Sarai Gomez was a freshman at Theodore Roosevelt High School in 2013 with a dream of attending a four-year university. As a first-generation Mexican American, she understood that she would be responsible for getting herself to and through college. “My parents know nothing about the college process and how financial aid works. So I kind of had to go out of my way to find resources and find scholarships to apply to,” Gomez said.
Sarai grew up in Boyle Heights, a predominantly Latino neighborhood with a tight-knit community on L.A.’s east side. It’s a place where you can get street tacos at almost any time of the day and admire street murals on nearly every corner.
Sarai was seen as a young leader in her community. She was chosen to speak at a neighborhood event hosted by Jose Huizar. Yes, that Huizar, the councilmember who represented that neighborhood and is currently awaiting trial for allegedly leading a sprawling city hall corruption scandal—one of the biggest this city has ever seen. But at the time, no one knew about Huizar’s alleged corruption.
Sarai remembers her first impressions of the council member. She perceived him as “a nice guy,” a person that gave back to the community. Like Sarai, he grew up in Boyle Heights and knew the struggles of being raised in a low-income neighborhood. He excelled in school, and as a Mexican immigrant, he had to navigate the college process independently. His experience reflected a lot of what Sarai and other students went through. He was relatable.
During their conversation at that neighborhood event, Huizar asked Sarai where she was from, how she liked high school, and he asked if she had any potential college plans—typical get-to-know-you questions. “And then he was like, ‘Oh, I have a scholarship you should apply to it senior year’,” Sarai said. Throughout the rest of her time in high school, Sarai was determined to apply for his scholarship, “And I did.”