Hello, I am currently a third-year student at UNC Wilmington, majoring in Spanish. I’m excited to be interning with Student Action Farmworkers (SAF).
I grew up in Florida a small town best known for its strawberry fields and the annual Strawberry Festival. I also spent part of my childhood in North Carolina, a small town which I often describe as living in the woods surrounded by deer.
Coming from a family of fieldworkers, agricultural work was my first job as well. As a child, I didn’t fully understand what my mother meant when she said I was lucky to have the chance to work outside of the fields. She always encouraged me to pursue an office job or any indoor career that would spare me the harsh conditions she endured under the sun. Seeing her hard work and sacrifices became my biggest motivation to succeed academically and become her retirement plan.
When I started college, I wasn’t exactly sure what I wanted to major in I just knew I wanted to reconnect with my first language, Spanish. After moving away from Florida, I realized how important it was to me to feel confident speaking Spanish with others, especially those who face language barriers. That desire led me to work as an English/Spanish tutor, translator, and mentor.
I applied to SAF because its mission and values closely align with my own. I want to support other fieldworkers and also gain exposure to the legal field, as I hope to become a professional interpreter in the future. I’m looking forward to the journey ahead, learning to live independently and gaining knowledge that will stay with me for a lifetime.
