Manatee students, families honored at 30th annual Migrant Education Awards

Each student had a unique story to share Tuesday evening with one common thread: each is the child of migrant farm workers.

There’s Sofia Gallegos, a Bradenton resident who remembers being in middle school and having to pack up her belongings with her family for agricultural work in South Carolina.

Palmetto High School student Raul Alvarez traveled often as a young boy because of his parents’ seasonal work in the fields.

And there’s Sheira Mendez Guerrero of Lakewood Ranch High School, whose family still travels every year to Michigan to work in a large farm harvesting fruits and vegetables.

Gallegos, Alvarez and Mendez Guerrero were among 25 high school seniors and juniors who received special recognition during the 30th annual Migrant Education Awards ceremony at the Palmetto High School Auditorium, 1200 17^th St. W., Palmetto. The event honored students and families in the Manatee County School District migrant academic programs. Migrant education is a national program that provides children of migrant farm workers with support services and access to education.

“I’m very excited because this is a longstanding tradition in our school district and we’re lucky that we can continue this and allow this forum for our families to come together and celebrate children from all over the district,” said Kate Bloomquist, migrant coordinator. “Not every school district has this, so we just feel very honored that we’re able to continue it.”

The ceremony included a welcome by Manatee County School District Superintendent Diana Greene, a presentation of student and parent awards and scholarship announcements for graduating seniors.

During her address, Greene shared a poem about a little boy who picks up starfishes along a crowded beach and throws them back into the sea so they will live. She likened Manatee County students to starfish who come in all shapes and sizes and ethnic backgrounds.

“We are very fortunate to have over 6,100 ‘little boys’ picking up each one of our starfish and throwing them back into the sea so that they will live,” Greene said. “The migrant program is just that -- they are ensuring that each and every one of our migrant students have an opportunity to not only graduate from high school, but lay the foundation for their future.”

Guest speaker Laraine Batista spent 18 years as a migrant home school liaison for the program. The 70-year-old Batista grew emotional as she spoke of the deep impact students have left on her. Batista will retire at the end of May.

The event program contained short blurbs written by the honorees detailing their lives as children of migrant farm workers and their dreams and aspirations.

Ana Munoz, the youngest in her family, wrote about seeing how hard her parents worked in the fields. The Palmetto High School student recalled seeing her brother and sister also help.

“One day I went to work as well. It was not fun and not easy. Then my parents asked me: ‘What do you prefer, carry a bucket of tomatoes all day or be in school?’” Munoz wrote. “I said school of course.”

Mendez Guerrero smiled shyly after her name was called to receive the Mary Lou Harllee Memorial Scholarship.

“When people hear the word ‘immigrant,’ they think of uneducated people and a danger to the economy,” she wrote in the event program. “On the contrary, most migrant workers travel in search of a better life for them and their families.”

Being the child of migrant farm workers is hard, Mendez Guerrero said after the ceremony.

“We constantly move so catching up in school is complicated, but I did it,” she said, her voice shaking with emotion. “I’m very proud of myself and of my parents for helping me.”

According to Bloomquist, migrant students face many challenges including having to move with their parents as they seek work in agriculture.

“They have to go where the work is and the kids have to move with them. That’s how their lives are,” she said. “The kids have to get uprooted maybe in the middle of a year. ... it’s just a huge challenge. What we do in the migrant program is fill in those gaps.”

After the ceremony, honorees attended a special dinner hosted by Irma Aguilar, past president of the Council of Migrant Parents of Manatee County.

This story was originally published May 17, 2016 at 10:04 PM with the headline "Manatee students, families honored at 30th annual Migrant Education Awards."