Looking out the living room window of her small apartment, Margarita reflects on how much her life has changed from the dreams she had when she lived in war-torn El Salvador. It was Margarita's strong work ethic and unwavering faith that helped her stay alive, partially recover and then obtain employment after she became disabled by a stroke. In the summer of 2000, Margarita was visiting family in El Salvador when she suffered a sudden and severe stroke. In order to receive medical care, her two adult sons wired money form Oakland, California. Margarita consulted with every doctor that would see her in El Salvador, seeking one who would permit her to return to Oakland. Four months later they finally they allowed her to travel back to Oakland.

El Salvadorian immigrants have a particular history in the U.S. The Central American wars displaced thousands of people, uprooting them from their homes and dispersing them across the U.S. and elsewhere. Many of them found a home in the San Francisco Bay Area. Thanks to Clínica de la Raza in Oakland, more Bay Area Salvadorians were able to receive culturally competent healthcare in their own language and respectful of their cultural values.

Outstanding Clinic
Back home in Oakland, Margarita immediately contacted Clínica de la Raza, the local health clinic serving the Latino community. She was able to see a doctor who helped her to get physical therapy and other treatments.

Margarita feared that she'd face what many other Latinos confront when they become disabled: inadequate rehabilitation services exacerbated by language and cultural differences. Competent service delivery is necessary for diverse communities where clients need service providers who are familiar with their language and culture. In Oakland where Margarita lives, Latinos comprise a large percentage of the population. Fortunately, there are service providers who are bilingual and bicultural. The Clínica de la Raza has served the community for many years, employing individuals who come from the community they serve.

With her doctor's help, Margarita worked diligently to strengthen herself while she looked for employment. Although she could no longer do housekeeping, Margarita received services from vocational rehabilitation. But all of their efforts failed because she wasn't able to do full-time work. "But I wanted to work so badly. I've always loved working," says Margarita.

Training for New Work
Without a way to support herself, Margarita went to the local Center for Independent Living (CIL) to inquire about the possibilities for benefits. Margarita found out she qualified for Social Security benefits. It took six months to receive benefits and another two years of physical therapy and care to recover to a point where she could work. A staff person at CIL referred Margarita to rehabilitation services for retraining, but Margarita's English was too limited for that. Instead, she began taking English classes.

Margarita's CIL benefits counselor Loni communicated frequently with Margarita and encouraged her to learn English. "Margarita really embraced the challenge. And although I told her that she needed to learn more English before she could get into the job-training program, she was determined to find a job right away. She asked me to help her keep looking for a job as she was improving her English. So, we kept looking for a job for her without any success."  Margarita, however, kept searching for a job independently throughout the process.

Finding a Job
While she was learning English and searching for a job, one of Margarita's sons found a newspaper position vacancy announcement for an assistant. He showed it to Margarita and she took the bus 40 blocks away to the daycare center that had the vacancy. When she arrived at the daycare center, she discovered that the owner, Mrs. Nelson, didn't speak Spanish. But Margarita made herself understood about her ability and desire to work. Nelson was not convinced that Margarita had the strength to help her do the childcare and cleaning the job required. Margarita managed to convince Nelson to hold the position until she got her son there to help translate.

When her son arrived, he translated for Margarita and explained to the owner that his mother had been the hardest working person he knew. He added, "Although she has lost some mobility due to the stroke, my mother is still able to do all of her housework by herself. She has worked very hard through rehabilitation to regain strength. All of her life she has done the kind of work that you need done here and I can vouch for the fact that she will do it very well."

Margarita's son also explained to that she could only work part-time because of her disability. Mrs. Nelson considered the request and agreed to employ Margarita. Loni said, "I was very proud of Mrs. Rodriguez, but I did tell her that she had to continue taking English classes in order to qualify for her disability benefits." This summer she will enroll in English classes at Laney Community College.