A New Crossroads

Letter by Mary Camacho Torres

Fifty-five years ago, Guam faced a crisis. Our best and brightest were leaving the island in search of better opportunities. It was called the “brain drain.”

Reversing that trend became one of the first priorities of my father’s administration. Governor Camacho believed Guam was an “infant economic giant” - and he proved it by modernizing our economy, spurring growth, and bringing back educated sons and daughters to help build a new civilian government. Many who returned became the steady hands that guided Guam through its fragile early years of self-governance.

Today, we find ourselves at another crossroads. Our people are leaving again - not because they don’t love home, but because they don’t see a future here. I recently read that one of the saddest things is to be tied to a land and yet feel unwelcome in it. That is how many families feel today - priced out of paradise by a cost of living that keeps rising faster than our paychecks.

For the first time in generations, the dream of homeownership feels out of reach, no matter how hard young families work. What used to be a birthright - owning a piece of our homeland - has become a privilege few can afford. Too many of our neighbors live so close to the edge, where they are one flat tire or one medical bill away from falling behind.

These struggles are real. They are the same challenges that moved me to run for senator years ago. It was risky to stand in the middle, to be a voice for all of Guam - not just one party or one side. But I believed trust is built by doing what’s right. I am proud that we delivered results that made a difference - cutting taxes for small businesses, expanding paid parental leave, and strengthening protections for victims of violence.

Still, I saw the limits of what we can do alone. The truth is, many of the pressures that make life harder for Guam families are not of our own making. They are written into federal policy.

It’s federal reimbursement rates at GMH that haven’t changed in decades.

It’s shipping laws that make everything we buy more expensive.

It’s congressional drafters who forget to include Guam unless we fight to be counted.

Many in our community feel like things may never change. That these failures will weigh us down no matter how hard we work. A friend of mine asked me recently if anyone can make a difference anymore. My answer was simple: only if we care.

That’s why Guam’s delegate matters so much. The delegate’s job isn’t a D.C. job - it’s a Guam job. And it’s worth isn’t measured by press releases or pictures with party leaders, but by whether families can afford to stay here, whether veterans receive the care they’ve earned, and whether our manåmko can live out their days with dignity and peace.

I believe that standard of living is within reach. But it will take leadership that listens, works, and fights for Guam’s families. Leadership that doesn’t wait for Washington to notice, but makes Washington pay attention.

We cannot afford another generation lost to doubt or distance. We cannot afford representation that reacts too late, delivers too little, or speaks for only some.

Our forefathers understood that the best way to shape the future was to build it themselves. They didn’t accept the world as it was handed to them. They built something better. And we owe it to them, and to those who will follow, to leave behind a Guam stronger than the one we inherited.

Progress has never come from waiting for someone else to act. It comes from showing up, doing the work, and believing that this island - and everyone who calls it home - is still worth fighting for.

We have done it before. Surely, we can do it again.