Auraria Remembered

              48   Floyd & Peggy Sandoval
Auraria Remembered
Floyd & Peggy Sandoval
really tough. Everybody had tough times.  I had to do
that work to survive and help support my parents.
Floyd's parents were originally from the San
Luis Valley, his father from Alamosa, his mother
from San Acosta, Colorado. Floyd was born in
Denver in 1943. He has three sisters, Peggy, Virginia
and Elizabeth. The family moved to Auraria in 1952
and had a house and a grocery store on Twelfth and
Stout Streets, then moved to 1020 Champa.
What holidays were observed by your family?
Every holiday! It was always a family gathering
- it's something that's unreal, from Christmas to
Thanksgiving to Easter.
I was an altar boy at St. Cajetan's. Everything
we did - we'd have to go to Mass, every day, every day.
I used to serve the Stations of the Cross as an
altar boy - never missed a Mass. I came from the San
Luis Valley and we were very religious.
Why did your parents move to Auraria?
That's where everybody was living.
Do you remember the house?
Yes, we moved to 1020 Champa Street. That's
where we started.
What were your clearest memories?
Attending school at St. Cajetan's. I played
football in seventh and eighth grade - got cleated. The
wound got infected. Nobody could take care of me, so
the Ava Maria Clinic took care of the wound by
wrapping it with herb leaves.   At the Lawrence Street
Center on Eleventh and Lawrence (big school house),
we played basketball there and behind St. Elizabeth's
Church.
What was it like to live there?
It was great. Most of the people came from
Southern Colorado around that neighborhood (La
Junta, Alamosa). We were all like brothers and
sisters and very poor. From Ninth Street, there was
a guy they used to call Bulldog, Bobby Montoya,
Albert Nieto, Chuck Ramirez, Jerry Torres, the
Jirons, the Laws, Zeke DeLeon - he's playing for the
Brass Monkeys now here in Denver. It was kind of
interesting.   Jerry Rodriquez, Bobby Bland, Chris
Torres, it was all a big gathering. All us guys used to
have a good time.
My stepfather made $50 a week. I worked at the
car wash on Kalamath and Colfax for 75 cents an
hour.   I had to quit school in my senior year because I
couldn't afford it. Then my mom had a stroke. It was
What kind of problems did people in the
neighborhood have?
There really weren't problems. I mean we go
back to the Elvis Presley days - Fats Domino. We
used to play marbles. Marbles was our biggest thing.
We were like a big clique. We were mostly interested
in sports, especially basketball and football. We were
like a little gang (community group thing). In fact, we
were a gang called "Black Orchards." We didn't get
into fights. If we did, it was a man-to-man-type thing.
No one could jump in.
Do you remember people with special talents in
the neighborhood?
Zeke DeLeon, he's now with the Brass Monkey -;.
One of the biggest talents around there. We would , o
to the talent show to compete with other people
around there. Or we'd go out and sing at the corner.
Who were your friends?
Chuck Ramirez, Jerry Torres, Vern Jiron, Bobby
Bland, Philip Martinez, Zeke DeLeon, Leonard
Benavidez, Sonny Anaya, Frank Olona, Kelly (Bull
Dog), Bobby Montoya, Danny Morales, Anthony, Pat
Lucero, Rolo (passed away).
Everyone went to St Cajetan's, Baker, then
West.