News-Press from Fort Myers, Florida • Page 11

THE NEWS-PRESS, MONDAY, FEBRUARY 11, 2002 3B LocalState Investigators search for clues in copter crash Migrants find life hard in Immokalee The cause of the crash was still in question while investigators with the Army Safety Center in Fort Rucker, Ala, arrived to conduct an investigation. "We can't make any type of guesses at this point in time," said Lt. Steve Alvarez, a Guard spokesman. Alvarez said the inquiry could take up to 60 days. Warrant Officer Justin Swofford, 24, of St Augustine, was killed in the crash.

Chief Warrant Officer Kent Walker, 40, of Jacksonville, was upgraded to stable condition Sunday at Shands Jacksonville's trauma center, a nursing supervisor said Walker had been in critical condition Saturday night Walker sustained serious leg injuries and cuts to his face. The crew belonged to the 1st Battalion, 111th Attack Aviation Regiment based at Craig Field in Jacksonville. Three Apaches participating in the exercises were sent to find the missing helicopter after radio contact with the aircraft was lost The helicopter was found after Guard officials and a Clay County search and rescue team picked up the aircraft's signal beacoa She nursed her 1-year-old daughter Jacquelina, who was. born in New Jersey. Rojas does not know how to obtain authorization to make them legal residents.

"I would love to go to Mexico and have my baby meet her grandmother, but I don't know if they'll let us back in," she said. Lopez, 23, left his native Mexico two years ago to work on southeastern U.S. farms where he earns between $500 and $600 month picking tomatoes and other crops. "Little by little, I'm learning English because there are some stores where they don't speak Spanish," he said. He leafed, through a book titled "Learn English to work in the United States" and acknowledged that he', had a long way to go to before he could have a conversatioa He's one of the thousands of." workers who spend six to nine months per year picking crops in Immokalee fields.

Estimates of the migrant population vary from 7,500 in the summer to 15,000 during farming months. But the numbers are hard to verify because -most workers are illegal immi- -grants. Lopez pays $20 per week to live in a run-down, house on a dirt road with 15 other field workers he met in Immokalee. His room has five sin- gle beds, two of which are shared. "It's such a mess in here," he said.

His roommates arrived home a few minutes later, dropped off by an old school bus that transports workers between the fields and home. fWe're like family Lopez said. A few miles away in the Farm Workers Village, life is totally different for workers with U.S. citi-1 zenship or residency. The village, which started 1974, offers Tow-cost rental hous- ing to farm workers in a communi- ty that could pass for middle class.

Here, families live in 641 three- or four-bedroom homes with a maximum rent of $71 per week. Lawns are well-kept, cars are washed driveways and decorations cover- most of the homes. Haitian, black and white children play together in front yards or are" looked after in the village's three, day care centers. Each year, the best-student in the village receives a $4,000 college scholarship. "Have you seen another com-'-munity like this?" asked a proud Fred Thomas executive director of the state-affiliated that runs the village.

He has been in charge of the community for 16 years and thinks others like it-should be built Rafael Martinez, 7L brought his family from Texas to Immokalee in 1957. He's lived in the village since 1975, working in the fields until three years ago when he was injured and forced to retire. "This is a good, quiet place to raise a family," Martinez said, his" own children grown now. He they moved out to make a life away from the fields. "But I'm not going anywhere." MARRIAGE McgonegaL 39.

Dauzhankou, Valery, 46, and Ljubou Okrashevskaja, 47. Ellis, Mark, 20, and Elena Schiavone, 20. Enter, Dean, 48, and Maria Gomez Guerra, 30. Fernandez, Roy, 24, and Ana Garcia, 23. Ford, Dale, 39, and Denise Lavallee, 34.

Grouwinkel, Michael, 3L and Katherine Jones, 3L Haenlein, Luke, 23, and Amanda Rowland, 24. Hampton, Michael, 42, and Robbe Levatt, 33. Harris, William, 43, and Diane Faulkner, 29. Harrower, Don, 39, and Christine Moss, 26. Haynes, Robert, 47, and Brenda Brown, 29.

Heidig, Mark, 28, and Kate Murray, 24. Holloway, Terrance, 2L and Christina Johnson, 2L Howard, Keith, 31, and Darlene Doty, 29. Hutchins, Marion, 80, and Florabelle Ives, 67. Isola, Matthew, 31, and. Iverson, Kyle, 31, and Natalie Thompson, 28.

Kemp, Joshua, 23, and Jaime Lee Martin, 20. Kirbach, Dennis, 44, and Evelyn Williams, 57. Laub, Richard, 44, and Michele Colliluori, 36. Linville, Timothy, 34, and Rebecca Brewer, 27. DIVORCES Cabaa Dawn and Michael Cabaa Calvalieri, Dean and Kathleen CavalierL Cascio, Alison and Florentino Altamirano.

Chang, Jesus and Florentina Chang. Ciminelli, Sandra and Nicholas Ciminelli. Davenport, Valerie and William Davenport Desavigny, Laura and David Desavigny. Dunleavy, Renee and Kevin Dunleavy. Elizabeth, Leslie and Silverio Santamaria.

Ellis, Jeanette and Kevin Ellis Sr. English Donald and Christina English. Enke, Michael and Diana Enke. Faustino, Mary and Ruben Faustino. Fein, Lori and James Walker.

Gardner, Terry and Randy Gardner. 4700 block of Leonard Boulevard South, Jan. 30. First block of Homestead Road North, Feb. 2.

400 block of Lee Boulevard, Feb. 4. Residential burglaries 1900 block of Truman Avenue, Jan. 29. 2100 block of West Tobago Circle, Jan.

29. 300 block of Morse Plaza, Jan. 29. 200 block Ancona Street, Jan. 29.

First block of Vineyard Street, Jan. 30. 9500 block of Windsor Club Circle, Jan. 30. 3100 block of 45th Street LICENSES Lison, John, 24, and Christy Pospisil, 22.

Lu, Lei, 34, and Yihsiao Tung, 3L Lyles, James, 33, and Linda Smith, 37. Lyons, Patrick, 68, and Evelyn Lyons, 68. MacDonald, Todd, 37, and Sue Knapp, 32. Marulanda, Wilson, 35, and Erika Nelsen, 36. Mashchenko, Yuriy, 39, and Kimberly Pauley, 23.

Matraw, Kenneth, 37, and Michelle Massie, 26. Mayer, John, 33, and Angela Hutsenpiller, 28. Meyer, James, 59, and Ruth Willis, 53. Morgan, James, 47, and Sarah Knapp, 42. Morgan, David, 29, and Maria Aguirre, 23.

Nelson, Matthew, 27, and Julia Hansen, 23. Nguyen, Tuan, 27, and Michelle Hubble, 28. Nilssen, Bjom, 41, and Solvi Hammer, 42. Nudel, Marc, 45, and Merle Stephens, 47. Orbik, James, 47, and Janet Orbik.47.

Pearce, Wayne, 36, and Elizabeth Gaines, 36. Pinto, Eric, 22, and Monique Engicht, 16. Raab, Paul, 49, and Phyllis Miller, 54. Rainey, Jon, 35, and Rebecca Lawler, 45. Ramsay, Allen, 53, and GRANTED Hadley, Darlene and Benjamin Hadley.

Holton, Eddie and Betty Holtoa Hooper, Delores and Charles Hooper Jr. Johnson, Michelle and Steven Johnsoa Keller, Tara and Robert Hiner. Lamsoa Karen and James Lamsoa Langford, Vickie and Darryl Langford. McAbee, Cynthia and Robert McAbee. Mennuti, Michael and Teresa MannutL Miller, Timothy arid Amy Miller.

Moore, Lisa and Keith Moore. Moore, Martha and Raymond Moore. Morgan, Roxane and Jack Morgaa Napolitano, Kristin and Kenneth Napolitano. Newton, Pearl and David CRIME Southwest, Jan. 31.

300 block of East Buell Drive, Feb. 1. 300 block of East Buell Drive, Feb.L 200 block of Joel Boulevard, Feb. 2. 400 block of Mississippi Avenue, Feb.

2. 1 1700 block of Pinewood Lakes Drive, Feb. 3. 18100 block of Riverchase Court, Feb. 3.

300 block of Montgomery Avenue, Feb. 3. 400 block of Valley Drive, Feb. 3. 400 block of Valley Drive, Feb.

3. 3100 block of 16th Street Southwest, Feb. 4. 4500 block of 28th Street Southwest, Feb. 4.

Kathleen Perritt, 35. Rawls, Gregory, 41, and Tracie Chittam, 27. Rendon, Luis, 46, and Gladis Rendon Salazar, 5L Rhodes, Matthew, 29, and Candace Higginson, 28. Ritchey, Timothy, 40, and Bo Oh, 43. Schad, William, 23, and Jennifer Johnson, 2L Siggia, Domenico, 35, and Debra Zimmerman, 3L Smith, Bradley, 31, and Kathrine Whitehouse, 34.

Sullivan, Glenn, 32, and Kelley Nisewarner, 29. Swingler, Wayne, 39, and Renae Miller, 4L Thomas, Jesse, 85, and Gay Walker, 66. Tolbert, Zeffrey, 30, and Kiroon Singh, 48. Trei, Daryl, 47, and Clara Watson, 39. Tumulty, Nicholas, 4L and Joan Dabruzzo, 48.

Urban, David, 39, and Jennifer Spear, 26. Weiss, Marc, 30, and Pamela Weston, John, 42, and Karla Frost, 40. Westrem, Ricky, 47, and Trina Heminger, 32. Wijaranarong, Chai, 36, and Tachamon Charernrat, 3L Williams, Sean, 30, and Patricia Koenig, 27. Wilson, Jason, 29, and Samantha Meltzer, 27.

Yooa Sung Won, 30, and Young Sun Kwon, 26. Newtoa Paddock, Joseph and Irene Paddock. Palmer, Volkmar and Sarah Palmer. Phan, Thu and G. Blake Cliftoa Rafalski, Brigitte and Wayne RafalskL Repsher, Lisa and Paul Repsher.

Rivera, Carlos and Lydia Ortiz. Rolls, Mary and Bobby Lee Rolls Jr. Schweizer, Raymond and Amy Schweizer. Seda, Alba and William Rodriguez. Terrell, Melissa and Morgan TerrelL Udell, Annetta and Charles UdelL Vazquez, Eric and Rubiela Cazquez.

Wendling, Torey and Paul Wendling. LOG 500 block of Marby Road, Feb. 4. Stolen vehicles 5300 block of Staley Road, Jan. 29.

Exit 24 and I-75, Jan. 29. 1100 block of Homestead Road North, Jan. 30. 5500 block of Banning Street, Jan.

30. 9300 block of Laredo Avenue, Jan. 30. 13800 block of Palm Beach, Feb. 2.

Vehicle burglaries 15500 block of Spring Line Lane, Jan. 30. 4900 block of Seventh Street West, Jan. 31. 1 1 00 block of Homestead Road North, Feb.L The Associated Press STARKE Military investigators began searching for clues Sunday in the crash of a Florida Army National Guard helicopter that killed an aviator and injured his crew mate.

The AH-64A Apache helicopter crashed Saturday during a routine exercise in Camp Blading's north training area. The following couples have applied for marriage licenses in Lee County. The listings below are applicants between Jaa 28 and Feb.L Alvarado, Fernando, 30, and KimberlyTinnin.36. Balsamo, Richard, 56, and Luz Moreno, 4L Barcomb, Dennis, 27, and Kaley Smith, 23. Barone, Chris, 41, and Jacqueline Brown, 40.

Baucom, Joseph, 31, and Diane Donloa 30. Benarey, Henry, 75, and Donna Perry, 44. Benavides, Jairo, 29, and Lizette Colon, 33. Blackwell, Richard, 35, and Elizabeth Wagner, 29. Brever, John, 67, and Colleen Burig, Micah, 26, and Tabitha Horner, 23.

Buss, Randall, 47, and Jody Patrone, 45. Buzzelli, Joseph, 32, and Nicole Celano, 26. Caballero, Sergio, 33, and Alicia Negrete, 29. Caviness, Gerald, 34, and Janet Vince, 42. Celin, Edrice, 25, and Barbara Caceus, 18.

Ciccone, Brad, 24, and Heather Crank, 28. Cody, Terry, 57, and Lynette Drake, 58. Crow, Samuel, 21, and Tabatha Robinson, 2L Darnell, Roger, 47, and Joy The marriages of the following people have been dissolved in Lee County. The order of the names does not imply fault or an adversarial proceeding under Florida's no-fault divorce law. The listings below are from judgment dates Jaa 28 through Feb.

Abercrombie, Bruce and Suzanne Abercrombie. Astigarraga, Ruben and Magaly Asticarraga. Badagnani, Frank and Lynn BadagnanL Basler-Blasetti, Jennifer and Robert Blasetti Jr. Bentley, Craig and Cherrie Bentley. Bielecki, Mirek and Jadwiga BieleckL Black, Tina and James Black.

Briggs, Jennifer and Chasselway Briggs. Brunelle, Jonathan and Aimee Brunelle. Bustin, William and Elizabeth Perez. East Lee Assaults 3200 block of Third Street West, Jan. 29.

2200 block of Park 82 Drive, Feb. 2. 400 block of Cactus Circle, Feb. 2. 1 000 block of Allman Avenue, Feb.

3. 2500 block of Lee Boulevard, Feb. 3. Business burglaries 100 block of Gunnery Road South, Jan. 29.

Felony thefts 1 100 block of Cherokee Avenue, Jan. 30. 2900 block of Third Street Southwest, Jan. 30. it's time to sell .,4 iinur cur 111 Farmworkers struggle with low pay, poor housing in SW Florida The Associated Press Steve Price remembers riding horses around Immokalee lone before big growers and migrant workers began their current clashes.

1 ve seen this entire town change since I came, but I still love it and live here," said Price, 51, who arrived in this Southwest Florida farming town when he was 13. Today, Price runs the local bank his father, Bill, took over in 1963. And along Main Street, most of the signs and conversations are in Spanish. For 40 years, Immokalee was a haven for independent farmers, but it's hard to imagine the town as a dusty outpost now. A freeze in 1989 destroyed crops, bankrupting Immokalee's middle-class farmers.

Corporate growers such as Gargulio Inc. and Six Ls bought out the ruined farms. Since the 1970s, Mexicans, Guatemalans and Haitians have poured in to meet farmers' demand for cheap labor. Immokalee became what Price called a "labor camp." The Coalition of immokalee Workers, a farmworkers advocacy group, wants to raise awareness of the low pay and poor living conditions. They've gained notoriety for organizing high-profile marches, including one last month that brought hundreds of workers to Naples for a demonstration against the sheriff.

Workers confronted Collier Sheriff Don Hunter on his request for the records of area illegal immigrants to prevent terrorism, a move migrants say would lead to racial profiling. Hunter told farmworkers he never intended to target Hispanics who have slipped into the country illegally and is only "interested in Middle Easterners." He noted at least one of the Sept. 11 hijackers, Mohammad Atta, was stopped on a traffic infraction but not detained because the officer had no way of knowing Atta's visa had expired. Back in Immokalee, Santiago Lopez and his roommates don't attend the protests because they know the pay is low. "The coalition hands out papers on the street and makes promises, but we never get anything," said Jose Juan, 20, a Mexican in his first season in Immokalee.

This group of workers mostly complain about late pay from their Mexican contractor, who hires them out to growers. But they are afraid to go to authorities because many of their roommates don't have working papers. Although they fear depor-tatioa none thinks the farmers could operate without migrant labor. "They can't deport us because they need us," said Flora Rojas, 27, also from Mexico. "A gringo isn't going to do the work we do." 4000 block of Sabal Lane, Feb.

2. 2500 block of 42nd Street Southwest, Feb. 4. 2500 block of Lee Boulevard, Feb. 4.

2900 block of 40th Street Southwest, Feb. 4. 5800 block of Corporation Circle, Feb. 4. Central Lee Assaults 2200 block of Peck Street, Jan.

31. 2700 block of Winkler Avenue, Feb. 1. Business burglaries 3300 block of Canal Street Feb. 4.

Felony thefts 3300 block of Canal Street, Jan. SPECIAL CLEAN, OIL SHARPEN g) at special low prices. Rechargable 29. 2000 block of West First Street, Feb. 4.

Vehicle burglaries 3200 block of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard, Jan. 29. 3200 block of Dr.

Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard, Jan. 29. 3500 block of Cleveland Avenue, Jan. 30.

to 3500 block of Cleveland Avenue, Jan. 30. 3400 block of Willard Street, Jan. 31. How to help Help Southwest Florida Crimestoppers solve a crime.

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