Raised in America, Bolivian Blood!

Another year has gone by and it’s that time again…Hispanic Heritage Month! I am happy to be the guest blogger on my husband Quinn’s Bradlee’s Owning It site! Happy Spanish Heritage Month to all my Latinos living all over the world. I am so proud of being who I am and the family I was born into. Our Hispanic roots are blanketed in togetherness, love, and support. My story begins with my brave parents taking the chance to immigrate to this country for better opportunities, and to give my sister and I a better life and education. My father came to the U.S. first and ended up in San Jose, California. This is where he fell in love with California and got an opportunity to work. Once feeling everything out, he told my mom that there were great opportunities and everything looked safe to come over. When my mom arrived, they discussed leaving California to go to Alexandria, VA, where her younger brother was living and had convinced them to come over. Once they were well established in Virginia, they decided to have my grandfather bring me to the U.S. My grandfather had a Visa for us to be able to come over to the U.S. I was five years old at the time, and all I could remember was being so happy to see my parents when I first arrived. My parents enrolled me in school, and I remember learning English pretty quickly! I also remember seeing my parents work tirelessly and I knew I wanted to make them proud of me. I focused on studying and delving into my school books. I focused so hard on studying that I’d only been to one house party my whole educational life! However, studying and working at the same time, paid off in the end. The Carr family, are heroes to us because my parents happened to meet them and were hired right on the spot by them. Through time, they ended up sponsoring us and we eventually became U.S. citizens with their help. I am proud to be a Latina and proud of myself for making it and accomplishing graduating from High School, College and becoming a Paralegal and Victim Advocate.I also worked as a bilingual Call Center Representative at the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC), working my way up to Executive Assistant. Through this nonprofit work, I connected with my now-husband, Quinn Bradlee! Where I now help him run his nonprofit, Inqludedu.com. I decided back in 2023 that I would go back to school and got accepted into American University to pursue my Masters degree in Education. While taking classes, I was also offered a co-teaching position at Marie Reed Elementary School, which was a wonderful experience, and an eye-opener to see what teachers have to go through and to see the status that our education system is in. I am so grateful for this amazing opportunity and first-hand experience. I miss my 3rd-grade kids and hope to go surprise them soon! 

Remember your roots and never give up!

Happy Spanish Heritage Month!

By Fabiola Roman Bradlee