As the only person in my family born in the United States, the embrace and maintenance of culture has always been something that has taken precedence in my life. My parents are Black Costa Ricans. My father came to the United States in the early 1980s, and my mother was able to join him in 1990 with my older brother in tow.

 

While not all Afro-Costa Ricans have the same origins, the majority of Black Costa Ricans are descendants of Caribbean migrant workers who built the Costa Rican National Railroad and/or labored for the United Fruit Company, now known as Dole, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Most of these people came from Jamaica, St. Lucia, and St. Kitts and Nevis. Although migration plays a large role in the lives of many people of Afro-Latinx heritage, something that is often not spoken of in the case of Black Costa Ricans is that many of these workers were contractually guaranteed a return to their respective countries – Jamaica in my family’s case – once their service commitments were complete. The companies that my predecessors worked for did not hold up their end of the bargain, and people ended up having to stay in Costa Rica. The wages they earned were not enough for them to afford getting back to their island homes. Some of my family members eventually made it back to Jamaica decades after their initial arrival, but the majority did not.

 

Which begs the question: what happens when a group of people are forced to create a home in a place where they did not expect to plant roots? The implications of this are applicable to Afro-Latinx people as well as Black people throughout the African Diaspora.

 

My family speaks Spanish because of their having lived in Costa Rica, and I am conversational in the language. However, the preferred language spoken in my family is Mekatelyu, or Limonense Creole. It is a language on its own and with its own rules. But it can be best described as an amalgam of Jamaican Patois, Igbo, Akan, Spanish, and British English. Access to this language reminds me of the importance of connection, storytelling, and recording histories.

 

My culture is important to me because despite promises being broken and people being forced to create home out of nothing in a foreign land, traditions were still retained and persist to this day. It is my belief that the resilience of my predecessors allowed me to experience success as a first-generation American and a first-generation college graduate. Their resilience also reminds me of the importance of embracing joy and of rejecting anything that actively works against my good.

 

As a result of my personal experiences and my family history, I have dedicated my personal and professional life to supporting initiatives and organizations that uplift the voices of marginalized people. I also take great joy in coordinating and participating in programming that prioritizes the needs and goals of people within marginalized communities.

 

One of my personal goals is to share this history and language with my children and with anyone who is open to learning more. I also hope to use skills I’ve developed over the course of my life to serve others. I am incredibly proud of my family, my origins, and what was able to be created out of difficult circumstances.

 

There are countless variables in our lives that influence the totality of who we become, of what our “I” is made up of. But for me, at least, there are only a few defining parts of my identity that drive me to become a physician assistant and work in rural Eastern Washington: my family, my Mexican immigrant experience, and my military service.

 

My parents, two brothers, and I immigrated from Aguascalientes, MX to rural Oroville, WA some 30 years ago when I was just a child. For my parents, this meant effectively leaving behind all they’d ever known and all they’d ever loved, simply to provide their three boys with an opportunity for a brighter tomorrow. In retrospect, that was the moment I realized what a profound impact sacrifice and selflessness can have on another human’s life, a moment that began to shape my character.

 

The area I grew up in, Okanogan Valley, was and still is an underserved, rural, often forgotten area of Washington State that greatly lacks social services and medical care. But it is one that I love and care for deeply because of its welcoming embrace when we arrived from Mexico. As migrant agricultural workers, my parents and the other orchard hands would often come home with infected cuts, broken fingers, or lacerations from work. But not once, and I mean never, would they visit a clinic or hospital because a single visit would cost an entire week’s paycheck. Either you feed your family, or you live with a deformed finger. They always chose the latter. While in elementary school, it was not a rare occurrence to see children of all ethnicities with lice, bed bug bites, toes protruding from torn shoes and soles held together by duct tape. Affordable or free healthcare was, unfortunately, as much a foreign concept as financial stability for many.

 

As I got older and high school graduation came around, I knew I wanted to help my community, and would need a conduit to do so. However, the attacks of 9/11 completely shifted my focus from local action to national contribution. I had just graduated high school and my opportunity for selfless service was readily apparent, and being a Mexican immigrant compelled me to do my part in answering my nation’s call. I knew if fighting had to be done, I wanted to be involved. I had always been peripherally interested in medicine as a kid, and so I joined the Army as a combat medic.

 

While in service, I met Cpt. Jones, a PA who not only taught me to be a better medic but made learning fun and exciting. Over the years, I recognized in myself the same empathy and love for medicine he exuded. From the second I became a medic I fell in love with medicine. Working next to Cpt. Jones helped me to realize that by becoming a PA, I could fuse my love for lifelong learning, empathy for the ill, and desire to help the less fortunate. The tools of a PA could transform me into an asset for the rural, underserved community I called “home” when growing up, and that I would once again embrace when I returned.

 

So, when I transition from being a MEDEX PA student to a medical provider, I will bring with me the passion to give back to the same community I was raised in. I have experienced the financial, cultural, and linguistic difficulties inherent in the immigrant experience, and I will use those lessons to provide a more equitable healthcare experience to my entire community. That community embraced my family and lent us a hand all those years ago, and I plan on gladly opening my arms and clinic doors in return.

 

I was born in a small town in Michoacan, Mexico where I lived in for the first nine years of my life. My dad immigrated my family and me to Washington State with hopes of a better future for all. Education has always been a priority in my family and my parents have supported me all the way. I am a first-generation student. I am the first in my family to be completing graduate school, which fills my family and me with joy and pride. Without their unconditional support, I would not be where I am today.

 

My journey in healthcare began as a receptionist in a medical clinic. Once I caught a glance of what was going on behind the reception desk, I transitioned to being a medical assistant. My older sister is a medical assistant, which certainly influenced my career choice as well. Within both roles I knew that physician assistant was just what I wanted to be.

 

I feel that the concept of giving back to the Latinx community became more prominent after working as a medical assistant for five years and encountering firsthand the difficulties some patients are faced with. Of course, also seeing it firsthand with my parents when I was younger made me reflect on this as well. I have three sisters and one brother. I am a middle child, and my brother is the youngest. Currently both of my older sisters are in the process of applying to graduate school. One of them is going for psychology and the other one is applying to PA school. My younger sister is going into dentistry. Certainly, we are all dedicated/motivated to work hard towards our dreams and goals and making my parents’ struggles and commitment be of value.

 

The Latinx community continues to be underrepresented in many areas, but particularly in healthcare. Knowing that I have a passion for healthcare and realizing that I will contribute to representing our Latinx community in healthcare continues to motivate me. I want to be of assistance to the Latinx community and to those who struggle with language barriers. I’d like to contribute to increasing health literacy for anyone presenting to me for aid. I would like to be a role model for future underrepresented individuals to inspire them and motivate them to follow their career dream and represent and aid their communities.

 

I was raised in a small town in Labelle, Florida. Its Hispanic population represents over 50% of the entire population. My parents had me in high school when my dad was 17 and my mom was 18; my dad a Mexican-American, my mom a Caucasian. I was fortunate enough to have had a massive presence of family and loved ones around me. Given my parents’ young age and decision not to marry, I was raised by a community of people during different times of my life, including my mom, dad, mom’s parents, dad’s parents and all the siblings of my dad and mom.

 

When I was with my dad, I remember eating only homemade tortillas and rice because I was so picky and refused to eat anything else. My abuela to this day loves to feed me as many tortillas as I can eat when I visit! When I spent time with my dad and my Gutierrez family, I always felt welcomed and able to pick up where we had last left off. I am grateful for those memories, because even with all those people caring for me during different stages of my life, I always felt I was given a safe space to grow and feel nurtured. These experiences have allowed me to develop a true appreciation for family and my community.

 

I believe my Hispanic heritage has helped mold my hardworking PA tendencies. My dad did not finish high school, yet he has worked extremely hard every single day for as long as I can remember driving a dump truck to provide for his family. To this day, he is known for being reliable and always completing the job successfully. These skills are extremely important as a PA as well.

 

For example, while in PA school, this determination and drive pushed me to be successful even when my significant other was deployed in Afghanistan. In addition, my mom passed away unexpectedly during my first year as a practicing PA. Everyone I worked with assumed I would move back to home to Florida after going through that tragedy. But I knew I had a career and life in Washington State, and felt determined to return and continue my path to see where it ended up.

 

Ultimately, I think I have been able to persevere through these challenges due to seeing what my dad and other family members have persevered through. It feels extremely rewarding to know that my hard work has saved lives, and I know it is special for my dad, too.