My whole family appears in this photo from the back of a 1970 record album

A couple of memories really stand out for me about our trips to Mexico in the early 1970s. One is that a different color and type of fabric was chosen for the dresses worn by the women of the team each summer. One year the color was a bright reddish-orange; another year it was lime green. These were not bought off the rack but were created from scratch, and my mom always made one to fit me as well. She also struggled to find dress gloves that would fit my small hands, but I had to match as I stood in the very front of the group!

I’m not sure what distracted me from smiling at the camera

Mom looks out the window of our camper

Another strong impression is of the hundreds of miles Frank Gonzales’ group traveled in those short weeks each July and August, both by large bus and in individual cars. We frequently caravanned in a motley collection of sports cars, vans or station wagons, pickup trucks with camper shells, and of course Frank’s large bus.

Outside a vocational school

Our VW camper parked behind a sporty Camaro

The painted sign suggests this was a large warehouse — with guard towers

Waiting in line at a Pemex gas station

Another stop along the roadside