Nunez brothers making history in Aurora

Sam and Jonathan Nunez were obviously excited.

Once we had said our good mornings and hugged a hand on a table at the mother restaurant in Aurora, the two brothers were looking forward to sharing news from an Aurora university professor whom they had met while waiting for me to present myself for this interview.

At the launched its own Mariachi group this fall, which will make its public debut at the cultural celebration for the return of the university on October 10. And this is a big problem because these Mexican folk groups are generally made up of older men. The fact that there is now one at the university, he both insisted, is a big problem, in fact.

The Nunez brothers know something about the creation of the story themselves.

At 33, Sam – the callest who prefers to work behind the scenes – is his second term as a trustee in the canton of Aurora. And when his 35 -year -old brother, Jonathan – more direct, more decisive – won a headquarters at the Aurora municipal council in April, the brothers and sisters can probably claim the first Latin -millenial brothers to become local elected officials in the Aurora region.

This is a distinction that indicates how many changes have taken place over the past three decades since I covered this community. On the one hand, when I started in this editorial room, none of these leaders Aurora was even in preschool. And as my interview with the duo during the last days of the month of the Hispanic September heritage ended, I could not help thinking that I could discuss with a future mayor of Aurora.

It is also significant, over the years, the city has experienced an increase in Hispanic direction, a fact that is not lost for Jonathan or Sam, who consider their roles as a continuation of the heritage of hard work and the sacrifices made by their parents and grandparents.

The multigenerational history of the family begins with one of the first Mexican American families to live within the limits of the city of Aurora: the Hilario Vera maternal great-grandfather, who came to the Chicago region in 1910, and eight years later, moved to Aurora, where he worked on the railway as well as on the Mastodon Lake project.

The paternal grandfather Celso Nunez also left his brand. In the early 1970s, he founded Imperial Construction, leaving concrete stamps behind with the name of the company through the city, including the old police station and around the University of Aurora.

And when their father came to this city in Mexico at the age of 16 later in the 1970s, he worked three jobs while taking care of the younger brothers and sisters when his father fell ill.

According to Samuel Nunez, according to his sons, began as “a broom pusser” with a recycling company 37 years ago and became the superintendent, while operating the weekend, a joliat banquet room that he is a co-owner.

“We have always thought that it was our responsibility to go further,” noted Sam, who played a decisive role, with the representative of the State now Barbara Hernandez, to start the group of young Lulac as a student at East Aurora High School, and was involved as a democratic commissioner of the democratic district shortly after having graduated.

“It is out of respect for the previous generations that you do for your best,” added Jonathan. “Due to the hard work they have done, we had this length in advance that they did not have. They made sure that we have every opportunity to go to university, find and develop our skills as leaders. ”

“Chin, chest,” said their father to his children, also instilling in the importance of dressing respectfully because you never know who you will meet. And above all, be “humble and kind”, remembers Sam, because what has been won by hard work “could easily be removed”.

All are lessons from the father, neither is lightly taken.

The Nunez family of six children grew up in a noisy but loving house of Pigeon Hill at a time when Aurora was still in the grip of gang violence. Their childhood house, now detained in their sister, shared a courtyard with the house where Nico Contreras, 6, was killed during a 1996 car shooting. And their grandparents, they recalled, lived on Valley and Liberty, where the children were invited to never exceed a certain house on the block, and when the occupants of the event ventured, to enter immediately.

The brothers attribute to their father and mother Patricia to have kept them rights and narrow, largely by ensuring that they were “occupied at any time,” said Jonathan.

He and Sam began to emerge as young role models, first as an altar servers, then as readers at the Catholic church St. Nicholas, where they also learned the leadership of the servants of the late David Engbarth, the emblematic pastor of Saint-Nick who has become one of the most passionate anti-violence defenders of Aurora.

In high school, the brothers intensified their activities: baseball, golf, theater, mentoring, the school newspaper, Jonathan sitting on the student council and SAM becoming a student representative at the School Board of the District 131.

All this was accomplished while holding jobs.

Later, while going to university for a trade diploma from the University of Aurora, Sam Nunez was involved with the Democratic Party of Aurora and the Advisory Council for the Hispanic Heritage of Aurora. He successfully presented himself for the trustee of the canton in 2021, where he had formerly worked as a coordinator of awareness of young people and had come to appreciate the difference that his program made for children, the elderly and those who have trouble joining both ends.

Jonathan, a graduate in AU marketing, told me that it was after having established his career in business development that with the blessing of the wife Mariah, he decided to introduce himself for a alderman of the 4th district, even before the longtime holder, Bill Dononll, announced that he would not seek a re -election.

The story is definitely underway in Fox Valley – all of this is not so positive, however.

Although Nunez’s brother did not meet the same assimilation challenges as those who preceded them, they know what it is to be put in a “bucket” because of their appearance and where they come from.

“This country is based on freedom of expression, but our moral compass is far,” insisted Sam, who recalled an incident to the Nebraska, where a business owner on which he called for work saw his last name and told him that he did not want him in his shop.

Jonathan shared a similar story: while speaking to his 14 -year -old son in Spanish outside a Northern Dakota restaurant, he was confronted with a local resident that housed him: “If you speak this language, why not get out of here.”

Even while we all like a second cup of coffee, Sam received an SMS from the wife Iliana, informing her about the reports of the possible ice agents in their district of Marywood, who sent his mother-in-law, a legal citizen taking their grandchildren for a walk, precipitating himself in fear.

It was a brutal reminder, said the brothers later, of the importance for Hispanic residents, regardless of their immigration status, to transport the documentation with them.

While the concerns about the ice breed in the districts of Aurora, the Nunez brothers hear more of the voters concerned. Local officials are limited in their powers, as the two point out. But they want the community to know that their voices are important and will be heard.

Jonathan – Who said he had experienced ice in the affairs of his own family – underlines the meetings he had with leadership in school districts in the East and West Aurora, as well as the Boys & Girls Club, to discuss security. He also followed a “Know-Your-Rights” training and distributes information to the community while remaining in contact with other elected officials to ensure that precise updates are communicated concerning the arrests.

On his Facebook page, Jonathan wrote: “I understand how disturbing these events are and I agree to continue an open communication, to support affected families and to ensure that our community has the necessary information and resources during this period.”

Written as an elected crossed?

And so I asked the new alderman of the 4th district the question that played in my mind since our first cup of coffee: do you see you running for the mayor one day?

Jonathan Nunez looked at me in silence for what seemed a long time.

Then he smiles.

dcrosby@tribpub.com