Meet Mercedes

For over 50 years, Mercedes has lived in Harlem. Only spending 13 years in Albany after college to raise her son, she came back to Harlem in 2000 and the majority of her life has been spent on the west side. She says, “I went from Hamilton Place, then I lived at 136th street, then I came back over here,” and lived in the same building for over 50 years. She also attended school in the neighborhood, starting in P.S. 192 Elementary. Looking back at her time in school she recalls the lunch ladies looking after her, “I was a really skinny little kid. And the lunch ladies, they were so nice to me. They would make sure that I would eat.” Recounting her time there she began to sing the school song with laughter, “Our song was 'High above the Hudson waters, stands 192. Proud are we, your sons and daughters. Proud are we of you.' I still remember… I'll never forget!” 

Growing up there was also a sense of community, “It was wonderful. Because the parents used to look out for you. You know, my mother was always working so the neighbors would look out for us… You felt protected and you had so much fun… We played in the streets, you know, and it was so much fun.” Throughout her time in Harlem she has seen many changes, even within her building, “I still have neighbors that I've had for years, since I was a child. So we have shared memories, and it's very nice.” There are five original families left who have been in the building for over 50 years like she has. She has known the neighbor in the apartment opposite from her since she was 17, “I was 17 and she was 21. She had just gotten married and everything. So I've gotten to know her since she was a young woman raising her children… I've seen her children be born [and] now they have kids… I've seen a lot of kids grow up in this area.” Although she feels the sense of community has changed, she also feels the community is safer now. She says, “Cause in the seventies and the eighties… it was quite dangerous here… They used to have… a casino up at the corner… on 137th Street… and they would have shootouts… So we would have to… sleep in the back of our apartment… We couldn't sleep in the front room. Because it was too dangerous… So I've seen the area change. It is a lot safer now.” 

“[Growing up in Harlem] was wonderful. Because the parents used to look out for you. You know, my mother was always working so the neighbors would look out for us… You felt protected and you had so much fun… We played in the streets, you know, and it was so much fun.”

Her favorite area is Riverside and Riverbank Park, “Especially in the summer. Because I love to go to their events [and concerts]. I really enjoy the events and I feel safe there. Which [there are] not a lot of areas now that you could feel safe as an older person like myself.” She no longer takes the subway, opting for the bus instead due to safety concerns, she says, “After 7, 7:30, I'm not gonna be going out… unless I'm going somewhere special. Like… the other night… I went to see Hell's Kitchen. Oh, my God. It was great… I really enjoyed it.” 

Mercedes has been able to find community any and everywhere, “I'm a talker. I make friends wherever I go… I'm standing on the bus and I'm making friends, you know? And I'm making friends with everyone… I have friends of all different cultures.” One of her interests that she shares with her son is learning languages; he started studying them at 14 and now speaks five. He went to Howard University and then attended grad school at the University of Notre Dame. Mercedes and her sisters attended SUNY-Albany and she loved it, despite the extremely cold winters. Compared to Albany, she loves the weather in Harlem and the convenience of the neighborhood. When she was away at school she noticed she couldn’t get all of the groceries needed for her traditional food, “When I want to make my typical Dominican food I can find all the ingredients, you know. And it's a wonderful thing... to be able to do that. Because when I lived upstate, I couldn't find [them and had to go to the next town over]... Christmas time we make… pernil, [roasted pork]... But we keep the skin on because the skin is the best. It gets all crunchy and stuff. Well, Upstate they go and they take the skin off the pork. So at Christmas time, my mother would come all the way from here with a little cart with the whole pernil and bring it to us before she passed away. May she rest in peace. My mom lived ‘til… 2005… And my grandma... lived in [the same building] till [she was 98]... So we all lived in this area. That's beautiful.”

What she especially loves about Harlem is the diversity and mixing of cultures, “You can hear one person speaking Russian, another speaking Italian, another speaking French. And I love that. I love all these different cultures being around… and learning from them and having conversations with different people.” Like her parents, many people come to Harlem looking for a better life and often work multiple jobs to support themselves and their families. She encourages others to speak to people of different backgrounds, saying, “people have so much… to share with you. It’s a learning experience.” Mercedes worked at a Head Start center as a family assistant. During her 14 years there, she was exposed to many cultures and was able to give back to her community by assisting local families, “I miss the kids. It was wonderful… I loved working with the community.” Harlem has taught her to “take care of one another.” Mercedes says, “That thing is missing now. And it was so helpful growing up. It was a wonderful thing. You felt so protected because your neighbors were looking out for you, and your parents knew that they could depend on their neighbors... I wish we would regain that again a little bit.” 

“Harlem is a wonderful place. Good food, good people… We do our little church going too, you know. That’s it. Religion, community, all those things play a big part in our community and who we are as people… Everyone has something to give. Enjoy the cultures. That’s the most beautiful thing here.”

But more than anything, her mother shaped who she is, “My mother was the one that I based all my belief systems on. My mother was a great woman who held her family together ‘til the very end. And I always… valued her and I appreciated her. She was a woman that had a third grade education, but… she would help us with our high school homework, and she was capable of doing so… I always wonder what my mother would have been had she had the chance to further her education. But she instilled that in us. My youngest sister just earned her PhD.” The lesson from her mother she values the most is to appreciate and accept people for who they are. Her mother would always say, “Always hear the person out and see what they have to say,” she says, “My mother was my biggest example and my biggest joy.” Mercedes loves Harlem and is looking forward to enjoying her retirement and potentially traveling, “Harlem is a wonderful place. Good food, good people… We do our little church going too, you know. That's it. Religion, community, all those things play a big part in our community and who we are as people… Everyone has something to give. Enjoy the cultures. That's the most beautiful thing here. We're exposed to so many different cultures. And I really love that. I wouldn't have it any other way.”