¡Wepa, familia!
This is the last Boletín of 2025, and honestly? We're still catching our breath.
This year was different. Not because of the events but because of what it felt like. There was a moment, not too long ago, when DB was barely holding on. COVID hit us hard. By 2023, the org was being run by two people: Mia Velez and Amelia Winn. Two people keeping the flame alive when it would've been easier to let it go out.
But they didn't. And the board that came after them didn't either. They showed up with energy, with care, with the kind of love that sprawls outward and pulls people in. And then came this board, our board, full of people with more aspirations and more dedication than would normally make sense.
You love very unreasonably.
This year, we brought music. We brought dance. We brought food (40 pounds of it, seasoned and slow-roasted). We saw legends brought to campus: a Surgeon General, an artist who painted while he spoke, economists debating our island's future. We dug through archives and found ourselves in the pages. We marched through Hartford with flags and drums in our hands.
And every Friday, we gathered for cafecito. Sometimes two people, five people, and sometimes even twenty. While the numbers changed, what mattered was that we showed up.
2025 was about presence, letting people know we exist and building something worth coming to.
To everyone who came to an event, who brought a friend, who cooked with us, who danced with us, who sat in the back of a room just to feel a little less alone, thank you. You are what makes this real.
And to those that came before us, keeping this alive when no one was watching: we see you. We carry you with us.
This is just the beginning.
Pa'lante siempre,
— La Directiva 2025 ✊🏽
We closed out the year strong. Here's how we ended 2025:
Sunday, November 9 | 11:30am - 2:00pm
Professional school students joined us for our signature Grad Bori Brunch featuring queso frito, pan sobao, salchicas, bacalaitos, eggs, and farina. Most attendees were grad students from across the Latino community—proof that Puerto Rican food brings everyone together.
Plot twist: People actually showed up on time. We're still in shock. 😳
Thursday & Friday, November 20-21 | 7:00pm
A two-day collaboration with MEChA diving deep into our shared history in New Haven. Diego Martinez and Sonia Rosa presented archival discoveries, followed by a session at the Beinecke exploring primary sources together.
Turns out we've been making history while FINDING history. Very meta. 📖✨
Tuesday, December 2 | 6:30pm
La Casa's annual holiday gathering, and DB went ALL OUT. Antonio Padilla picked up a 40-pound whole pig, butchered it at La Casa, and seasoned it with sofrito, vinegar, oil, sazón, adobo, paprika, chili powder, and garlic paste. Hours later: tender, flavorful pernil that had everyone coming back for seconds and thirds.
40 pounds of pork. Sparse leftovers. That's called EFFICIENCY. 💪🐷
Friday, December 5 | 3:00pm
Antonio and his Grandma came through with homemade flan de vanilla, flan de queso, and pastelillos de guayaba. Plus empanadillas and leftover pernil. The perfect way to close out the semester: sweet treats, good conversation, and the warmth of family.
Shoutout to Antonio's abuela—you're officially an honorary DB board member. 🧡
Friday, December 5 | 10:00pm
Club Caribe took over St. Anthony's for a Caribbean-themed night. DB brought fresh coquito. The perfect end to the semester.
From flan at 3pm to coquito at midnight. We call that a FULL day. 🌴🍹
📸 2025 IN PHOTOS 📸
A whole year of memories. From parades to lechón to legends on campus. Priceless. 🇵🇷✨
40 lb pig from Latella & Sons
Gracias Abuela! ❤️
🖼️ Want to see all the photos?
Check out our Instagram @DespiertaBoricuaYale for the full gallery, or visit our website's photo archive to relive every single moment.
Before we dive into the full recap, let's take a moment to appreciate just how much we accomplished together:
A year of music, legends, food, and finding each other. Here are the moments that defined us:
None of this happens alone. A huge thank you to everyone who built with us this year:
TO EVERYONE WHO MADE 2025 POSSIBLE
Special shoutout to everyone who cooked, cleaned, set up chairs, designed flyers, took photos, wrote captions, answered emails at 2am, and did the invisible labor that makes community possible.
We see you. We appreciate you. We love you.
Amanda Rivera will complete her PhD dissertation next semester. We are so proud of her work and dedication!
She has been with us for many years. Amanda, you will always be family. Thank you, Amanda, for making sure our story gets told the way it deserves. We can't wait to read whatever you have to say. 🎓❤️
Next semester, we're taking DB off campus and into the streets. A block party is in the works, Spring 2026 Crown Street. Inspired by Calle de San Sebastián. That's all we'll say for now.
We've also been building something bigger than Yale. A network. An alliance. Puerto Rican student orgs across the Northeast, connected for the first time. More on that soon.
And beyond the parties and the coalitions, we're thinking about education. About reaching students here in New Haven. About reaching students on the island. About making sure the next generation knows that places like Yale aren't out of reach.
We're dreaming bigger. And if 2025 taught us anything, it's that when we show up together, things happen.
Stay tuned. Stay connected. And when we call, show up.
Lo mejor está por venir.
WE NEED YOUR MEMORIES & MEMORABILIA
"Cada foto es un tesoro. Cada historia es un riel que conecta el pasado con nuestro futuro."
This year we dug through archives and found ourselves in the pages. Now we're building our own. Your memories matter.
Don't be a stranger. Here's how to stay in the loop: