Community: A Community of Support

A Community of Support

Local ELL Student Felt Support & Help From Bartians

by Lizet Almendarez

I was born in Bartlesville. My family has been here for almost all my life. But when I was about one year old, we moved to San Luis Potosi, Mexico and lived there for almost an entire year. I was raised in Bartlesville because my mom wanted to move back so I could get a better education, and also because she was pregnant with my sister. I live with my mom, Olivia; dad, Jose Antonio; my three sisters, Yazmin, Esmeralda and Perla; and my dog, Simba. I am the oldest out of my sisters and have no brothers.

My parents decided to move here because my grandpa and uncle were living here at the time. Now we have a lot of family living here, and my parents really like the Bartlesville community. They have met a lot of kind people here who have helped them whenever they needed it. I learned Spanish as my first language and during my childhood I was surrounded by people who only spoke Spanish — this made it a bit hard for me whenever I started school. I was shy and quiet to the point teachers thought that I was mute, because I didn’t want to speak. Eventually, with practice and help from my English Language Learners teacher, I started speaking English.

I got an internship with bmonthly with help of the W.E. Prosper program, which is a requirement of the Lowe Family Young Scholars. I am very thankful to have both of those programs because they have taught me a lot, from finances to job interviewing. In five years I plan to graduate college to become an ELL/ESL teacher for elementary kids. The reason for this is because my ELL teacher was the one that really made an impact on me. She taught and helped me and was for some time the only one I could communicate with at school. I want to have the same impact on kids who were like me and need someone to help them learn to speak English. I also plan on being trilingual. Currently, I am learning French and although not many people speak that around this area, it could still be a good thing to put on a resume.

Bartlesville has had a positive impact on me, I love the community that helps others. Even though it is small, there are still interesting things to do. The thing I like most is that I can still connect with my culture while being here through my church. Our parish hosts events that would usually be celebrated in Mexico, such as Day of the Dead and a parade celebrating Our Lady of Guadalupe. Another thing that I like is that Bartlesville is a small enough city to make it easier to get to know everyone. I am currently in band and everyone seems to be supportive of it, which I think we are fortunate for because in other schools the fine arts are not supported as much. In general, this community supports one another and helps others.