By Rob Waters, June 4, 2020, California Health Care Foundation.
Aida Meza has been working as a promotora de salud, a community health worker, since she moved across the border from Tijuana, Mexico, to the San Diego area 23 years ago. She came to Chula Vista with her husband, an American citizen, so they could send their kids to better schools.
“At first I cried every day because I wanted to go back to my home,” she said. Then the principal at her children’s school, Vista Square Elementary, asked her if she wanted to do volunteer work. The school was creating an on-site Family Resource Center to serve its Spanish-speaking immigrant families and make them feel welcome while ensuring that their children had access to health care.
“They needed someone to reach out to the families and bring them in. Did I want to do it?” she was asked. Meza said yes. She began working at the school while taking classes on community health and family engagement. She has worked as a promotora ever since, sometimes as a volunteer, sometimes as a paid employee. Today, she does both.
In her day job with the Chula Vista Community Collaborative, Meza helps people with chronic health conditions address nonclinical needs. She offers emotional support and practical assistance with everything from getting healthy food to seeking legal services. She’s also Tia Aida, a trusted neighbor whom people from the community call for advice and assistance — especially since the COVID-19 pandemic landed in California.
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