Upcoming Events
27th anniversary Celebration
The Day Worker Center of Mountain View will be celebrating its 27th anniversary on November 16, 2023 at the Garden House in Los Altos. We will be premiering the documentary “Dreams and Detours” which is a follow up of our 2011 documentary “Borderless Dreams.” We hope you will join us!
Past Events
4th of July 2023
On the Fourth of July a few compañeros helped set up for the celebration at Shuop Park in Los Altos. Reliable Workers Ready to Serve!
Father’s Day At the center
We celebrated Father’s Day 2023 at the Day Worker Center by sharing stories about our dads, playing Pictionary and raffling backpacks and reusable water bottles!
Senior Garden Clean Up
With all the rain this year extra help was needed for weeding so a few compañeres gathered on May 31, 2023 to help at the Senior Community garden. It was amazing how much was able to get done in a couple of hours!
Celebration of Leaders 2023
May 4, 2023 | 5:00 PM
The mission of the Day Worker Center is to connect workers and employers in a safe and reliable environment while empowering the workers and participate in advocacy efforts in support of the day worker community. We truly cannot do the work we do without the help of amazing volunteers like Gwen Smith who has lived this mission and done so much to support our efforts. We thank the Chamber of Commerce of Mountain View for allowing us to recognize Gwen as Volunteer of the Year on May 4, 2023 during the Celebration of Leaders & Athena Awards. Watch the award ceremony here.
Workers Memorial Day 2023
On April 28, 2023 Worksafe, Step Forward, the Day Worker Center of Mountain View, the Pilipino Association of Workers and Immigrants (PAWIS), Vietnamese American Roundtable, Santa Clara County Wage Theft Coalition, WPUSA and the South Bay Labor Council held an event to honor the lives of workers who have died over the past year while on the job. The vast majority of all occupational deaths are preventable, and each Workers Memorial Day we renew our efforts to make the world safer for all workers everywhere.
Volunteer celebration 2023
On April 23, 2023 we gathered at Rengstorff Park to celebrate the volunteers at the Center! It was an afternoon filled with laughs, great food, music, games and great company. We played lotería (Bingo) made for the Center by students at Notre Dame High School and games like “La Rueda de San Miguel” and “La Víbora de la Mar.” We are very grateful for every single volunteer… Thank you!
open for In-person Attendance!
Our doors are open for in-person attendance! We're thrilled to be back inside the Day Worker Center and reunited with our community. After months of virtual and distanced operations, it's a joy to be able to connect in person again. We're committed to providing our services safely and following all necessary health and safety protocols. Thank you for your continued support and patience during these challenging times.
We're excited to see you at the Center!
MLK Day of Service 2023
On January 16, 2023 in honor of Martin Luther King Jr, the Center and Shoreline West Association of Neighbors (SWAN) collaborated for the annual MLK neighborhood clean up event. Together, members of the Center and SWAN split into three groups walked around our neighborhood to pick up trash. We started with a short presentation about MLK and came back to the Center and shared a meal and ending remarks about the event.
Celebrating our 26th Anniversary
The Day Worker Center of Mountain View celebrated its 26th anniversary on October 16, 2022 at the Mountain View Civic Center Plaza. Our theme this year was to celebrate the day workers and their families for 26 years of service. We thank everyone that joined us to celebrate, the volunteers, Art Cervantes (our MC for the day), and performers:
Raices De Mexico
Orgullo Latino Mountain View High School
Alondra del Norte
Teatro Nahual
Los Jornaleros del Norte
Erwin Choc
Read more about the celebration here
Day Worker's Art Show
This year in honor of our 26th anniversary we are celebrating the many talents of the day workers.
We invite you to visit the exhibit “Day Worker’s Art Show” open from October 4, 2022 to November 4, 2022 in Mountain View’s City Hall during City Hall operating hours.
Volunter Celebration 2022
On June 26, 2022 the Center hosted a volunteer celebration to commemorate the amazing volunteers at the DWC! We gathered at Rengstorff Park for an afternoon of performances, singing, dancing, piñatas, and delicious food! Compañero Erwin Choc performed the song he composed for the Center, "El Centro de Todos" and "La Bamba." Compañero Ivan Canseco performed a few original songs and the classic "El Rey" by Vicente Fernandez. We all sang along and danced to their songs. Our compañeras from the kitchen, Doña Maria and Doña Graciela cooked mole, rice, bean tamales, steamed vegetables, gelatin for dessert and pineapple and hibiscus for drinks. To end the celebration, volunteers took turns to break two piñatas - one made by students of The Girl's Middle School. As a "thank you" gift, volunteers received a card, a 25th anniversary t-shirt, and a potted plant, painted by compañeros: Miguel, Julio and Guadalupe. A BIG thank you to each and every one of the Center's volunteers!
measure V fifth anniversary
On May 22, 2022 community members gathered in Rengstorff Park to celebrate the fifth anniversary of the date that Measure V (rent stabilization) went into effect. There was ice cream, cake and lots of food brought by community members to share. Mountain View Mayor, Lucas Ramirez was present as well as elected officials. Photos were taken by Jack Owicki, Probono Photography.
Community Conversations:
Gender Disparities in the Pandemic: Employment & the Workplace
The Day Worker Center is co-sponsoring a special event presented by Los Altos Mountain View Community Foundation and Los Altos Women’s Caucus. This is the third in a series of online Community Conversations focusing on the pandemic’s disproportionate effects on women. The topic to be discussed is Gender Disparities in the Pandemic: Employment & the Workplace.
This series will comprise three online events, each focusing on a specific topic:
Session 1: Mental Health / Taking Care of Yourself. Watch event HERE
Session 2: Childcare & Eldercare / Taking Care of Your Loved Ones. Watch event HERE
Session 3: Workforce & Employment / Taking Care of Your Career. Watch event HERE
Session 4: Policy / Advancing Your Priorities to Make an Impact Watch event HERE
Worker Memorial Day 2022
On April 18, 2022 the Center along with the National Day Laborer Organizing Network (NDLON) and other other day worker centers across the nation, held a Worker Memorial Day Vigil to honor frontline workers that have perished due to unsafe working conditions and/or COVID-19 and renew our commitment to continue fighting for safe workplaces. We want to thank everyone that joined us and helped make the event happen, including the speakers:
Jose Abastida - SEIU 1021
Mak Aruta - PAWIS
Juan Rueda - DWC
Gloria Palacios - DWC
Adriana “La Poeta” Garcia - MAiZ
You can watch a livestream of the event HERE.
The Day Worker Center Celebrates 25 Years in Community
On October 3, 2021 we gathered at the Mountain View Civic Center Plaza to celebrate our 25th Anniversary. We thank everyone that joined us in celebrating such an important milestone! Click here to listen to "El Centro de Todos".
The list of performers included:
Los Jornaleros del Norte
Raices De Mexico
Orgullo Latino Mountain View High School
Ivan Canseco
Teatro Nahual
Las Cambamberas
Notre Dame High School students in Spanish 3 Honors
Pablo Juarez
Victor Hugo Santos
Erwin Cho
Read more about the celebration HERE
Love & Gratitude: Volunteer Appreciation Celebration
On February 6, 2020 volunteers gathered at the law firm Fenwick & West in downtown Mountain View for a volunteer appreciation celebration. The partnership with Fenwick & West for the event was made possible through Weiqun, a volunteer at the Center. The theme was "Love and Gratitude" and it was a beautiful evening. The celebration consisted of a spoken word piece by Umbelina Martinez, a dear friend of the Center and a musical performance by Erwin Cho (singer & composer). Volunteers and staff got up and danced along to songs like "La Bamba'' and even joined Erwin on stage to dance and sing along. In addition, volunteers enjoyed delicious food made by compañeras that consisted of tamales, salad, rice, beans, and cookies. Towards the end, volunteers had the opportunity to share what volunteering at the Center has meant to them and any special memories they have. As a thank you gift, volunteers received a jar of applesauce made by workers, a "most amazing volunteer" t-shirt and a card made with the help of Marilyn, a volunteer at the Center.
The Day Worker Center of Mountain View recognized as an Outstanding Organization
Thank you to the community, the City of Mountain View and the Chamber of Commerce of Mountain View for recognizing us as an outstanding organization on June 17, 2021. It is a pleasure serving the community! We also thank our colleagues, our staff, and volunteers for all of their efforts in making this happen. Watch the full event HERE
Watch Maria’s acceptance speech:
Day Worker Center 24th Anniversary Celebration
For those that were not able to join us live during our virtual celebration on October 24, 2020 or those that would like to watch it again, you watch the celebration HERE
Celebration of Volunteers
More than 40 volunteers gathered in Rengstorff Park on Sunday, September 9, 2018 for the Center’s volunteer appreciation celebration. It was a beautiful afternoon filled with music, love, laughter and delicious food prepared by the workers including pupusas, tamales, salads, rice, beans, corn and cookies. The volunteers enjoyed the classic "Yesterday" and "Imagine" songs of the Beatles, performed by volunteers Evelyn and Naomi. The Executive Director of Center, María Marroquín introduced them, explaining that on a recent day when she was working in her office she heard a sound so magical that she thought “the angels were singing” and she wondered if she had gone to heaven. After the duo finished their performance, Erwin (guitarist), Efren (drummer) and Francisco (sound engineer) performed a touching Argentine song that Maria noticed had meaning and spoke of the Center's mission: "This song is a call to the way our brothers and sisters are suffering." Addressing the dozens of volunteers seated at the tables, Maria continued, "I think you really understand the message because it's what you do, that's what you've been doing for so many years in the Center." Each volunteer returned home with a thank-you letter and a nice jar of lemon jam, crafted by day laborers as a small token of their enormous gratitude.
A Grand Opening For The Day Worker Center
Day workers and friends celebrated the grand opening of the new permanent Day Worker Center on Thursday November 18, 2010. The dream of a having a permanent home for the Day Worker Center of Mountain View became a reality and we thank you, our friends, for your wonderful support that has helped make this happen.
Read more about the event:
