Marilyn Torres is a storyteller, and activist, and a Chieftain. She was renamed by ARABA a senior Elder and IFA Chieftain of the city of Lagos, Nigeria West Africa. He was also the senior elder of the African Society of African Descendants in 1984. She was given the name Omifunke, Omi meaning water, Funke means last born of the lineage as she is the youngest of 3 children.
Marilyn Torres was born on June 8, 1959 in Brooklyn, New York. After her sixth grade graduation, her uncle took her to Puerto Rico where she lived for two years. Even though Marilyn had spent her summers in Puerto Rico, life on the island was a stark contrast to her life in New York. In the USA, Marilyn felt more confident to she could speak her mind. In Puerto Rico, she felt less grounded and struggled to adapt to island living.
Marilyn ultimately returned to New York City, where she began to experiment with her own personal style, combining several elements of different fashion inspirations. Torres credits Anthropologist Dr. Joseph Scott Francher as one of her crucial mentors. Francher was Chairperson of the Department of Anthropology at John Jay College of Criminal Justice where she enrolled as a young woman. Francher saw something in her and encouraged her her to go into academics though she didn’t like or trust the academic world.
One of Torres’ favorite stories to tell is “the house that fell from the sky”. Before moving to Phoenix, she lived in guest house on a large ranch in Montana. When the family who owned the land decided to make some changes, Torres had to walk away from the land she was living on. She tried to find another place in Montana and started a storytelling bed and breakfast. She came to Phoenix to visit some friends. She wasn’t able to get the place she wanted in Montana so her goddaughter suggested that she need to come to Phoenix. Torres knew about South Phoenix because her niece who was in the second cohort group of the nursing program at South Mountain Community College. Torres sold her house, became a teacher and lived in Glendale. Her niece told her to check out South Phoenix, and though she was hesitant, she gave it a shot. She came to South Mountain and remembered what she was told by an elder in Nigeria, “A time would come when she would sit on the base of a mountain”.
Torres began house hunting, and while she was touring one home, she walked outside to see if she could picture herself living there. As she was standing on the street, a man approached her. The man, who lived in a different home in the neighborhood was considering selling his own home to move out of state. Torres went with him to tour his home, and in the moment she walked in, the man’s wife looked at Torres and said “She can have it.” Even though the house wasn’t even on the market yet! When they closed, Torres’ realtor told her that the man was dying of cancer, and that he wanted to go home and die in Utah. His wife was not sure about the move until she met Marilyn.
Soon, Torres was told about the Storytelling Institute at South Mountain Community College, and decided to take classes. On the first day of class, Marilyn saw the instructor, Liz Warren walk in and immediately wanted to know her. Torres became a devoted student of Liz’s and later a colleague when Liz asked Marilyn to take over teaching a class for another faculty member who was ill.
At the time when Torres arrived at SMCC it was very different, there was a dynamic between locals as well as students and faculty. In Torres’ view, changing leadership and the COVID-19 Pandemic “knocked the wind out of our sails.” Where she once saw student leadership and involvement at the college and within the community, she now sees opportunity to recapture the magic. Torres believes there’s much to restore, such as compassion, engagement, and devoted service to the realization of the student and the South Phoenix community.
Torres has taught many students at SMCC and built a program that is organized so students and young women have a place to understand the power they have.
| Narrator | Marilyn Torres |
| Birthdate | June 8,1959 |
| Place of Origin | Brooklyn, NY |
| Place of Residence | Phoenix, Arizona |
| Role | Storyteller, Professor |
| Years active in South Phoenix | 1949- |
| Interview Date | Nov 8, 2023 |
| Location | South Mountain Community College |
| Duration | 1:22:55 |
| Interviewed by | Student Researcher: Angelique Gomez |
| Story Written by | Student Researcher: Angelique Gomez Faculty Co-Author: Dr. Summer Cherland |
South Phoenix Oral History Project 