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Leaders

in SPOTLIGHT

SPOTLIGHT: Yosmary Consolacion Godkin

January 2, 2023
176

Yosmary Godkin is Venezuelan born in Cardenas municipality, Tariba parish, Tachira state. She studied pedagogy in preschool, she also has a degree in physical activity and health. In search of professional development, she continued her postgraduate studies as a specialist in early childhood education and a master’s degree in behavioral guidance and a master’s degree in physical education. This passionate teacher, single mother of two sons, daughter of Ana Mireya Delgado, is now 45 years old in 2022. Since her childhood she has identified with humanist values such as solidarity. Seeing her mother selflessly help those in need. Throughout her life she has kept a passion for teaching through educational games.

She recounts that some time ago she undertook the adventure of leaving her country for Cancun and reuniting with her eldest son, whom she had not seen for 3 years because of his sports career as a national team athlete. She expressed that her stay in Cancun allowed her to develop and strengthen other potentialities, such as being a children’s swimming instructor, aqua-fitness coach and a childrens re-enactor through adapted physical activity in summer courses.

In december 2017, she traveled with her youngest son to Milwaukee, WI. For whatever reasons she found the need to stay, facing a new life full of uncertainties, obstacles, difficulties mainly due to not knowing the English language and being undocumented. Full of fears, doubts and little hope, she seeks to get ahead like all immigrants who are in this country for different reasons and circumstances.

Over time, she met her husband Phillip Godkin. A cycling coach whom she married in september of 2019. She says that her husband is the one who is always supporting her in her dreams and motivating her to enjoy life doing what she loves. Later, through her husband, she met Dr. David Waters, a well-known doctor at the sixteenth street clinic, who saw in her a great human potential as one who could provide great benefits to the hispanic community through the programs at the clinic. He recommended her to the latina for health group led by Tatiana Maida and Delia Gast at that time, where they gave her the opportunity to receive training to learn about the mission and vision of the program and thus be able to be part of the group of volunteer leaders for health in south milwaukee communities.

Her dedication to the constant search for academic and professional excellence led her to prepare professionally while working in various fields related to education, public and private educational institutions, universities, health centers, companies, and sport clubs. All with the aim of promoting quality education and adapted physical activity, through games, dances and recreational activities that allow human beings to have fun and recreate while learning. She has performed and constantly maintains continuous training in various areas of early childhood education focused on the didactic “ the art of teaching” and the playful “the enjoyment of learning”. All based on the primary interest of the human being the GAME and the influence of MUSIC and MOVEMENT at an early age, youth, adults and older adults. She reiterates that through the different activities she promotes massification and inclusion as a right of all and for all.

Yosmary has been part of the group of leaders for health in hispanic communities for many years, promoting physical activity through the “MOVE-MEANT FOR LIFE” philosophy and style. This is how she continues her dream of promoting physical activity and recreation. Also through the leaders for health program, she provides motivation, leadership and training workshops to the inhabitants so that they empower their community and become future community leaders.

On january 26th, 2022 a normal afternoon and routine work day at Lincoln elementary school it was when she was heading home that she was suddenly struck by a stray bullet through her car window hitting her in the left side of her face and destroying her jaw. She mentions that she received emergency surgery and that she is currently still convalescing from the consequences of this tragic accident but she continues and fights with the hope of improving and healing the severe pain that she lives with.

“Make your life a dream, and a dream a reality”

Yosmary Godkin

If you want to know more about Yosmary and her projects, you can contact her through email!

Email: [email protected]

FB: Rainbow Butterfly Human Development

INSTA: Rainbow_butterflyLLC

in SPOTLIGHT

SPOTLIGHT: Have you postponed a goal, a project, a dream because you think it’s impossible?

September 19, 2022
331

This can help you…

Each one of us was born with a potential to create and accomplish whatever we want. From a very young age we take risks, we learn how to crawl, we try to stand up one and a million times more until we can walk; we did these actions without thinking about it and we wouldn’t stress out thinking that we weren’t going to be able to make it. But as we continue to grow, we keep listening; you’re going to fall, don’t do it, it’s not possible, it’s difficult or just the word no!

Each one of us was born with a potential to create and accomplish whatever we want. From a very young age we take risks, we learn how to crawl, we try to stand up one and a million times more until we can walk; we did these actions without thinking about it and we wouldn’t stress out thinking that we weren’t going to be able to make it. But as we continue to grow, we keep listening; you’re going to fall, don’t do it, it’s not possible, it’s difficult or just the word no!

Those irrational beliefs were staying in our subconscious and together with other experiences they created those fears that became blockages that today, it wont let us achieve that goal, make that dream come true or reach that achievement, as a consequence, it prevents us from being full and happier.

Whatever the situation is, we have the ability to achieve it but many times we need that help that allows us to become aware that we really can and one of those powerful tools is coaching.

Through coaching we can identify what is that we really want and turn that desire into a goal that we perceive as attainable. To visualize it and manifest it, identify which are those resources that we have in our lives and which ones we lack, make an action plan, make a follow-up system to our plan and stay self-motivated and focused.

Coaching is not therapy. It’s not about focusing so much on the past or on our problems, coaching is focused on action, on achieving goals and on being our own motivators. Coaching assumes that we already have all the answers inside, only that we need to unlock them and get to know ourselves a little better to realize what we are capable of.

My name is Adriana Laitano and as a life coach I help you turn whatever you want into a reality. I am your guide and I will encourage you to think for yourself, to decide for your life, to take responsibility for your situation and above all to take action to achieve whatever it is that you set out to do.

If you’re interested, write to me for a session!

FACEBOOK: Adriana Mejia Laitano

EMAIL: [email protected]

in SPOTLIGHT

SPOTLIGHT: Dr. Luis “Tony” Báez

September 16, 2022
584

Defender of the civil and human rights of Latinos in Wisconsin, he has promoted bilingual and multicultural education.

We highlight in this issue Dr. Luis “Tony” Báez. For over fifty years, Dr. Báez has promoted and defended the civil and human rights of Latinos and other s, especially of children and youth affected by educational systems.

In Wisconsin, he has promoted bilingual and multicultural education, and has helped established school-and college-based programs, and opportunities for the professional growth of Latinos.

Further, he has promoted the idea that bilingualism and multiculturalism is good for all of us.

Dr. Báez is constantly learning about the great educators of the past and present, especially in Latin America. These humanist thinkers fought for schools based on a learner-centered pedagogy, as opposed to the austere and alienating focus on a pedagogy that suppresses the intelligence and creative capacity of the child, destroys the disposition to learn, and wrongly measures intelligence through standardized tests.

This is an approach that has not worked. Dr. Báez has called for its end, supplanting it with arts, music,

languages. Growth in reading, writing, math, science skills, and other skills will follow, he says.

Similarly, he proposes a humanizing re-education of parents and adults to stop destructive and trauma causing child rearing. He promotes a decolonizing pedagogy that rejects injustice and racial-social inequality, and which embraces learning that is fun, promotes peace, not hate, a love for life, and a safe and promising democratic world.

Dr. Báez has a Ph.D. in Urban Education from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. He is a scholar who has taught in schools and higher education. He is a former Vice-President of the Milwaukee Public Schools Board; former member of the Executive Committee of the Wisconsin Association of School Board Members; and former Chair of the National Latino Educational Research and Policy (NLERAP). He is also the former Executive Director of Centro Hispano Milwaukee; former Provost and Chief Academic Officer of the Milwaukee Area Technical College (MATC), where he held various positions and created college level bilingual programs. He was Provost at the bilingual Eugenio Maria de Hostos Community College in Bronx (City University of New York); and Coordinator of the National Origin Desegregation Assistance Center at the University Milwaukee-Wisconsin.

Dr. Baez has traveled to other countries to speak on educational issues; plays the guitar, sings of social justice and performs Latino poetry. He appears regularly in podcasts, radio and TV programs, and was founder in Milwaukee of a Spanish TV program: Adelante! winner of an Emmy Award in 2013.

He is also the recipient of many awards including the Martin Luther King Heritage Award for Social Justice. In his name, the Wisconsin Association for Bilingual Education annually offers the “Tony Báez Leadership and Advocacy Award.” In 2020, he was the recipient of the prestigious international OHTLI award by Mexico for his advocacy for the rights of Latinos and bilingualism in the U.S.

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