{"id":187002,"date":"2023-11-14T12:27:05","date_gmt":"2023-11-14T22:27:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/?p=187002"},"modified":"2024-03-14T16:00:15","modified_gmt":"2024-03-15T02:00:15","slug":"daughter-immigrants-maui-relief","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/2023\/11\/14\/daughter-immigrants-maui-relief\/","title":{"rendered":"Daughter of immigrants, UH<\/abbr> grad, focused on Maui immigrant relief"},"content":{"rendered":"Reading time: <\/span> 2<\/span> minutes<\/span><\/span>
\"Alejandra
UH<\/abbr> West Oʻahu graduate and Maui resident Alejandra Ramirez.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Nearly three months after the devastating Maui fires, University of Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span>\u2013West Oʻahu<\/span><\/a> spring 2022 graduate and UH<\/abbr> Maui College<\/a> alumna Alejandra Guadalupe Ramirez has a renewed commitment to relief efforts in her island home, with a focus on immigrants.<\/p>\n

On top of her full-time position at UH<\/abbr> Maui College, the Wailuku resident, is a co-founder of Roots Reborn<\/a>, a Maui-based multilingual hub for impacted immigrants, connecting them to whatever aid and resources they qualify for during the long rebuilding process.<\/p>\n

“As a Maui resident, I feel as if it is my responsibility to give back and help my community after the fires,” said Ramirez, a daughter of immigrants from Jalisco, México. “Whether it is helping with something big or small, I feel as if I am making a difference in the lives of those who need help the most.”<\/p>\n

Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span> Promise at UH<\/abbr> Maui College<\/h2>\n

Ramirez graduated from H.P.<\/abbr> Baldwin High School in Wailuku in 2017, then attended UH<\/abbr> Maui College, where she was an Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span> Promise scholarship recipient<\/a>, and graduated with her associate degrees in liberal arts and public administration.<\/p>\n

A UH<\/abbr> Presidential Scholar<\/a>, Ramirez continued her college education via UH<\/abbr> West Oʻahu<\/span>\u2019s distance learning program. She graduated in May 2022 with honors, earning a bachelor of arts in public administration with a concentration in justice administration.<\/p>\n

Today she works full-time as an outreach program associate with the Educational Opportunity Center (EOC<\/abbr>) at UH<\/abbr> Maui College. The program is dedicated to assisting first-generation immigrants and low-income students.<\/p>\n

“A few students have reached out to the program I work for to see if they can qualify for additional assistance through UH<\/abbr> Maui,” she said. “It is devastating to see a good chunk of the place where you grew up destroyed.”<\/p>\n

Community organizer<\/h2>\n
\"Roots
Roots Reborn’s Dia de los Muertos event..<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

As Roots Reborn\u2019s lead coordinator and frontline organizer during the Lahaina fires crisis, Ramirez continues to volunteer when and where she can, mostly assisting with running the Roots Reborn Instagram account<\/a>.<\/p>\n

She was recently responsible for marketing Roots Reborn’s inaugural celebration of Dia de los Muertos (Day of the Dead) in November, one of the most important holidays in México and a time to remember departed loved ones. Ramirez said this event was created to honor those who lost their lives in the Lahaina fire.<\/p>\n

The team has been coordinating and mobilizing a multi-lingual volunteer base to respond to immigrant needs, some of which are still emerging. “Our team really benefits from volunteers who are fluent in Spanish, Ilokano and Tagalog,” Ramirez said.<\/p>\n

Interested Maui-based volunteers, should fill out this Google form<\/a>, and Roots Reborn is also accepting donations<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Read more at Ka Puna o Kaloʻi<\/span><\/a>.<\/p>\n

—by Zenaida Serrano Arvman<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

UH<\/abbr> Maui College alumna Alejandra Ramirez helps immigrants on campus and off.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":16,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[29],"tags":[1459,1597,71,60,59,1626],"class_list":["post-187002","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-people","tag-ka-puna-o-kaloi","tag-maui-wildfires","tag-uh-community-colleges","tag-maui-college","tag-uh-west-oahu","tag-women-of-uh","entry","has-media"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t