Hello,

My name is Martina Gallegos, aka, Martina Robles Gallegos. I came from a rural town in Mexico at the age of fourteen; I spoke no English at all, and my Spanish wasn’t that great either. I had to learn both languages when I started school in the United States, as a junior high schooler. Since teachers didn’t know how to teach me, or what to do with me, I had to devise clever ways to teach myself English.

I moved on to high school, with teachers doubting my ability to succeed. I started using the language I’d learned even though it was still pretty bad. It was here that I met some wonderful teachers who saw potential in me and trusted that I’d make the right choices; I wasn’t going to disappoint them. To shorten my story, I lost my mother to suicide when I was in tenth grade, but I studied super hard and graduated top ESL student. I attended community college, facing more challenges but persevered then moved on to university. There I faced more societal obstacles but managed to focus nevertheless. Unfortunately, I lost a sister to suicide, the second family member. Again I had to give 110% to stay in school. I graduated and then got my bilingual teaching credential.

I taught for almost eighteen years until a work injury followed by a massive hemorrhagic stroke, coma, brain and heart surgeries ended my teaching career, but I tell people: and that was the best thing that happened to me; the nightmares began after I got home.

I became a volunteer at my local hospital and elementary school since I was not allowed to even visit my worksite. I resumed my Masters but couldn’t attend ground school because of the driving thing. I then looked for and found an online program. I changed subjects but enrolled and, facing seemingly insurmountable obstacles, I was able to complete my Masters degree. I started publishing a month before my graduation. I graduated with my Masters and my daughter with her high school diploma.