a conversation with luz orta

In this edition of Raising Yuma Families spotlight we speak to Luz Orta, the cafeteria manager at O.C. Johnson Elementary School.

What led you to work in schools?

I was a young mother and, after my daughter was young, 2-years-old, I just wanted to get out and find something part time. I started off at two hours, to four hours, to five-and-ahalf hours in a two-year period and then came and worked for the school district, loved it and never left. Now I’m going on 36 years.

Who is the person that most influenced your life?

My parents. My dad came over as an illegal alien years and years and years ago. He came over and his employer helped him become a naturalized citizen. He immigrated all his family, I was the only one born here. I saw how hard my dad worked and he became very successful. He was an owner of a date farm, and I lost him a couple of years ago. I just look up to him because he came from nothing and made something of himself. He instilled all those qualities in us.

What is a typical day like for you?

Come in, get up early, come and see my girls. I came from Woodard, I worked at Woodard for like 19-and-a-half years then came over here and I inherited a great group of girls. I come in, visit and get ready for the day, get ready to welcome our kids because we’re the first people they see in the morning so we’re the first positive influence on our students. Greet them with a smile, a good morning, ‘happy Friday,’ ‘happy Wednesday’ in the middle of the week. But yeah, we’re the first people that they see. It’s a nice cool place in the summer and a nice, warm, friendly place in the winter. You know, it’s the atmosphere; it’s all about the atmosphere.

What do you love the most about what you do?

The kids. Some kids, you know, times are getting harder and sometimes this is the only place that they get a balanced nutritious meal. There’s some kids when they start they don’t know what a kiwi is or they’ve never tried broccoli, so we broaden their horizons by teaching them how to try different things and eat different things.

If you could give advice to your parents, what would it be?

Not to work so hard sometimes, and enjoy life, because you never know what tomorrow brings and then you’re like wow, I should have done that. My mother was an orphan, well not orphan, but her dad passed away when she was two and her sister was six months and living in Mexico. They had to work, my mom never got to be a little girl. I would say like, take a step back, relax and enjoy life. Where is your favorite place to be? With family and my kids, family is very important to me. Can you tell me something about yourself that I would have never guessed if I had just met you? I got married at a very young age, and I’m going on 39 years of being married.

What are your passions and your hobbies?

My passions are being around family. I’m very passionate about my grandkids, their health, my kids and always trying to be a positive person. I always strive to be positive and instill in these kids good things. There are days where I might scold the kids for something, but I always end it with an endearment and then the next day it’s a ‘good morning.’ You know, you can’t stay mad. That’s one of my passions is, you know, trying to teach kids to be positive, good leaders, no bullies and work hard because working hard gets you to good places.

If you could visit one place on earth, where would you go?

I’d say the Vatican. Or back there where the pope is, you know, where everything started. You know the Vatican where the pope is, it’s beautiful, the beautiful churches and stuff like that. That’s probably where I’d like to go someday.

What are your favorite books?

I love romance, tear-jerkers. Janet Dailey, I like Sandra Brown. I can’t think of all the other ones, but yeah those are probably my favorite, Janet Dailey is one of my favorites. I just like romance; happy things, happy endings. I’m one of those ‘record all the hallmark movies for Christmas’ people and I have them all recorded. I watch them over the holidays when I’m off. I’m a romantic, I guess.