I am originally from Mexico City and have lived in Colorado for the first 20 years of my life as undocumented. I was eventually able to receive my permanent residency. I have lived in the Montbello area now for almost 20 years and have owned my own home in Montbello for about 7 years. I’ve had the privilege to work with several organizations out in this area such as Strengthening Families, Steps to Success and a few others. I’ve always been involved in the community in some way but wasn’t able to vote because of my status as a permanent resident. A co-worker believed it was important to vote on things concerning our community and helped me to proudly obtain my Citizenship, with the promise to vote and continue to make an impact here in Montbello. Now I have the honor of serving on MOC board, and keeping my promise to continue to be involved and making an impact not only in our state but most importantly the community that I do proudly live in.