Hansen: Language need not be a barrier

When Irma Ronses arrived in the U.S. in 1985, she didn’t know how to speak English.

She lived with an aunt and stayed under the radar. Wanting more, she knew she had to learn the primary language of her new country. A friend told her about a new program in Laguna Beach.

“When I came here almost 30 years ago it was hard,” Ronses said. “For me it was hard because I started having my kids, and I didn’t really have time to go to school.”

But the La Playa Center, an ESL — English as a second language — school in Laguna, offered child-care services.

Ronses took classes for about a year and then helped take care of the children there. Later, the program officials asked her to help with the Laguna Day Worker Center, serving as the liaison between workers and contractors. Both centers operate under the Crosscultural Council.

This uncertain journey into a foreign country took her to a permanent job and new life. Ronses has been working at the Day Worker Center since 1999 and lives in Laguna Canyon. Her five children are all grown — and college-educated.

“When the kids went to school, I helped them with their homework, and that helped me a lot,” Ronses said. “I think the only thing I would do different is go to college.”

But like most new immigrants, Ronses didn’t have the time. She had to balance work with mastering the basics: transportation, healthcare and family.

“There are other issues — like how to get dental work,” said Sally Rapuano, director of the La Playa Center. “It’s not only English. It’s the networking.”

Rapuano, who has been the director for about 20 years, was instrumental in helping Ronses in the beginning.

“I know La Playa is a very good program,” Ronses said. “I spent a lot of time with Sally, especially because I was young. When I had my kids I was at a very young age, and she helped a lot because she was a single mother. I learned a lot of things from her.”

Mary Schmidt is the new executive director of the Crosscultural Center. She wants to see more success stories but acknowledges challenges. Few people really know about the various services offered, she said.

While the day-worker site is popular, attendance at the La Playa Center could be better. For more information visit, https://www.crossculturalcouncil.com.

“Nobody knows who we are, so that’s a big push for me,” said Schmidt, who wants to increase fundraising to get more exposure.

Rapuano said 95% of the people who attend the ESL program, for example, live outside of Laguna Beach, despite the fact that local workers could benefit. Schmidt hopes to do some outreach at the Laguna hotels and restaurants to promote the services at the center.

Ultimately, employers benefit because customer service is improved — as well as the lives of the employees.

“It’s so much more challenging to elevate yourself into a better position if you don’t speak the language,” Schmidt said. “When they know the language better, they take direction better, they do their jobs better.”

Schmidt believes that with immigration improvements at the national level, now is the time to make changes locally.

“Some of them might be undocumented. Some of them might be apprehensive to come into an environment like that,” she said. “So that’s why education is so important and vital to just be able to get out of that lower-paying position, possibly, and jump up.”

For Ronses, learning the language was vital, but also having an advisor helped with the rules of a new culture. Now, she teaches men at the day-worker site things most people take for granted, like wearing a seat belt in a car.

“I try to talk with them and tell them you need to learn at least the basic things,” she said. “And I sometimes try to teach them, but it’s hard for me because they don’t want to do it. But I try to train them how important it is to learn the language.”

All of her work has paid off with a steady job and successful children, who appreciate the sacrifices she’s made.

“They are very, very proud of me,” she said. “They always say ‘thank you.’ It’s like this morning I was talking with my daughter because it’s her birthday, and she said, ‘Thank you, mom, thank you. Look where I am now. You always said you have to go to school, you have to learn, you have to be different than me.’”

Irma Ronses is different. She arrives at work every morning by 6 a.m. and carries a clipboard to keep track of the men looking for work.

She is like a big sister, telling them what to do and helping them become better.

Bilingual because of one free program, she is making a difference in people’s lives, using words to define a path forward.

DAVID HANSEN is a writer and Laguna Beach resident. He can be reached at [email protected].