“We will triumph and succeed in what we are asking for when we organize together.”

Meet María, or “Doña Mari” as other parents call her as a sign of respect. She is the proud mother of eight children, grandmother to 14, great-grandmother to seven, and great-great-grandmother to one.

“I paved my path” 

When Doña Mari arrived in Chicago nearly 25 years ago, she started volunteering with her local school, and soon connected with COFI. She became friends with the other parents, and from then on, she said “she ‘s never left” COFI.

“They would have us talk one-to-one, to talk about our needs or how we felt. As they say, I paved my path. They helped me a lot.”

Doña Mari also recalls how she had to figure out how the bus system worked in order to get to COFI and POWER-PAC IL meetings when her children weren’t able to drive her.

“With or without fear, I would make a mistake and get on another bus and go somewhere else. All of that helped me develop in COFI. And now I go to East St. Louis, I go to Aurora, and other places. We develop more and we learn from others that way.”

Turning Dreams into Action

One of her team goals in Little Village was to secure a stop sign for a school. There were many accidents, and people were getting hurt.

“We fought hard to get that stop sign and they put it there because of parents,” she said.

Another big goal was fighting for recess for all. “The children really needed recess,” she said. “Because if a teacher simply goes outside for five or ten minutes to clear his head a little, why not the children? They need it, too.”

In 2005, Doña Mari and several COFI-trained parents prioritized bringing recess back to elementary schools. Their campaign, Recess for All! (now the Mental Health Justice and Equity Campaign), successfully restored recess for all 266,000 Chicago public elementary students in 2012. In 2021, they expanded this victory to the entire state of Illinois!

“We had a strong voice because we went directly to talk to the person who is affecting us.”

Looking ahead… 

Currently, Doña Mari has been reflecting on the escalation of ICE deportations and federal cuts to Medicaid and SNAP. She worries for her community – especially children.

As she looks ahead to COFI’s future, she recognizes how important organizing and advocacy are to addressing the issues she’s seeing unfold. That’s why she hopes to see the organization grow more and reach more parents.

“We will triumph and succeed in what we are asking for when we organize together.”

A very special thank you to our interns, Shayla Hernandez and Erika Mora, for conducting this interview with Doña Mari and for translating it.