A couple from Racine is focused on breaking barriers facing the local community to improve lives.
Samantha Altamirano and Joshua Martinez moved back to the area after spending nearly a decade in Texas and opened the Spanish Center of Racine.
Altamirano and Martinez grew up with immigrant families in Racine and witnessed the hurdles people face when English is not their first language.
"I constantly kept seeing doors being shut because of my parents' status, educational opportunities being taken away from friends of mine," Altamirano said.
"They accomplished a lot, but they did it strictly by themselves. I wish that there was a place like this that was open to help," Martinez explained.
The center is a hub of resources to help with everything from translation to employment to real estate and more.
The pair says since opening earlier this year, their team has been able to help around 300 people.
"They made me feel I'm not alone," Jorge Sanchez said
Sanchez is a single father with an energetic 6-year-old son. He says the Spanish Center of Racine helped him through a tough time and find a place to live and a new job, that allows him to bring his child to the movies.
"Right now, actually we're going every week. So that's the difference. The smile on my child pays me everything thanks to them," Sanchez said.
"I feel excited that we're here. I feel excited that we're helping," Martinez stated.
Bi-Link Employment Agency funds the non-profit.
Altamirano emphasized that the center is open to people from all walks of life.
Stories like Sanchez's keep them going.
"It just makes me optimistic for all the other individuals and families that we have yet to help," Altamirano said.
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