Happy Women’s History Month to ALL the warriors, the firsts at many tables, the caretakers, the lovers, and the fighters …..

I come from an army of amazing women who showed me day in and day out what was possible to accomplish. This Women’s History Month 2023 – I would like to dedicate it to a few of them.

My maternal great-grandmother Josefina – or as we called her Abuelita Josefa. With magical soft hands and the warmest heart. She taught me that EVERYONE deserves to be loved and treated with dignity and respect. My Abuelita made the most amazing meals with very little – she came from very humble beginnings and was always proud of it. To me, she was also a genius – very smart and often reminded us that she only had a 3rd-grade education. She would make us delicious candy out of the peel of grapefruit, oranges, and fruit roll-ups with the peel of the papaya. She was resourceful, a great self-taught guitar player, and a seamstress. I believe it’s safe to say that my siblings and I were her favorites, mainly due to proximity since we lived next door to her. She made beautiful quilts out of scraps, and music from her soul. My Abuelita had 3 kids – two girls and a boy. Let’s talk about the phenomenal women she raised, my grandmother Martha and great-aunt Frayda.

Their generation learned from the best to continue to be fearless. My great aunt Frayda became the FIRST woman to be elected as the Presidenta Del Municipio del Canton Bolivar (the Mayor of the State of Bolivar). I was very young when this amazing trailblazing milestone took place, yet, I will never forget hearing the words “Madam President” even until the day she took her last breath. She did amazing things for our state and had the largest female staff around her who supported her and made her shine even brighter. She served two terms and not until this election year (2023) was there another female elected to hold that seat once again. She is HERSTORY.

My grandmother Martha – whose sacrifices and endless resilience gave my family and I the opportunity of the American Dream. She believes in hard work, dedication, and education. She is also an amazing cook – it is truly in the family genetics. From her – my amazing mother was born. A woman who fears and loves God and who we also feared growing up. My mother was strict and expected a lot from us – she worked as a teacher for many years and has always been very loved by her students. She believes in women’s power and strength to do all things and break all barriers.

My Mom is and will always be my biggest inspiration and my hero. Her dreams for me have always been bigger than my own goals as she never truly understood the “glass ceiling” concept. For her, there was nothing a woman couldn’t accomplish – anything she could break to get to, or she could build to be part of. My SHERO – relentless like the sun on a southern summer day and as brave as the waves on the Pacific Ocean. My mother taught me that every NO, was because I was not aiming high enough. I often get asked how I deal with impostor syndrome or impostorism – this is my response “ I belong in each seat I have held, I have earned every accomplishment – I know my talent, I know my worth and I know what I bring to each opportunity I have worked for” – this has been the work of my mother in raising me and thanks to that I have never felt like I didn’t belong or doubt any of my accomplishments.  

Today I would like to celebrate these amazing role moles who are the reason I am standing here today: My Great-Grandmother Josefina, My Great-Aunt Frayda, My Grandmother Martha, and My mother Maria.

Happy Women’s History Month 2023!