Alyssa Cigarroa is the press founder of Tragaluz Journal and a passionate advocate for arts, culture, and community architect in South Texas. She is the founder and board president of the Daphne Art Foundation, which supports artists and cultivates cultural dialogue through residencies and exhibitions. A lifelong Laredoan, Alyssa also serves as the District 8 Council Member on the Laredo City Council. Her work centers on creating space for storytelling, creativity, and civic engagement on the border.

She is an award-winning career journalist with over 40-years experience in publishing. The Laredo native manages her family’s cattle ranch, a writer’s paradise and safe haven, in San Ygnacio. She is the author of the Webb County Heritage Foundation’s Historic Laredo. Her writing has been published in The Texas Observer, and several short story anthologies, including the University of Texas Press anthology Río Grande, edited by Jan Reid; the University of Texas Press anthology edited by Inés Hernández Avila and Norma Cantú, Entre Guadalupe Y Malinche; and the upcoming Wittliff Collection anthology, We Are Nature Defending Itself, which is edited by native Laredoan Cordelia Barrera.

Guerra is a founding member of the Río Grande International Study Center (RGISC) and was its first executive director.

Maritza Bautista is a Tex-Mex/Pocha multidisciplinary artist, educator, curator and cultural worker. She earned a MA in Art Education from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. Through her work, she explores economic disparities and the survival mechanisms of working class people. Maritza sustains meaningful, collaborative art practices and is driven by a passion to create transformative spaces of art. She has over 20 years experience in the field of art, and currently stewards the mission of Daphne Art Foundation. Her work has been published in Glasstire, PASSAGE, NEA Arts, Culture as Commons: Social Justice and Contemporary Art Education.

Self-taught and innovative, Sergio Puente is credited with the work of consistently producing the engaging graphics of Tragaluz. He has over 15-years experience in digital design and publishing for LareDOS and the WBCA’S program book and magazine, By George!. His retinue includes logo designs, branding, web page design, and numerous local political campaigns.

Ryan was born and raised in Laredo and has 10 years of experience in various areas of civil litigation. He is a lover and supporter of the arts and serves on the board of the Laredo Film Society. In addition to writing articles for Texas Monthly, The Texas Observer. Texas Highways, and Glasstire, he is currently writing a book under contract with Texas Tech University Press about the culinary traditions of South Texas and Northeastern Mexico. 

Seyde is a border native born and raised in Nuevo Laredo. She has dedicated 16 years advocating for the arts as a storyteller, literature promoter, and actress. Currently she contributes to publications in Northern Mexico and Texas, sharing her reflections on the role of art in her community. Her goal is to build bridges between art, artists, and audiences, fostering meaningful and joyful experiences with the belief that art is for everyone. Alongside her creative work, she is an HR professional in the manufacturing industry, where she also leads social impact initiatives focused on STEM education and community development.

Xiomarra Milann is a borderland storyteller and spiritualist whose roots lay in Laredo, TX. As a mother, multidisciplinary artist, activist, and educator, she loves to consider herself a jack-of-all-trades but hates to admit she is a master of none. She is an MFA candidate at UTEP and has received fellowships with the Rowan Foundation and The Heart of It, as well as an honorable mention for the Jack McCarthy Book prize. Her work has been published with various literary entities, which can be found by typing her name into your favorite search engine. She’s a lover of public libraries, limericks, cats, and crying during movies. She hopes in her next life she’ll be born as something with wings. Follow her journey on Instagram at @90strashpop.

A writer and storyteller from Laredo, Rebekah holds both a bachelor’s and master’s degree in Communication from Texas A&M International University, where she served as editor-in-chief of The Bridge student newspaper. Her work spans poetry, personal essays, and news writing, often rooted in themes inspired by her South Texas upbringing. Rebekah has been featured in The Laredo Morning Times, DVINO Magazine, Rio Magazine, Infrarrealista Review, and Tragaluz Journal. She can be reached on Instagram @rebekahrdz.