I am a Dragon

Inspired by a book that I read during my sophomore year at Sonoma Valley High, I have always worked to help others. The book, “Free the Children,” motivated me to participate in my first international volunteer trip with Seeds of Learning.

SOL is a Sonoma-based nonprofit organization that organizes 20 trips a year to Latin America with the goal of improving educational opportunities in rural villages. From my very first trip to El Salvador the summer before my senior year in high school, I have found fulfillment in working to improve the lives of those in need.

My two sisters, brother and I were raised in Sonoma. My parents, Richard and Janice, defied the odds by having two sets of twins.

My twin sister, Robin, and I graduated from Sonoma Valley High School in 2004, and my brother Dan and sister Holly are graduates of the class of 2000. Looking back, we all felt that SVHS offered us great opportunities for personal development through the art, music and sports programs. I can also say that each of us also really connected with at least one teacher or coach during our high school years.

The summer before my high school senior year, I signed up for my first service trip to El Salvador with Seeds of Learning.

Little did I know that helping to build schools in rural Nicaragua and El Salvador would change my life.

When I returned from my first service trip, I immediately began working with SOL to organize another trip to El Salvador with other students from the high school.

After I graduated, I attended UC Santa Cruz and double majored in communication studies and sociology/Latin American Latino studies. The highlight of my college years was a six-month field study in Chalatenango, El Salvador, where I worked with a local NGO (non-governmental organization) to preserve natural resources and improve the local infrastructure and economy.

After college, I decided to make El Salvador my permanent home. I spent five years working with Habitat for Humanity El Salvador as the stewardship and donor relations coordinator. During this time, I also married my husband, Jerardo, who I had met several years earlier on one of my volunteer trips. I loved working with Habitat, and especially enjoyed the many opportunities I had to visit our construction sites and get to know our partner families.

In December of 2013, Jerardo and I decided to start a new chapter in our lives and we moved back to Sonoma. It was a dream come true for me when shortly after moving back, I was offered a job here with Seeds of Learning. I currently work as the stewardship and donor relations coordinator. Jerardo has a part-time job with La Luz Center and is also studying English.

One of the most enjoyable aspects of my job with SOL is working with the current SVHS students who are planning a service trip to Nicaragua at the end of March. Working with the students takes me back to my first trip to Central America, and brings back many happy memories. It is wonderful that SVHS students are so enthusiastic about volunteering, learning about other cultures, and making the world a better place. I am happy to see these students have the same opportunity for a life-changing experience with Seeds of Learning that I once had.

The book, “Free the Children,” motivated ?me to participate in my first international volunteer trip with Seeds of Learning.