening. It's the Hispanic Heritage Month, and that starts on the 15th.
Speaker 2:Yes, yes, yes. The Hispanic Heritage Month celebration starts on September 15 and goes all the way up to October 15. And during that time there is going to be a lot of celebrations and a lot of education and a lot of opportunities for all of us.
Speaker 1:What is the actual significance of this?
Speaker 2:Well, it's a celebration of the contributions that we, as Hispanic Latinos, have made to the United States in terms of food, culture, politics, you name it everything.
Speaker 1:Everything, everything. And why is it the 15th and not like the first of the month, to the end of the month, which so many other things are? But why is this the 15th of September for 30 days?
Speaker 2:It used to be only for one week, though.
Speaker 1:Really.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I used to be on the for one week and then President Reagan made sure that it came out for one entire month. So that's how it happened. But the significance of the September 15 is because during that, those two weekends ending in September, there is a lot of celebration of Independence Days on different countries in Central America, and so that's the decision that they were closer to North America, right To USA. So probably that was the decision to do it during that time.
Speaker 1:Can I ask where are you from?
Speaker 2:I am from Lima, Peru.
Speaker 1:Oh Peru. You said Peru Peru.
Speaker 2:Yeah, lima, peru, I love it. Thank you. Yes, that's where I'm originally from.
Speaker 1:And how long have you actually been here? I know I've known you for quite a while my entire life here, really, yeah 30 years plus.
Speaker 2:Yeah, yeah, the radio is going to turn 31 years this year. Oh, wow, yeah, your Latino voice.
Speaker 1:Yes, the radio, Uh-huh 31 years this year.
Speaker 2:So I've been here 30, probably 33 years. Oh my goodness.
Speaker 1:I know, Now that you're Fanny, now that you're thinking about it, it's like I've really been here that long.
Speaker 2:Right and I'm like wow, 33 years.
Speaker 1:But you've made such a big impact on our community. Oh, thank you. You know, everybody knows you. You go to the ballpark Everybody knows Fanny. You walk into the radio station everybody knows Fanny, everybody in the Harbor Pass media. We all know Fanny and we love Fanny.
Speaker 2:Thank you, I appreciate that.
Speaker 1:You're quite welcome. How do you think the Hispanic culture has influenced mainstream American culture?
Speaker 2:Well, you know the way that I see it. If we look at it to a national level, it's like, you know, when you make like a, a salad, you have all kind of different vegetables, right, yeah, so one of those vegetables are us latinos, different colors, everybody. So we are there. And then what keep us all together? Because we have the values, we have the, the belief, and we are very hard-working people. It's the, the, the sausage or the salad dressing that we put. So that's what keep us all together, and so that's what we did. I mean, look at locally, in Syracuse and Central New York, all these beautiful restaurants that are coming up because the support of the community. We have Mexican restaurants, dominican restaurants, puerto rican restaurants, very soon open a peruvian restaurant, and it's the food, you know, that keep us all together and it's the traditions, the dancing, the smiling.
Speaker 2:We are very hugging people person, so we like, when I came in, I give you a hug, I give you a hug to everybody, and this is part of our culture, right? And that doesn't mean anything else but like, oh my God, I'm so happy to see you, and there it goes.
Speaker 1:That's it. Yeah, I mean you talk about and I'm glad you use the examples of food that hit it perfectly because I know as we mentioned just a few moments ago about, you know, the cooking and all that that I learned. I mean it's just, it's all.
Speaker 2:it all comes together. It all comes together, it all comes together. What are some of the common misconceptions? I will say, probably, that the celebration is only to celebrate Mexican Americans. But then it's again confusion with the Cinco de Mayo, which happened to be my birthday.
Speaker 1:No way. Yeah so when we go out to celebrate on Cinco de Mayo, we're celebrating Fanny's birthday, exactly.
Speaker 2:Everybody's celebrating my birthday. But it's funny because Cinco de Mayo is not a big celebration in Mexico. It's not the Independence Day in Mexico. Cinco de Mayo, right, cinco de Mayo is a battle that Mexico won against another country. It's just a battle.
Speaker 1:And we celebrate that.
Speaker 2:And that's what we celebrate here. Cinco de Mayo, okay, but actually in September is the Independence Day of Mexico.
Speaker 1:Okay, we talked about Mexico, we talked about the Mexicans, we talked about the Venezuelans, we talked about the Dominican Republic. But you're all.
Speaker 2:I guess, Hispanic. Latinos.
Speaker 1:But is there a difference between Hispanic and Latino?
Speaker 2:You know, to me there is no difference, it's just a different terminology. That means the know. To me there is no difference, it's just a different term, terminology that means the same to me. Now, everybody have their own opinion about it for me, hispanic are Latinos, latinos are Hispanic. Most of the people use it everywhere anyway. Hispanic is a terminology that came from the United States, from the government for the census.
Speaker 1:Yeah, putting it all under one category, right, yeah.
Speaker 2:But then there is people that felt that they were not part of that and there is people that felt that they were. So for us, it's just Hispanic Latinos, we use the same thing.
Speaker 1:It's all the same. It's all the same right here. Others may have another opinion.
Speaker 2:Exactly, but for me it's my opinion.
Speaker 1:And Fanny, I'm so glad that we're having this conversation because it's very educational to me as well, and hopefully to you if you're watching this. Why is it important for non-Hispanic people to participate in Hispanic Heritage Month?
Speaker 2:Well, for one is because we are living in the same place, so we should just learn about other cultures and other people, way of life or belief or food. It brings you a different perspective of see things. I can tell you that you know, for since I've been here my whole life I've been trying to talk about the cultures of the Latino, not necessarily only from Peru but from other countries that I've been traveling, and how beautiful they are, so they can go and travel and taste what means to be in another country that actually you know people from in your own hometown. It's just an amazing opportunity for everybody, do you?
Speaker 1:get to go back home. Oh yeah, I love to go back home. How often?
Speaker 2:do you do that? You know, before the pandemic I used to go back home.
Speaker 1:Oh yeah, I love to go back home. How often do you do?
Speaker 2:that you know, before the pandemic I used to go every year because I have family members there, but after the pandemic I didn't get the opportunity to go yet. So I'm hoping that this year I will go for Christmas and New Year's, so we'll see what happens. God will, will, will open the doors and that will happen.
Speaker 1:Christmas time. Here we have the snow, we have the cold. You never know what the weather is going to be like. You go home to Peru.
Speaker 2:Yes.
Speaker 1:And it's probably 90 degrees.
Speaker 2:Yes, it's the beginning of summer and then you can go and enjoy the beaches. You can go and enjoy the outside events, the humongous fireworks. Oh my God, it's incredible, oh yeah.
Speaker 1:On Christmas On Christmas, the fireworks. See, that's what I love about the culture. Yeah, you know, I always learn something new.
Speaker 2:Yeah, from somebody like you and Brazil, for example, the humongous thousands and thousands and thousands of people that come to the beaches in Brazil for the fireworks and for the events that happen over there, and everybody's up all night alone. Yeah, dancing party, oh yeah, it's not stop party, and just the fireworks are totally incredible well, I'll go with you. Yeah, it's beautiful, it is beautiful yeah, it's beautiful, and they don't close at two in the morning. None of those.
Speaker 1:No, no, not like here, no, they close until the last person they close when the last person leaves, that's what they close, yeah, yeah I get you, I get you, you know, I know, you know you work in the media with us a little bit and you do your radio thing. And how do you think, uh, the hispanic culture in media has evolved?
Speaker 2:oh, my goodness, look at the great people that we have in the media. That, um, you know they are part of the Hispanic culture. I think we put this little flavor when we are telling the story or talking about sports. I think that we have this kind of fun way to to to provide the news you know, and, and I think, um, we are the same way that when I came and gave you a hug is the same way when we're talking over the radio we are happy, and then you can feel it through the airway that somebody over there, whoever is talking, is really happy and not beep and is trying to put your life in a better perspective, in a better way.
Speaker 1:Right, you know, as we know, we're very divided here in the United States with everything that's going on. I don't take one side or the other. I'm sure you stay neutral because of what we do, but what is one thing you would like everybody to know about the Hispanic people, the Hispanic culture? Because, in a sense, a lot of that gets a bad rap? Yes, and it's not true, right? What would you like people to know?
Speaker 2:So we are very loyal people, we're very hardworking, we are very loving and you know, when we said that we're going to do something, no matter what, we'll do it and you will receive whatever we say we're going to do the product or whatever it is, the service I think it's just that a matter of and we're very open. You know, we're very open and and we're very happy that, just the same way that I'm talking right now and we are very open, you know we're very open and we're very happy, just the same way that I'm talking right now. And we are very religious, we majority Catholic, but then there is other religious, other belief. But because we have that peace, I think we are very connected, spiritual as well. So we are always in this mood right, connected spiritual as well. So we are always in this mood right and for some people that's like wow, we don't like it because the negativism comes around, right.
Speaker 1:So we're like, well, sorry, and we just move around and keep going and you know I, if you could come in every day, that would be great because there's times that we need that uplifting celebration, the feel of that Somebody that's always happy. I mean, realistically, you know there's a lot of us that don't have good days. I mean, you know, I think on the average, get this on the average, the person here in the United States will have 46 bad days a year.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 1:I know that for a fact.
Speaker 2:Yeah, but my belief then again is my belief everything is here. My belief, then again is my belief everything is here. You know, for the moment that you got up, the moment that you got up and you say today is going to be an amazing day and I'm going to do this and I'm going to do that, and then I'm talking with my walls and I'm talking my home. I put names to everything. So my home names is Paradise, right. So I'm like good morning Paradise. Do you name your coffee pot? Yes, yes, morning paradise. Do you name your coffee? Yes, yes, it's peepee. Okay, all right, all right. So I everything in my house. My car is patricia and they've been baptized patricia. I love it and I call her party when I you know, pity, let's go here. So I put names for everything. This is siri, because she came with a name yeah, yeah, she's all right's already got a name.
Speaker 2:She already got a name.
Speaker 1:She stands right, so I don't know, but you get the idea.
Speaker 2:But that's what it is. You know, the culture, the loving people, and sometimes people believe that we're this way or that way. We're just pretending, but we're not, we're just this way.
Speaker 1:I love it. I love it, like I said, you could show up every day. What are some of the key cultural traditions that you celebrate during Hispanic?
Speaker 2:Heritage Month, local organizations that are either run by Hispanic or they serve or provide services to Hispanic. They do events on their own sites. We have a Latino youth group that usually presents two days of dance and culture so they can introduce to their own dances.
Speaker 1:So they pretty much will introduce the culture to younger people If you have a younger group.
Speaker 2:Yes and so, and then all year long we have salsa classes everywhere, anywhere, because salsa is big, you know, salsa, dance, salsa music is big in syracuse. So yesterday, for example, was a pop-up uh salsa classes. Why didn't we know about this in uh soul city market?
Speaker 1:really now. Is that something they do on a regular basis?
Speaker 2:they usually do. Uh depends of the weather. That's what they call it pop-up, so it could be Tuesday, wednesday, thursday.
Speaker 1:Do they post that oh?
Speaker 2:yeah, yeah, yeah Is it somewhere online.
Speaker 1:Can we go to a Facebook page or something like that, a social media outlet to find out what is happening?
Speaker 2:Yeah, If you go for the salsa classes, if you go to the social media and say salsa events, and they will tell you exactly where, how, anything. If you go for the hispanic heritage month celebrations, and we'll pop up all the stuff that is happening here as well I love it, I can tell you.
Speaker 1:You know, I've been to a lot of weddings and the dance floor would be yeah, so so. But they put on a salsa or some sort of hispanic music everybody goes everybody goes nuts, the dance floor is pat, it's the beat, it's just everything about it. And going back to what you've been saying all along, fanny, it's about feel good it's about feel good.
Speaker 2:Look, last year I was invited to sing in a in a new year's eve party, so I went and I sang a merengue song, which is very upbeat, and you got to see all the people that were like walking around and then I start calling everybody to come in. The floor was like a wow, and then jump, jump. Everybody was jumping and the party was like yeah, and then the next act, you know, came and they were like how come you are not as energetic with the next one?
Speaker 1:And everybody was laughing but it's a type of music and are not as energetic with the next one, and everybody was laughing, but it's a type of music and it's what you are like ah, let's do this, let's do that, move to the right, move to the left, and you know it was great I know you say you're one of the many leaders when it comes to the hispanic community, but there's others like you that get out there and talk to organizations and go meet with people. I know, like I mentioned earlier, uh, because of my association with syracuse Mets, I'm over there quite a bit. I've seen you at quite a few of the games, so you probably didn't see me, but I see you because I'm usually in the press box and I'm looking down at everybody. But I do know that you're actively involved, uh, but there's others like you.
Speaker 2:I do hope so. Yes, yes, I think I, when I came to the United States, I took upon myself to educate everybody about Latino cultures, and that's how I have the radio, because that's a way to be the bridge between the community, the Latino community and the community at large. To, you know, bring information both ways, and I think that is very important. So there is no miscommunication, misconceptions, and it's important. To you know, I try to open up with everybody, because if you have a question to ask me, you just come and ask me, so you are not afraid. Well, how she will take it if I ask this or if I ask that, no, I'm very open. So if you have a question, you just come and say so, why do you, or why have been, or why this, or I need to understand, or I wanted to learn, and you will make me happy.
Speaker 1:I have a question, of course. What is your favorite Latino meal? Hispanic Ceviche. What Ceviche? Okay, explain it.
Speaker 2:Ceviche is based on fish. It's fish, Little squares of fish with lemon, a lot of lemon, cilantro and onions and corn and sweet potatoes. So the way that they show it is that the little pieces of um the fish, white fish is in a in a place and then they put all the lime there and the top of the lime comes the cilantro plus the, the red onions that they were like a little bit vinegar and stuff like that. Put it on the top and then to the side is like a um lettuce and then on top of the letters there is corn and then sweet potatoes. But everybody can come and try it out very soon because Inca's restaurant, which is a Peruvian restaurant, is coming up.
Speaker 1:Oh, really, that's right. They open up right around the corner. So here we're, bringing more culture into central New York, and, of course, you're right on top of it all. But wow, that sounds really good.
Speaker 2:It is really good.
Speaker 1:And I think you and I talked about this once that you know, when it comes to food and the cooking and all that, and here I go again talking about baseball. But the players had a day off a couple of years, a few years ago now, and I came home from work and because we housed some of the players, they invited the whole team On being known to my wife and I.
Speaker 1:But my bite of the whole team on be known to my wife and I. But my fire pit was roaring and they had a huge uh pot on there and they were cooking some sort of soup. It had foliars of corn, it had beef, it had everything you can think of was in there in the broth and it smelled so good so that's called sancocho sancocho dominican sancocho oh my god, it's delicious and you can find it over here in a restaurant, really victoria's restaurant.
Speaker 2:Dominican sancocho only friday, saturday and sunday, because that's my favorite soup well, I will say they're like you gotta try this.
Speaker 1:And I'm like I don't know if I want to. But you know what, once I took that first taste, it was over, it was good, it was absolutely delicious.
Speaker 2:So yeah, see, you try. But if you didn't try, then you really didn't know how well taste or not, and then you were like, well well you know, fanny, I do want you to mention.
Speaker 1:Uh, you're talking about the radio thing and I know you do your show on one of our stations and you get the word out about the hispanic and latino community, or let's just call it all one Hispanic community. Tell us where can they listen to you and when do you do it?
Speaker 2:So we are on the air Fridays from 8 to 10 pm, Saturdays from 3 to 7 pm and Sundays from 4 to 6 pm, and it's on 106.7 and 1530 am. So it's fm and am.
Speaker 1:You can oh, that's pretty awesome yeah, it was pretty awesome.
Speaker 2:We're in both at the same time, but you can also look for us in the internet oh yeah, you can listen online yeah which is you know pretty much the way things are going.
Speaker 1:So yeah, you can connect with what's online, and you can do that through social media as well absolutely links there and links there and they can listen to you. Um, what do you like the hours that you're on the air? Give us an idea. What do you talk about? Do you play music? Yeah, I know you're talking about the community, but uh, so in general on fridays in general.
Speaker 2:Well, the person that used to do the fridays got into accident so he is not be able to do it, but the Fridays was dedicated more to talk about what's going on on the weekend what places can we go and support events like the salsa, different events and then we receive a lot of information for another not for profits and organizations that they have their events, so we can do that and invite people if they want to go or if they care about their mission, things like that. So that's what on Fridays. On Saturdays, I do the show, and with a lot of music. But the whole idea is to make sure that the listeners receive the love, receive the information, to make sure that they have a great week and a great weekend and to make sure that physically, mentally and spiritual are in balance. That is very important right. For me, it's like a triangle that you have to have on balance, because one of this is in this balance and that's when the situations comes, and so that's what I do.
Speaker 2:So I talk a lot about spirituality. I love always to say that God opened the doors for me constantly and I just have to walk through because he's really good to me. So I always, you know, thanking, thanking, thanking for everything, and then on Sundays, like a family type of thing. So we focus more into what's going on in the community for the kids, or for the family mom, dad and kids, things like that. What's going on, and so that's what we do.
Speaker 1:I love it. Thank you, I'm going to have to give it a listen, Because I knew you did that. I just with everything else I have.
Speaker 2:Oh, I know.
Speaker 1:One man doing a lot of things here. Oh else I have, oh I know, one man doing a lot of things here. Oh yeah, yeah, it's a fanny villarreal is with us here today, in the inner harbor cast and some great, great info.
Speaker 2:I love it. Oh, thank you. So good to actually talk to you.
Speaker 1:Talk to you and not necessarily in the hallway right, but no, in the hugs I always appreciate that I just love you so much for that, fanny. If somebody wants to find out more about the Hispanic community, of course they can listen to your radio show that you just talked about. But are there? Do you have Facebook we?
Speaker 2:have a Facebook so they can go into the either the Latino festival page or the Nosotros Radio page, or they can look for my own right, fanny, and then Fanny P Patricia, fanny P Valeria, and then you know they can just send me an information or messenger, or you can, they can text me. Usually the phone is off so I don't answer, but they can text me, they can text me, and so then I can provide information they can get the information.
Speaker 1:Info off the yeah, yeah, fanny, thank you for spending time with me today. I absolutely love this and I hope you like it as well. Uh, this, of course, you can subscribe to the inner harbor cast and we do great programs like this and we're actively involved in the community. Absolutely, fanny villarreal, thank you so much for being here today and telling us all about the hispanic community. Uh, it's all under one. I know we kind of broke it up earlier, but you're right, it's hispanic, the latinos, the mexicans everybody.
Speaker 2:You know that that term, like I mentioned to you, you can exchange it and you can use them both at the same time. One is the same thing. We are all here, we are all loving people and, uh, actually, we are all the 20 latino countries in syracuse different numbers, but we are all here, unbelievable, and the news and the census and 2020 census came out, that information that they all are here, some thousands, another one just hundreds, another one just dozens, but we all are here. How, how awesome is that?
Speaker 1:That's really awesome. Fannie Villarreal, everybody, fannie again, thank you for being here Inner. Harbor cast. Make sure you subscribe. Have a great day everybody. Thanks for watching. Thank you Bye. You are so awesome. Thank you, thank you for giving me the opportunity. Very cool and this whole conversation.
