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Patty Lopez: I was 10 years old and my mom and my dad immigrated to Los Angeles in '75. And since I was the last one for the 14 kids, I was the baby of the family. My parents really was afraid to send me to school. So I didn't went to school. They didn't enroll me in school. I started working when I was 14 years old because I couldn't handle to just be home.

I married when I was 18. We were working hard. We bought our first house when I was 21, but something inside me-- I didn't feel like complete. I feel when I have my first kid, I say, you know what? At the time, I learned how to read and write in Spanish, but I feel like I had to learn the language.

Louis Lopez: So she had to take classes to learn English, and then she had to take classes to get her high school diploma and GED. So the only path that she has at that time was the adult skills.

Patty Lopez: And after that, I worked 40 hours. I make the time to come home, take care of my kid, and help her with homework and run to school. And the teachers, they care. They believe in you. They give you hope. They understand at that age, it wasn't shame to start from level one.

I remember when I had my first recognition, I was so happy and proud. And I said to my husband and my kids, I said look, look, I made it to first level, second level, and so far. I make proud of my family so they see it. So even though they miss me a lot at home, but they see that it was for a good purpose.

Louis Lopez: She took the ESL classes, and then she progressed there. And she took classes to receive her GED and she progressed there. And then she took business classes and she progressed there. She had been a student. But because of her expertise and because of her willingness to always be available to the school for anything, they felt it was important to offer her the position as a community representative. So she came out of the classroom and she started working for the school.

Patty Lopez: I never thought to be a politician, but I knew that I wanted to be at the table. I want to make sure that our community has the things that we need. We all pay our taxes. Why we cannot get the same like the other areas have? Why? Because people don't speak English. People don't vote. So I feel that's like justice. So that's why I refuse to be silent.

Louis Lopez: And then she decided, I need to help my people in this area. So she ran for state assembly and she won. So she's a perfect example of somebody that comes to this country and says to themselves, if I have the willingness, and the attitude, and the drive, I can go ahead and accomplish anything in this great country of ours.

Diana Lopez: She came so far from working, I believe it was front desk at North Valley actually, helping our community in San Fernando. And I'm proud of her. She came a long way. And I got to see every step.

Barry Bakin: I think it's especially significant that Patty can speak on behalf of adult education because it's her own experience. She's also been quite active in continuing to support adult education on a state wide level through legislation. And not only through legislation, but, of course, through her promotion of adult education to her colleagues and to the general public.

Patty Lopez: Never it's too late. You can always go back to school. And don't give up on yourself. One day, I'm going to go back to school and improve my life, improve my English. I want to be more fluent in English, have more strong vocabulary. Really, one word can make the difference.

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