By: Perla Hernandez, 2026 ITF Intern
Immokalee, the Miccousoke origin means my home, and if anyone asked where home was, this would be my answer. Growing up migrant, however, has not allotted me this privilege. Home has been where I’ve settled for the season. Where I wait for the seasonal fruits of my parents labor to bloom. Where I find role models through demonstrations of diligence within the tomato fields.
Since attending my school, the University of Miami, I’ve felt as if all the work that contributed to my acceptance has faded. The identity 17 year-old me applied with has been lost in a sea of peers with similar career aspirations but worldly different pasts. I am nothing without my foundation, and I’m grateful to have realized this just as my accomplishments blossom. Being accepted to the Into the Fields internship with Student Action with Farmworkers, is a true blessing and I see it as a bridge between my promising future and crucial acceptance of my past.
I navigate my life believing that nothing appears in my life without a purpose. As I enter the health-intern position I was granted, I do so through a legal perspective, but most importantly through the eyes of a young me running around campos during health fairs, excited to meet kind nurses ready to grant my family and I health resources. These experiences have led me to believe that I now get the privilege to give back in a way that cemented my upbringing, truly creating a full-circle moment. This is what I'm most excited about this summer. To relive experiences that I’ve lived through, though this time I’ll have the privilege to aid communities such as mine.
If there’s anything school has taught me, it's that breaking past your personal boundaries allows a wealth of knowledge to enter your life. So even though I enter this journey nervous of what’s ahead of me, I know that in the end I’ll be grateful to myself for allowing myself to immerse myself into a beautiful environment surrounded by like-minded students ready to initiate change within our own diverse communities. In doing this I know that learning about my peers from all different parts of the country will strengthen my views of the world allowing me to excel professionally and personally.
I’m proud of my past and accomplishments paving a path toward my future. I know that after
this summer, the ITF internship will have solidified my drive to continue to “echarle ganas”. Knowing that there are students with backgrounds such as mine who’ve excelled in their own respective fields, is my reasoning and reminder “que si se puede”. My family, community in Immokalee and agriculture workers across the country facing hardship will forever be my “why?”.