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I met Stephanie Ortiz, a 24-year-old single mother and student, the first day of the spring semester of 2017, at San Francisco State University.

She was sitting at the front, near the wall, when Professor Felix Kury asked, «How is the baby?»

«She’s fine, thank you for asking,» he replied.

As a single parent, Stephanie faces the daily challenge of raising her one-year-old daughter, Brooklyn. However, that challenge stands out because he is a full-time student and works part-time at the Mission’s YMCA as a program leader. Stephanie is the definition of ‘chingona’.

Stephanie was only a month old when her parents brought her from Mexico to this country. She and her mother were recommended to return to Mexico to avoid deportation, after living here for nine years. They were promised that the citizenship process would last only a thousand days, but it took a total of eight and a half years.

Stephanie’s father was able to claim it and was granted entry into the US.

By then, he had graduated from high school and had turned 18. Instead, her mother had to wait a few more months to receive her residence.

When Stephanie started thinking about continuing her education, she was advised to file for financial assistance and attend City College of San Francisco (CCSF). But after a semester he had to give up given his financial situation. He found work at Taqueria Girasol at San Francisco State University and began saving for his education.

After a year he returned to the CCSF while continuing to work. Then she graduated in 2016 but with «something unexpected»: «I never expected to be a mom at this stage of my life,» he said.

When it came time to tell your parents about your pregnancy, I was afraid I’d let them down. «They really expected something from me,» said Stephanie, head down. «I was raised to be better.»

Three months after her pregnancy, her baby’s father abandoned her and is still absent to date, without receiving any offer of her share of financial aid. Stephanie has had to contrive to plan her budget and maintain Brooklyn. «Baby products are so expensive,» she said. «Diapers, towels, clothes, food … accumulate.»

Stephanie has found it hard to explain how it feels to be a mom. It is a sacrifice to leave your daughter with her mom every morning when she goes to college or work. Going home and seeing her daughter after the end of a difficult day is the best feeling, said: «I go home and I see her smile,» he said. «It’s her eyes that make me realize that everything I do is for her.»

Although Brooklyn is always her priority, Stephanie is faced with the dilemma of work, college and her daughter. «I will not stop dedicating myself to my daughter, just as my parents did not stop dedicating themselves to me,» she said with the child in her arms.

Prior to having her baby, Stephanie had plans to leave the Bay Area to attend college and study clinical psychology abroad. He is currently pursuing subjects in Latino Studies at SF State and plans to apply for the psychology program to have two careers. She hopes to start volunteering at the Martín-Baró Clinic this fall.

«I love every bit of my life,» he said. «I love who I’ve become because thanks to my past experiences and lessons learned, I’m stronger.»

In a way, Stephanie reminds me of my mother: a woman who had a child at an early age but who continues to do what she must do to fulfill her dream. «I tell myself that I should never give up despite the difficulties,» Stephanie said. «I remind myself of my dreams and my goals and, at the end of the day, it’s worth it.»

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