María Elena López
AVANCE-San Antonio, 1999
María Elena López was at a laundromat one day when she met a woman who told her about PCEP and encouraged her to enroll. At the time, she was a single mother who couldn’t speak English and had no GED. She had little support and not much of a social circle. María Elena registered for PCEP but struggled to balance her job and classes when the program began. Still, she persisted, and in 1999, María Elena López and her daughter Eva Espinoza graduated from PCEP.
Not only did PCEP give María Elena the tools and knowledge to be a better parent and to teach her children, but it also provided support as she built confidence in herself and her ability to overcome. Gradually she began to understand that no matter what obstacles she faced, she could always find purpose in her children. Maria Elena drew strength to carry on from the encouragement she received at AVANCE. Eva also remembers PCEP as a positive experience. Though some details are fuzzy, Eva specifically recalls an occasion when her mother dressed her up as a grape for class. María Elena also remembers but adds that Eva was disappointed because she wanted to be a pumpkin.
In addition to giving Eva opportunities to socialize with other children, PCEP taught María Elena how to lay a good foundation for her daughter and set her on the right path. Now that she is grown, Eva works at AVANCE. She never dreamed that she would have the chance to return, but she loves what she does. Initially hired five years ago as a Receptionist, she has already moved up to Operations Assistant. She is now enrolled at San Antonio College to obtain her Operations Management Certificate and plans to continue her education.
Working at AVANCE, Eva says that she receives support and encouragement for her own growth, and often, the families she interacts with remind her of how AVANCE helped her and her mother in the past. In turn, when parents reach out to AVANCE for support, Eva draws on her own experiences and shares her story to reassure those parents that they have come to the right place.