¡Que Siga la Música!

Hello, my name is Isahar Mendez-Flores.

Thank you for landing on this page. I’m writing this because another student’s parent just reached out to let me know they won’t be able to participate in our mariachi program this season.

It’s been a long year full of “no’s” and setbacks—so I hope you’ll give me a moment to share my story, and why I urgently need your support.

My husband Victor Becerra, and I started the Colorado Youth Mariachi Program (CYMP) because we believe every young person deserves access to music programming that is both empowering and culturally relevant. I want to create the safe space we desperately wanted in our youth. 

Victor and I were part of a high school mariachi program that changed our lives, but it was painfully clear how undervalued it was. In just three years, I had five different teachers, most without mariachi experience (and all white). No funding, broken instruments, outdated uniforms, etc. I watched passionate teachers fight for us, only to be dismissed and even fired. The program was treated like a joke, but the mariachi program meant everything to me.

I remember the exact moment in my senior year when I realized: If I became a mariachi teacher, I could make a difference.

But college wasn’t part of my plan! Back then, I thought college was for smart people, people with money, people with supportive, non-immigrant parents that spoke English. People who were not like me. Victor was the first person I met with a similar background as myself who was actually going to college, and he was so confident about it! He inspired me to try and we both ended up at MSU Denver.

College was overwhelming. I was alone in the music department, anxious, and completely outside my comfort zone. I failed my music audition more than once because I was completely unprepared (can you guess why?). But eventually—after some luck and a lot of persistence—I was accepted. I began my first formal musical training in a very westernized music program, non-diverse environment (non-diverse in my eyes because I had never been in a space with so many white folks before!) But I was in the right place. 

Victor and I met incredible people who also felt the same about the non-diverse music opportunities on campus and together, in 2013, we formed Mariachi Los Correcaminos, the first mariachi student group. The COMMUNITY, that sense of shared purpose, was POWERFUL! It was so impactful that it eventually led to the creation of a full credit class in 2016! Wow.  

By then, Victor and I were finishing our college degree but we definitely weren't done with mariachi. It was at this time that we decided to teach mariachi to our younger family members. The intention was to start a small family group of 7 kids. 

After a few lessons in my backyard, we were approached by a few neighboring kids that wanted to join, and then a friend of a friend, and another niece, and so on... somehow we ended up with a group of 25 kids! 

I loved teaching them. But we had no supplies, barely any instruments, and no rehearsal space once the weather turned cold. So in 2018, we founded the Colorado Youth Mariachi Program—a nonprofit dedicated to making mariachi education accessible for low-income youth and a mission to inspire youth in the art of music making and mariachi culture. 

Since then, we’ve served over 60 students each year and we have made a huge difference!

CYMP’s impact on youth and mariachi education in the Denver metro area is unquestionable. 

We have served over 200 students and their families here in Colorado. We've empowered our Mexican-American community with cultural pride through countless community performances and events. Our students have grown into young leaders, becoming the foundational pillars for new and emerging mariachi programs across Denver and surrounding areas.

We’ve built something beautiful—but keeping it alive has never been easy.

As a small, independent nonprofit, we don’t have the capacity to apply and manage big grants or have decades of institutional support. I’ve worn every hat: founder, teacher, fundraiser, administrator. And while I have a supportive board and incredible volunteer team, I’ll be honest—our infrastructure is still a work in progress. I’m learning as I go. This is a labor of love, but some days, and more often than not these days, it’s been incredibly heavy. 

I wish I could offer mariachi classes for free. I’ve tried. I still try. But right now, it’s just not sustainable.

I share my story not for sympathy, but for understanding. Too often, programs like mine are just expected to “figure it out.” Our community deserves more and our youth deserve even more.  I believe that if people truly see us—our effort, our history, our impact—they will stand with us.

If you’ve ever believed in the power of music, in cultural pride, or in small programs doing big things—this is your moment to make a difference.

Donate today. Share our story. Help us say: ¡Que siga la música!

 With love and deep gratitude,
 Isahar Mendez-Flores