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Clara Reyes, founder of Kansas City’s bilingual newspaper Dos Mundos, died on February 17th. Reyes, 86, had been diagnosed with stage 4 metastatic breast cancer.
Reyes started Dos Mundos in 1981 with the goal of involving the city’s Spanish-speaking residents in the community’s daily life. It was Missouri’s first Latino bilingual newspaper and served many neighboring states.
“She was looking for ways she could contribute,” said her son, Ed Reyes. “Meeting with other Latinos and Latinos in the community made her realize there was a gap in communication and information that she felt needed to be filled.”
The publication began as a newsletter that Reyes distributed to community organizations. It quickly grew to include news and information for the wider community.
Reyes made sure to publish articles in both English and Spanish to bridge what she calls “two worlds,” or “dos mundos” in Spanish.
Despite efforts to publish articles in English, Reyes faced discrimination from silent readers and advertisers who were not interested in reaching the Hispanic community. Ms. Reyes’ daughter, Daniela Reyes Reimer, said her mother was persistent in making the newspaper a mainstay in Kansas City.
“You have to be courageous and you have to make sure that information creates safety and that you know what you’re saying,” Reyes-Reimer told KCUR’s Up to・Told “Date.” “You have to really believe in it and know that you’re doing it for good.”
Reyes was born in Guadalajara, Jalisco state in western Mexico, into a family of 10 people. She graduated with a degree in dentistry from the University of Guadalajara.
In 1964, she traveled to Kansas City to further her dental education. While here, she met Manuel Reyes and they soon married. Manuel Reyes passed away in 2018 from pancreatic cancer.
The couple moved to Overland Park, Kansas, but Reyes’ Mexican college credits did not transfer to their new home. So before founding Dos Her Mundos, she worked for several years as an interpreter and then as a real estate agent while raising her two children.
Reyes-Reimer said her mother was loyal to her loved ones and her community. But more than that, Reyes was her best friend.
“I had the most amazing mentors,” Reyes-Reimer said. “I think that’s what makes this situation so difficult, because it’s not just losing your mom, it’s not just losing your best friend, it’s not just losing your business partner. It’s not just losing your mentor. to lose.”
“There are a lot of eggs in this one basket,” she said.
Reyes-Reimer said her mother is on a mission to bring more Latinos into business. In addition to MANA de Kansas City, an organization dedicated to empowering Latinos, she is also a member of the Greater Kansas City Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, National Federation of Hispanic Publications, Cancer I worked for organizations such as Hispanic Women Fighting.
Reyes was also instrumental in beautifying Southwest Boulevard in the ’80s and ’90s, working with former Kansas City Mayor Richard Barkley and other city leaders on improvements to parking and pavement, among other things. .
Reyes started three radio stations, 1250 KYYS-AM, 1340 KDTD-AM, and KYZZ 1480-AM, to reach Spanish-speaking listeners and readers of Dos Mundos.
Ed Reyes said his mother’s impact on the Kansas City area will be felt for years to come.
“People are starting to express their feelings and admiration for her actions through Facebook posts, phone calls and visits,” he said. “I think this is a great example of what she did.”
“It’s always been behind the scenes, but now it’s starting to come forward,” Ed Reyes said.
Clara Reyes’ children plan to continue publishing papers. They want to encourage and give a voice to the city’s Latino community, just like their mother did.
Visitation for Clara Reyes will be held at 10 a.m. February 27th at Holy Spirit Catholic Church, 11300 W. 103rd St., Overland Park, Kansas 66214. A Mass of Christian Burial will be held immediately thereafter.
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