In 1981, a migrant farmworker made the trek to the U.S. to work in the fields of California, Oregon and Washington, picking produce. He diligently kept records and notebooks of every penny earned and every cent he mailed home to Mexico.

His grandson, Los Angeles Times contributor Xavier Martínez, recently unearthed those notebooks. Xavier joined host Lisa McRee on “LA Times Today” to share how his grandfather, through sacrifice, gradually built generational wealth for his family.

Pedro Martínez moved from Oaxaca to Escondido, California, before making his way to Washington. Xavier explained that his grandfather saved every penny he could to build a house for his family in Mexico, keeping meticulous records along the way.

“It was a ledger, and it had from 2008 and 2009, every single day that my grandfather was in the U.S., what he did, or how many hours he worked, how much he made, and then a little description of kind of what he did that day, what the weather was like,” Xavier said. “Maybe, if he didn’t work, he would note that he was resting. They were very short comments, but they were very, very descriptive and illuminating.”

Xavier talked about the importance the entries hold to him.

“They tell a lot about what my family was up to,” he said. “It’s really cool to be able to know what was happening before there was social media or this process of really keeping notes that we have today in the digital age. But also it paints a picture of the generational wealth that was able to be established in my family again, from going from very, very poor Mexican farmers to a very much a middle class family.”

Because of his grandfather’s work, Xavier and other members of his family have been able to attain higher education and strive for careers.

“I think it’s a little difficult for him to see that trickle-down effect and the building of the wealth itself, but I think he’s very happy that he accomplished his goals,” Xavier said. “And he’s certainly proud of all of us who have gone on to follow our own dreams ourselves.”

Pedro and his wife still live in their house in Mexico.

Click the arrow above to watch the full interview.

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