In the Works - Community Newsletter In the Works July 2017 | Page 21

Architectural associate Jorge
Gutierrez has been commuting
to his job at Public Works for
nearly three decades. But these
days, he’s seeing things with
fresh eyes, thanks to mechanical
engineering intern Israel
Modesto.
Their dynamic as colleagues is
new, but their friendship isn’t.
Four years ago, Modesto was
a senior at East Union High
School in Manteca with a 4.0
GPA – and faced with the
prospect of not graduating.
Born in California to migrant
camp workers, he had an
opportunity to be the first in
his family to attend college; his
parents, however, were planning
to do what they’d done every
winter for years: return home to
Mexico.
One of Modesto’s mentors at
school was determined to help
him finish high school and
mentioned his situation to her
brother-in-law, Jorge Gutierrez.
Gutierrez had three kids of his
own – including a daughter in
Modesto’s grade – and invited
Modesto to stay with him until
the end of the school year. His
willingness may have stemmed
from the fact that Gutierrez
was one of 13 kids and, like
Modesto, the first in his family
with a real shot at attending
college.
Today, thanks to a true
coincidence, Gutierrez and
Modesto commute together
from San Joaquin County in
the Central Valley to the Public
Works office building as 30
Van Ness Avenue near San
Francisco’s Civic Center.
Each morning at 3:30 a.m.,
Modesto drives from French
Camp, where he currently
lives with his parents in a
community of nearly 100
migrant farmworker families, to
Gutierrez’s home in Manteca.
KCBS radio and small talk; on
BART, it’s cat naps. Prior to his
internship, Modesto had only
visited San Francisco twice on
school field trips.
Gutierrez, whose own Public
Works career began with an
internship while studying
architecture at UC Berkeley,
provides his young friend with
career guidance, as well as
parental insight.
“He’s like my father,” Modesto
admits.
With three more semesters
to go, Modesto looks forward
to completing his bachelor’s
in mechanical engineering at
Sacramento State University.
Gutierrez, on the other hand,
is in no hurry to see him go,
admitting: “I’m going to miss
that commute when he goes
back to school.”
From there, the two begin a
two-hour commute by car
and BART. In the car, it’s
July 2017 - San Francisco Public Works Newsletter