{"id":505469,"date":"2026-01-10T05:52:13","date_gmt":"2026-01-10T05:52:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/505469\/"},"modified":"2026-01-10T05:52:13","modified_gmt":"2026-01-10T05:52:13","slug":"hes-family-beloved-san-antonio-maintenance-worker-loses-home-unam-community-steps-up","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/505469\/","title":{"rendered":"‘He’s family’: Beloved San Antonio maintenance worker loses home, UNAM community steps up"},"content":{"rendered":"

After a NYE fire left longtime an UNAM San Antonio staffer and his family without a home, coworkers and the campus community are stepping up to help him rebuild. <\/p>\n

SAN ANTONIO \u2014 For more than 80 years, UNAM San Antonio<\/a> has served as a cultural and educational bridge between Mexico and the Alamo City. Now, the campus community is rallying behind one of its own after longtime staff member Jaime Amuch\u00e1stegui lost his home in a New Year\u2019s Eve fire.<\/p>\n

Amuch\u00e1stegui, who has worked at UNAM San Antonio for more than 15 years, was displaced along with his wife and three children after fireworks sparked a fire that severely damaged their home.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The family escaped unharmed but is now without a permanent place to live while repairs and insurance claims are underway.<\/p>\n

\u201cJaime is more than a coworker\u2014he\u2019s family,\u201d said Alfredo \u00c1valos, a member of UNAM San Antonio\u2019s cultural office. \u201cAnybody who has come to UNAM in the last 15 years knows him for how welcoming and generous he is.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u00c1valos said Amuch\u00e1stegui is known across campus for his friendly demeanor and constant willingness to help, whether it’s assisting visitors, supporting events or stepping in wherever he is needed.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s the person we all go to when we need something,\u201d \u00c1valos said. \u201cFrom setting up exhibits to welcoming people and helping with events, he\u2019s everywhere and for everybody. I always say he\u2019s our best public relations.\u201d<\/p>\n


\n \"\"<\/p>\n

The fire in the Helotes area occurred around midnight on New Year\u2019s Eve during fireworks celebrations, according to \u00c1valos, who said that is what Amuch\u00e1stegui believes caused the blaze. An investigation by the San Antonio Fire Department is ongoing.<\/p>\n

\u201cSometimes bad things happen to good people,\u201d \u00c1valos said. \u201cThis has been a really hard time for him and his family.\u201d<\/p>\n


\n \"\"<\/p>\n

While the family is currently staying with relatives, \u00c1valos said the time between the fire and receiving insurance assistance has been especially difficult. In response, UNAM San Antonio staff, students, faculty, and supporters\u00a0have launched a fundraising campaign<\/a> to help cover temporary housing, replace essential household items and meet basic needs.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is why we started this campaign, to help him in this moment of need,\u201d \u00c1valos said. \u201cWe are embracing him as one of us, and we\u2019re sure the San Antonio community will do the same.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u00c1valos added that the outpouring of support reflects the values UNAM San Antonio has promoted since opening its doors in San Antonio in 1944.<\/p>\n

\u201cEducation and culture have been our mission here for more than 80 years,\u201d \u00c1valos said. \u201cAnd that sense of community\u2014that\u2019s very real.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u00c1valos said Amuch\u00e1stegui has not yet returned to work as he focuses on his family and recovery but emphasized that he is not facing the situation alone.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe just want Jaime to know that he\u2019s surrounded by people who care,\u201d \u00c1valos said. \u201cWe hope very soon he\u2019ll be back on his feet and being the joyful, generous person he\u2019s always been.\u201d<\/p>\n

Information on how to support Amuch\u00e1stegui and his family is available here through UNAM San Antonio\u2019s fundraising campaign<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"After a NYE fire left longtime an UNAM San Antonio staffer and his family without a home, coworkers…\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":505470,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5133],"tags":[5229,7202,7203,358,3187,67,586,132,5230,68,2969],"class_list":{"0":"post-505469","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-san-antonio","8":"tag-america","9":"tag-san-antonio","10":"tag-sanantonio","11":"tag-texas","12":"tag-tx","13":"tag-united-states","14":"tag-united-states-of-america","15":"tag-unitedstates","16":"tag-unitedstatesofamerica","17":"tag-us","18":"tag-usa"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@us\/115869250069700099","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/505469","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=505469"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/505469\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/505470"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=505469"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=505469"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=505469"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}