On Tuesday, Oct. 4th, the ADAPT Club hosted a LatinX Heritage Celebration book reading event for Pascuala Herrera’s book, “Not Always A Valley of Tears.” The event was held from 11:00am to 12:30pm in the Spartan auditorium with an attendance of approximately 50 people. 

“Not Always A Valley of Tears” is Herrera’s memoir about her life as a physically disabled Mexican immigrant. It highlights the lessons she learned and challenges she faced. During the event, Herrera gave an overview of her life experiences, including topics about her childhood, education and work. She then took specific passages from her book and explained them more in depth. 

Herrera was encouraged to write the memoir by her daughter during the pandemic. She finished writing after 3 weeks, and moved on to self publish her book after struggling to coordinate with a publishing company due to the pandemic. 

Pietrina Probst, ECC’s Director of Student Access and Disability Services, describes the book as engaging and interesting.

“I think one of the takeaways is her positive attitude and just how much she cares about people,” said Probst. 

Aolany Campuzano, a third-year student who attended the event, expresses that she felt more educated after hearing Pascuala’s perspective on having a disability. 

“My greatest takeaway from Pascuala’s speech was to never underestimate yourself and your potential,” Campuzano said. “A recurring theme throughout this event was that with hard work and determination, you can achieve any goal you set for yourself.” 

Herrera expresses that she hopes that when people read her book are reminded to always think about different possibilities and positive outcomes.

“I really want people to realize that life is what we make of it,” Herrera said. “Everyone struggles, everyone has problems, everyone has hard times, but it’s what we do and the miracles we can be grateful for that really adds meaning to our lives.”