Tamale Making Race and Tasting Contest Lead by Local Poiticos and Restaurants to Celebrate 40th Anniversary of Historic Clinic

Family Health Center of San Diego (FHCSD) will celebrate forty years of providing affordable medical care to under-served and uninsured San Diegans at a special Spirit of the Barrio on Friday evening, July 16, 2010.

The event will feature a tamale-making race for elected officials and candidates for office and a tamale contest for local restaurants.  A panel of community leaders will judge the “best” tamale competition.

FHCSD was established in 1970 following a sit-in by a group of local grandmothers, led by Presidential “Point-of-Light” Laura Rodriguez, who demanded health services for their Barrio Logan neighborhood.  From an all-volunteer clinic open two nights a week, FHCSD has grown over the years into a network of 29 locations throughout San Diego .  FHCSD served 134,000 individual patients in 2009.  62% of those patients were uninsured and 95% had incomes at or below 200% of poverty level.  Today FHCSD is the second largest federally qualified health clinic in the nation.

For decades, Family Health Centers of San Diego has hosted its signature Spirit of the Barrio tamale luncheons at Logan Heights Family Health Center .  The tradition was started by local women who handcrafted tamales in the clinic's kitchen to raise money for medical and dental services.  Hundreds of business and community leaders now gather at Spirit of the Barrio luncheons held 5 times per year.  This year’s anniversary event celebrates that tradition with its tamale theme. More than 1,000 guests are expected to attend.

This Spirit of the Barrio 40^th Anniversary Celebration and Tamale Festival is sponsored by San Diego businesses Cricket Wireless, CBIZ, Union Bank, General Dynamics/NASSCO, Cox Communications, Kaiser Permanente, Bank of America and Gen-Probe.  The event underwriter is Sharp Health Plan.

WHO:Family Health Centers of San Diego, local elected officials and candidates, including San Diego City Council President Ben Hueso, State Senator Denise Ducheny, State Senator Christine Kehoe and San Diego Unified School District candidates Kevin Beiser and Scott Barnett.  Participating restaurants include Indigo Grill, Old Town Mexican Café and Super Cocina.

WHAT:Spirit of the Barrio 40^th Anniversary Celebration and Tamale Festival, featuring tamale-making race among politicians, restaurant “best tamale” competition, and menu offerings from over 15 local restaurants.

WHEN:Friday, July 16, 2010, 4-7 pm.  Please note special time. The tamale-making race will begin at 5:15.

WHERE: Logan Heights Family Health Center ,1809 National Ave, San Diego, CA   92113

40th Anniversary of Historic Clinic