By Teresa Schwarz and Claire Naughton | HOOP Co-founder and Volunteer
Guillermina stumbled upon HOOP four years ago. She was looking for a primary school for her daughter and decided on the school that shares its building with HOOP in the afternoons. She was new to the area at that time and expressed immediate interest in joining HOOP. The rest, as they say, is history: “I really like the English classes and that my daughter can learn a second language, which will provide her with a lot of opportunities.”
A thoughtful and friendly woman, Guillermina is also quick to smile and lend a hand, qualities that got her elected to the HOOP Mom Board of Directors. She leads by example with her subtle but immensely important contributions to Board meetings; she is always mindful of including everybody in the conversations, encouraging shyer members to participate and offering democratic solutions: “I was very shy at the beginning and couldn’t talk in public, but I practiced with the other Moms…[now] we know each other and tell each other our stories. Sometimes we hang out in Myriam’s house just to talk.
Guillermina has been a model HOOP mother to work with. She attends the moms’ workshops and classes nearly every day, and is always open to learning new things and hearing new ideas. She is especially active in workshops about parenting techniques: “My favorite is that I learned about how I can educate my daughters. You teach us not to use force, which is how I was raised.”
Guillermina’s commitment to her daughters extends into her own, personal dreams; when asked about her goals or thoughts for the future she simply replied: “One of my daughters is still very young and I don’t have anybody who can take care of her, but I would like to start working."
By Marina Lobato and Claire Naughton | HOOP Social Work Coordinator and Volunteer
By Teresa Schwarz and Claire Naughton | HOOP Co-founder and Volunteer
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