Anna is a champion for the under-served and for those in need. While raising a conscientious, kind, and considerate son, Anna has spent the last ten years volunteering as a teacher at Homeboy Industries in Los Angeles. Homeboy Industries provides hope, training, and support to formerly gang-involved and previously incarcerated men and women allowing them to redirect their lives and become contributing members of our community.
Her work is driven by a passionate belief that Catholic education is transformative through the experience of God’s unconditional love. Those who know Anna say she is loyal, dedicated, and kind. She puts her family first, cares deeply for people, and is a true and loyal friend. Her accomplishments are admirable and she leads by example.
One day my father was reading a Jesuit magazine, his brother had been a Jesuit, and he pointed to a photo of Fr. Greg Boyle, founder of HBI, and said, “You should work there.” I went to the website, filled out their volunteer application and had an interview the next day. It has been my honor to be part of Homeboy Industries for the last nine years. In my work at Homeboy I am a GED Social Studies teacher and a college tutor. The idea of “service” and “giving back” were an integral part of my perception of being a good citizen and it was with that intent that I started my work there—I was completely wrong.
I quickly learned that I wasn’t giving anything back to anyone; rather, I was receiving the blessing of walking alongside an individual in the process of transformation. Fr. Greg says that we don’t go to the margins to transform, but to be transformed. We “stand with the least likely to succeed until success is succeeded by something more valuable: kinship.”
“I am humbled to join such an impactful list of women as a Carondelet Alumnae of the Year. Carondelet inspires women to live with heart, faith, and courage in the Catholic tradition and the spirit of the Sisters of St. Joseph.”