Feeling Blessed
I’m not one to boast on my accomplishments, because humility is a value that is very important to me. However, my family and close friends continue to insist that there’s nothing wrong with sharing the good news, especially since writing about the cool things happening around Cibola County is kind of my job!
In saying that, the last couple weeks have been chaotic, but so rewarding. As I wrapped up the Spring 2022 semester at New Mexico State University-Grants, I had the opportunity to go to New York City to be recognized as the state of New Mexico’s 2022 Coca-Cola New Century Transfer Pathway Scholar! This was in connection with the $2,250 scholarship I received, mentioned in an article from the Cibola Citizen’s April 6 edition. To represent New Mexico and NMSU on the national level was such an honor, and I can’t express how grateful I feel.
Being in New York, it made me laugh how many people around that part of the country do not know that New Mexico is actually a part of the United States and not Mexico. Laughs aside though, in that moment at the Phi Theta Kappa President’s Breakfast in New York City, I just felt extremely proud to be a New Mexican and a citizen of Cibola County. My home and my community are a huge part of who I am, and I felt so grateful to represent this place that I love.
A few days after returning from New York, I also participated in NMSU Grants’ 50th Commencement and graduated with my Associate of Arts as a Crimson Scholar, Meritorious Graduate, member of Phi Theta Kappa, Outstanding Student in the departments of Humanities and Communications, and PTK All-State Academic Team Awardee. There were two students from NMSU Grants to receive the PTK All-State scholarship and recognition, and the second student was Lubertita Molina, who was the Student Speaker for the NMSU Grants graduating Class of 2022. Lubertita gave a very inspirational speech about overcoming insecurity and self-doubt to return to school after years of being a single mother. She talked about taking that first step to further her education, never turning back, working hard, and evolving from a young woman who was very unsure of herself to someone who is now confident and believes she could take on the world.
I have experienced a similar growth in confidence over the past two years, and I think a large part of that is the support that comes from the faculty and staff at NMSU Grants. There is definitely a stigma about attending community colleges, and I hope that stories like mine and Lubertita’s show students around Cibola County that the community college option can be such a blessing. We all have our different paths, and that is more than okay, but my hope is that young students start to see community college as an equal to other possible options.
In the few interviews I have had with Mayor Erik Garcia, he has often referred to NMSU Grants as a huge “asset” to the Cibola community, and I couldn’t agree more. I cannot boast enough about how friendly, supportive, helpful, and always willing the NMSU Grants faculty and staff are. In education, there are always good teachers and bad teachers, and you just have to experience both. This might sound unbelievable, but I can honestly say that at NMSU Grants, I experienced nothing but kind, helpful, and quality professors with each course that I took.
One more thing that I have really enjoyed about NMSU Grants has been the sense of community. Whether it’s in class, or in the front office, or in the Student Success Center, or the automotive shop — NMSU Grants genuinely feels like a community. It is a community of friends, colleagues, and amazing people that care both about education and the Cibola community.
It has been such a blessing to experience NMSU Grants both from the perspective of a student and the perspective of a journalist. It has allowed me to dig deeper, beyond just the classes I was taking, and to meet the incredible people who make NMSU Grants what it is. I feel grateful to have received the first portion of my education from there, and I encourage anyone local who is thinking about going back to school to give NMSU Grants a try. This is not an advertisement, of course; this is a fulfilled student who just happens to also be a writer for her local newspaper who wants to show her appreciation for community college and everything they did for her. There are manyof individuals I wish I could name one by one, but that would take up most of the page, so I will leave it at this: Thank you, NMSU Grants.
I also have to thank my family and my parents, Paul and Shawna Garcia, for all of their love, encouragement, belief, and support. I could have never aimed for these goals or accomplishments without seeing the examples they both set first. I am so blessed to have them as my parents. Both my parents graduated from NMSU Grants, my dad was the automotive instructor for 25 years, and my uncle, Gabe Garcia, currently works as a math instructor as well – so Crimson definitely runs deep in my family!
Finally, I have to thank God for being my rock, my lighthouse, and my strength every step of the way. Every time I wanted to give up, He put this verse on my heart: “Put your heart and soul into every activity you do, as though you are doing it for the Lord himself and not merely for others.” (Colossians3:23,TPT) God bless, Cibola!