I was eight years old when my family fled Guatemala after my father was blacklisted for organizing with Indigenous farmers. Weeks after we left, our home was raided. We started over in America with nothing.

My parents worked survival jobs. I learned English, qualified for reduced lunch, and got my first job at 15. Education opened doors that once felt closed to families like mine.

Montgomery County gave my family the chance to thrive. I raised my daughters here, served eight years on the Board of Education, and I’m running for County Council to make sure that same opportunity is still within reach for the next generation.