{"id":33797,"date":"2026-05-29T14:20:13","date_gmt":"2026-05-29T19:20:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/devcofi.wpenginepowered.com\/?p=33797"},"modified":"2026-06-04T05:54:55","modified_gmt":"2026-06-04T10:54:55","slug":"katrina","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cofionline.org\/es\/katrina\/","title":{"rendered":"Katrina"},"content":{"rendered":"

[et_pb_section fb_built=”1″ _builder_version=”4.16″ global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”][et_pb_row _builder_version=”4.27.6″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″ _builder_version=”4.16″ custom_padding=”|||” global_colors_info=”{}” custom_padding__hover=”|||” theme_builder_area=”post_content”][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.27.6″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”]<\/p>\n

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\u201cWe are always out here advocating. It\u2019s not just about advocating for one family, but all of them.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

[\/et_pb_text][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.27.6″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”]<\/p>\n

This story was adapted from the \u201cIf We Come Together, Then We Have Power\u201d Snapshots of Organizing Families<\/span> <\/a>report. Read more about how COFI impacted Katrina and see quotes from her daughter.<\/em><\/p>\n

Meet Katrina! She\u2019s the proud parent, auntie, godmother, and guardian to many children, and often refers to herself as the \u201clittle old lady in the shoe\u201d because of all the children in the community she\u2019s taken care of, in addition to her own. She\u2019s also been a caregiver for her siblings.<\/p>\n

After serving time in a correctional facility as a young adult in her 20s, she returned home determined to create more nurturing environments for young people. She came across COFI around 2013 when her twins were in daycare.<\/p>\n

She was initially interested in COFI for the advocacy training opportunities they offered parents, and she thought it might help expand her job opportunities. After completing COFI\u2019s Phase 1: Self, Family & Team + Team Building<\/em><\/a><\/span> training, she was hooked and never looked back. She even convinced her godfather to join!<\/p>\n

Through COFI, Katrina discovered leadership skills she didn\u2019t know she had. She\u2019s been part of historic wins to decrease police presence in schools and divert funds toward restorative justice and social-emotional learning. She has also co-chaired the Mental Health Justice & Equity Committee<\/em><\/a><\/span> and has testified at the Illinois General Assembly about the importance of Medicaid. Katrina has worn many \u201chats\u201d at COFI, including being a photographer and capturing positive moments for everyone!<\/p>\n

But above all, she loves bringing her twins and other children in her care to COFI and POWER-PAC IL gatherings to learn about the importance of organizing and advocacy<\/p>\n

MyShayla, whom Katrina has been raising since birth, has attended COFI and POWER-PAC IL gatherings since she was three, learning from parents’ organizing. Today, MyShayla is an advocate for mental health and anti-bullying at her school. She is a peer mentor who encourages classmates to attend class on time and resolve conflicts peacefully.<\/p>\n

Additionally, Katrina said that when she was experiencing serious health issues during COVID, MyShayla stepped up and helped around the house and with her siblings.<\/p>\n

In addition to her volunteer work with COFI, Katrina also formed a youth dance group called \u201cThe 66th and Union Crew,\u201d named after her former block in the Englewood community. Katrina founded the group because youth were often turned away from after-school programs due to cost or capacity.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are always out here advocating, but I want us to have our own place. My dream has always been to have a youth center and health center for any community member,\u201d Katrina said.<\/p>\n

Katrina\u2019s dream for COFI and for herself reflects everything she\u2019s learned through more than a decade of parent-led organizing: it\u2019s not just about one family, but all of them. She wants to see parents and families at every table, always bringing knowledge and resources back to their community and receiving the respect they deserve.<\/p>\n

[\/et_pb_text][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.27.6″ _module_preset=”default” link_option_url=”\/about-cofi\/30-years\/30-stories-for-30-years\/” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”]<\/p>\n

<< Back to all 30 Stories<\/strong><\/p>\n

[\/et_pb_text][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.27.6″ _module_preset=”default” link_option_url=”\/marisol\/” hover_enabled=”0″ global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content” sticky_enabled=”0″]<\/p>\n

<< Marisol’s Story<\/strong><\/p>\n

[\/et_pb_text][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.27.6″ _module_preset=”default” link_option_url=”\/delia-30\/” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”]<\/p>\n

Delia’s Story >><\/strong><\/p>\n

[\/et_pb_text][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.27.6″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”][\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][\/et_pb_section]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

\u00a1Les presentamos a Katrina! Es una orgullosa madre, t\u00eda, madrina y tutora de muchos ni\u00f1os, y a menudo se refiere a s\u00ed misma como la "ancianita del zapato" debido a todos los ni\u00f1os de la comunidad a los que ha cuidado, adem\u00e1s de los suyos. <\/p>","protected":false},"author":17,"featured_media":3329,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_et_pb_use_builder":"on","_et_pb_old_content":"

Meet Leah, a longtime partner and supporter of COFI!<\/p>

She partnered with COFI on a parent-led project that COFI Organizer Talibah<\/span><\/a> and other parents worked on to address the lack of developmental screenings.<\/p>

As the director of a statewide community collaboration project, Leah collaborated with seven communities, including Englewood, to boost early learning enrollment. Englewood parents, armed with training from COFI, discovered that fear of stigma and mistrust of systems led some families to avoid developmental screenings for early intervention and special education.<\/p>

Parents pitched an idea to Leah: with funding, parents could support other parents to navigate the early intervention system and the special education system to get children in their community the support they needed.<\/p>

Leah funded the project and parents did it!<\/p>

Fast forward to 2024: during a training with The COFI Center for Action and Learning<\/a><\/span>, Leah visited Parker Academy in Englewood (pictured below) and met parents who were initially part of the project and were still benefiting from it!<\/p>

\u201cI got really emotional about a dad whose son benefited from the program and thrived,\u201d she said. \u201cThe parent-led project in Englewood shows that with a little bit of seed money, families can lead and make their innovations last. It is a systems change success story. This is how things work when parent voices are at the table.\u201d<\/p>

This anniversary and Leah\u2019s dream serve as a reminder of the connections forged through parent-led efforts. Change begins with a parent\u2019s dream, and when they unite with others and partners like Leah, remarkable transformations can ripple out.<\/p>","_et_gb_content_width":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[55],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-33797","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-testimonials"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nKatrina | COFI<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Meet Katrina! 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