ElIndeNews.com

A bulldozer beeps intermittently as it clears land for traditional Native American farming. Ten minutes away, customers clink forks, stir drinks and chitchat in a bustling café in Sells, Ariz.

The farm and the café are both part of Tohono O'odham Community Action's effort to introduce healthy eating and lifestyles to the members of the nation.

"In Indian populations diabetes is everywhere," said Noland Johnson, farm manager for Tohono O'odham Community Action (TOCA). "We have people to be educated, to know what's out here and to actually have it available so we can have a choice. That's what [the farming] program does."

More than 29 percent of southern Arizona's Native American adults have diabetes, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and up to 65 percent of Native Americans are obese, according to the American Obesity Association.

These epidemics are "the main inspiration" behind nonprofit TOCA's push for a healthier O'odham community, said Terrol Dew Johnson, co-founder of TOCA, which has been operating for 14 years.

The Tucson Museum of Art is featuring the exhibit, “Ed Mell: Paintings of the New West,” which will last through May 23.

Mell’s paintings are Western landscapes but with a modernist touch and a new approach, said Meredith Hayes, museum spokeswoman.  He has a more contemporary aesthetic on Western painting, featuring the landscape, flora and fauna of the desert.

Crystal Goldsberry got pregnant at 17. At the time, she was living with her aunt, who promptly kicked her out.

She spent the next several years couch hopping, bouncing between her sister, aunt and daughter’s father’s place. All the while, Goldsberry was determined to finish high school, though her pregnancy and living situation made it difficult.    

They struggled through the spiny desert, felt the harshness of the winter cold and saw the darkness of the night, accompanied only by the sound of their hushed steps and the howling of coyotes.

Sofia Torres, 36, her niece Sandra Torres, 20, and Aurora Angeles, 45, experienced all this and more when they attempted to cross the U.S./Mexico border illegally. They now sit disappointed in a shelter in Nogales, Son­ora, after getting caught by U.S. B­­o­r­­der Patrol and sent back.

How's this for a resume?

Desert View High School senior Kyla Kemp is valedictorian, a captain of the tennis team and a standout member in the community.

She plays five instruments in the orchestra and her favorite subject is math.

Earlier this year she earned a full-ride scholarship to one of the nation's leading universities and her career dream is to work with jet engines.

"It's not hard to stay motivated when you're doing something you love," Kemp says. "It's fun exploring every 'atmosphere' and every region of knowledge."