Hi everyone! My name is Kenly Montes. I am a Latina born from immigrant parents. My dad was born and raised in Zacatecas and my mom in Guerrero. Two small pueblitos, one is El Pozo de Jarillas, and the other is Las Juntas de Chacámero.
I am about to be a senior at East Carolina University in Greenville, NC. I am majoring in Computer Science with a minor in Information and Computer Technology. I was born in Dunn, NC and I have lived almost my whole life in Newton Grove, NC.
I am doing this internship to get more exposure in helping my community. My dad was a farmworker for several years. I still have uncles and cousins who come to the US on a working visa and work as farmworkers. Over the course of the years, I have gotten more interested in advocacy, being the voice for many people like me. Part of me still wants to be an educator because I have always loved helping out, especially when I know I can help. That is also why I am interested in organizing.
I am most excited about all the outreach I will be doing. I want to hear the stories that these farmworkers have to share. Just sitting down and having those conversations is so meaningful. I just finished my first day on-site and I can tell that this summer is going to be busy but fun!
Orientation was a blast, so I know that the people I am surrounded by have the same goals. I am most afraid of getting nervous and butchering my Spanish. Although Spanish is my first language, it has gotten rough over the years. I feel that that’s something a lot of people can relate to. I hope that coming out of this program, my Spanish would have improved.
The picture I am sharing with my blog post is from when we started outlining the goals for the documentary I am going to be a part of this summer. I am a part of the Eastern NC group. I am excited to do the activity with the farmworkers.