Turning ‘the doubts and uncertainty’ into advantage
Annapolis resident from El Salvador encourages others to achieve their goals
You’re an immigrant; why even bother to study?
Annapolis resident Alexis Hernández, 33, got asked that question multiple times when he first expressed his interest in pursuing an education to take his career to the next step.
“A lot of other people asked me similar questions, and I kept repeating that in my head over and over again,” he said. “But despite the doubts and uncertainty, I took the courage to turn that situation around and used it to my advantage. I didn’t want to throw in the towel.”
Hernández was born in El Salvador’s capital, San Salvador. He grew up listening to rock and was a big music fan. When he was 18 years old, he joined his church band. The opportunity to play the guitar and sing in front of the congregation helped him manifest his interest in a music career, even at the local level. He left the rock scene and transitioned into playing music with a positive message for parishioners in his hometown during a difficult time for the country.
Hernández’s father, who lived in Annapolis, asked the young musician to join him and his mother in the United States. The decision to leave his home country was a “rebel” move, he said.
“I was studying for a systems degree in my first year of university when my dad invited me to come over. More than anything, the opportunity to learn something new and challenge myself was very appealing, especially when the economy in San Salvador was bad and vandalism was on the rise. The post-war brought a lot of fear to people.”
In 2007, he moved to Annapolis. Hernández was excited to reunite with his family, but the culture shock was harsher than he expected. He went from studying and playing in his church’s band to taking on roles that, according to him, helped him
mature much faster.
“It was no longer a sedentary and calm life. I took on two jobs and drove an hour every day to Montgomery College because it was the only school that offered an HVAC course in Spanish,” he explained.
Hernández took on jobs at Chick-fil-A, at a construction company and even at a driving school, all in the name of moving forward and being able to pay for his career. In 2017, he completed his classes to qualify him as an HVAC technician and, along with his father, launched his own business.
“We decided to call it Alligator HVAC,” he said, laughing. “You see, alligators can survive in hot and cold weather. So we came up with our motto ‘in any weather, the alligator is better,’ and print it on our receipts and other material to signify that no matter the weather, we’ll be there. And people have been very receptive to this message — it makes them smile.”
Despite the setbacks and challenges, Hernández has always felt motivated to keep pushing forward. But it wasn’t always easy. When he said he would pursue his full master HVAC license for his business or expressed interest in pursuing religious music for his church, several people along the way discouraged him.
“I had a lot of people turn their back on me. I was told that I was an immigrant and had no reason to pursue a career. It upset me, but the support and love from my parents helped me to keep pushing. When I visit my parents and I see my dad in the kitchen, calmly cooking or preparing a meal for us to enjoy together, it reminds me of how far we’ve come. My biggest gift is to be able to enjoy their company — this helps me to keep going.”
Aside from managing his own business and studying for his licenses, Hernández plays every Sunday at his church, volunteers for local projects that assist Hispanic/Latino families in the community and is involved with mission projects that aid young adolescents, whether it’s here in Annapolis or in Baltimore. Simultaneously, he goes to the studio when he has time to work on his album, which he’s looking to release this spring.
“I hope my music is a reminder that you need to believe in yourself before anyone does,” he said. “Being a student and a business owner requires a lot of hard work, and it’s easy to want to give up, especially when others are discouraging you. But it’s important to take that moment of indignation and use it to achieve your goals. Have faith. Everything is possible if you believe in yourself.”