My heritage goes back centuries in Puerto Rico. The indigenous Taíno civilization inhabited the island before the Spanish arrived in 1493. It became a strategic outpost known for sugar and coffee, with a culture shaped by Spanish, African, and Taíno influences. Growing up, we didn’t know anything about our heritage. With DNA and genealogical research, I’m building my family story.
In the 1920s, my parents’ families moved from Puerto Rico to Harlem. Spanish Harlem didn’t exist yet and few Puerto Ricans. Instead, it was a mixture of cultures, religions, and languages. It was the time of the Harlem Renaissance. Their fathers died so their mothers struggled to raise 5/6 children during the Great Depression. I grew up on their stories of adversity.
I was born in Manhattan with the first few weeks of my life in Harlem. We moved to a new Bronx housing project where we lived for five years. It was far from any commercial property and faced a marsh and river. I was too young to go outside and I don’t remember any children my age in our building. The movies and television were my major sources of information so this is where my dreams began.
The Space Age grew with the US and Soviets sending animals into space to test survivability. The launch of Sputnik in 1957 by the Soviets shocked the world. The US ran into problems and was ridiculed in the news. I was just a toddler so I don’t recall that but then going into space was also in its infancy, too. We grew up together!
Science-fiction grew in popularity starting in the 1950s with many classics setting the standard as well as a lot of crazy stuff. From day one, I was inspired by the exciting visions of adventure and the future. By age five, I dreamed of traveling to other planets. I envisioned a future where there would be peace and everyone would have food and housing.
My 1960s began in Newark, New Jersey. There was no park nearby and a cemetery across the street. We were limited to playing in a cement backyard and alley. I thrived in public school learning about the Lenni Lenape, and I vividly remember the moment, on May 5, 1961, when Alan Shepard became the first American astronaut to launch into space, turning science fiction into reality.
Engineer Torres 