Holy Family School first-graders Marlon Arvizu, left, and Stephenie Wilson clasp hands in unity after a little prayer to end the school day. Holy Family School first-graders Marlon Arvizu, left, and Stephenie Wilson clasp hands in unity after a little prayer to end the school day.

A tree blooms in White Center's Park Lake Homes area

Veronica Fisher smiles from inside the decorative trailer where she sells Veronica's Espresso in White Center.

Steam rises from corn tortillas at the La Mexicana plant as Jose Torres works on the production line.

White Center is a community of great cultural diversity. Thanh-Huyen Doan, 63, prays at the Buddhist shrine in the home she shares with her husband, four daughters, two sons and one grandchild. The family came from Vietnam in 1991.

King County police officer Don Davis works the streets of downtown White Center. He has helped weed out habitual criminals while also working to help straighten out wayward kids.

Jerome Sumalbag, right, and David Asfour, rear, are wide-eyed and attentive during storytime in their kindergarten class at Holy Family School in White Center.

Morrey Eskenazi, owner of White Center Meat Co., knows he can't compete with the supermarket "specials," so he says he goes them one better by offering superior quality and service.

Anna Castro, co-owner of Salvadorean Bakery, fled El Salvador in 1982 to start a new life in America.