For Ana Gallegos, being Latina means being proud of her roots and of her drive to be una guerrera, a fighter.
“Being Latino means courage,” Gallegos said in Spanish. “It means being people who fight, warriors who want to achieve goals, who work hard to achieve these goals.”
Gallegos is an educational psychologist and teacher who taught in Ecuador and Connecticut, at Greenwich Academy and King School in Stamford.
Though now retired, she continues to serve her community through various avenues. She works with UCONN-PEP, a leadership program for Spanish-speaking families, REACH Prep, an educational program for Latino and African-American students, and Stamford PTLI (Parent Leadership Training Institute) as a board member, among many other organizations.
Gallegos’ commitment in serving the Stamford community earned her an award of recognition Sunday, alongside five other Latinas.
Recognizing outstanding Latinas
In recognition of Women’s History Month and International Women's Day, the Crisol Acuarela and Grupo Quetzal organizations celebrated the work and achievements of six women in their community Sunday afternoon in Ferguson Library.
The recipients included Lisie Orjuela for art, Noemi Berkoff for education, Ana Cabnal for youth leadership, Guadalupe Ramos for literature, Ana Gallegos for community service and Dr. Patricia Jorquera for health care.
Noemi Berkoff said she felt humbled receiving the award as a parent facilitator at Roxbury Elementary School in Stamford.
“It's inspiring to see women in so many different fields being recognized,” Berkoff said. “It makes you want to do more for your community, because we're very lucky to live in such a diverse and such an amazing community like Stamford.”
Berkoff said she is sharing her award with every woman who puts her heart and soul in the Stamford public school system.
Ana Cabnal, a student at Stamford High, received the Youth Leadership award for her advocacy work at school. Cabnal says she’s proud of what this award means for other Latinas.
“We're not represented as much,” Cabnal said, “So getting this recognition and being able to help out my community as a Latina is really important for me.”
Words for the next generation of Latinas
When asked what advice the recipients would offer to the next generation of Latinas, artist Lisie Orjuela offered words of wisdom to fellow young artists, encouraging them to develop their intuition and inner voice.
“Cultivate and strengthen the interior voice, the intuitive [mind], because that is what gives us artists … an interior balance but it is also very important for the balance of the community,” she said.
Dr. Patricia Jorquera is a pediatrician and the founder of TLC Pediatrics in Norwalk. Jorquera acknowledged that even though she’s raising two boys at home, her advice is the same: to learn discipline as you follow your passions.
“To not be afraid of barriers,” she said, “because the barriers are what makes us stronger and makes us try harder. And to learn delayed gratification. You don’t get what you want right now. You save, you take time and then you achieve, and the reward is much greater.”
Guadalupe Ramos, a journalist from Mexico City, is known for her leadership and support for Connecticut’s Hispanic community. Anahí Rossini accepted the award on her behalf.
“The advice I give to the new generation is to ask for support when they need it,” Ramos said in a statement that Rossini read, “because that will be the push to achieve their goals.”
Celebrating women beyond Women’s History Month
Crisol Acuarela and Grupo Quetzal announced Sunday that they are starting their first women’s soccer championship for the community. Training begins this week. The tournament is expected to begin in May.
