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School News | Friday, January 24, 2014

Celita Cabrera: From bus driver to PhD

Msgr. Edward Pace High teacher is known for her warmth, energy and Cuban coffee

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Celia Cabrera, better known as “Celita” to everyone at Msgr. Edward Pace High School in Miami Gardens. She is a Spanish teacher and a counselor to all who require it.

Photographer: ROCIO GRANADOS | LVC

Celia Cabrera, better known as “Celita” to everyone at Msgr. Edward Pace High School in Miami Gardens. She is a Spanish teacher and a counselor to all who require it.


Celia Cabrera, better known as “Celita,” makes Cuban coffee for
her ninth-grade class at Msgr. Edward Pace High School.

Photographer: ROCIO GRANADOS | LVC

Celia Cabrera, better known as “Celita,” makes Cuban coffee for her ninth-grade class at Msgr. Edward Pace High School.

MIAMI GARDENS | At the time, Celia Cabrera was getting divorced, and the father of her children refused to pay for their Catholic school tuition.

“When he refused to pay, I said, ‘I’ll pay’,” Cabrera recalled, and she began ferrying neighborhood kids to school in her station wagon. She charged $5 a week.

One day, a friend of hers who owned one of the private school buses — known as “guagüitas” in South Florida — that took students to Msgr. Edward Pace High School told her, “Buy the guagüita from me, Celita.”

“I don’t have money,” she replied.

To which her friend answered, “Pay me when you can.”

“And that’s how I began my life as a guagüera,” recalled Cabrera, better known as “Celita” to everyone at Pace High School in Miami Gardens, where she now heads the foreign language department and teaches Spanish.

“Imagine me,” she recalled recently, “driving the bus, teaching at Pace, dropping off kids, going to Immaculate (Conception School in Hialeah), picking up my daughters and the other kids, dropping them off, coming home, cooking and then going to St. Thomas (University), where I would fall asleep (in class).”

Catholic Schools Week: Jan. 26-Feb. 1, 2014

Photographer:

Catholic Schools Week: Jan. 26-Feb. 1, 2014

At age 68, her kids grown and a Ph.D. under her belt, Cabrera’s life is much less stressful but she still says, “I loved being a guagüera.”

“No one has graduated from Pace without knowing who Celita is and without knowing about her Cuban coffee, or Coffee 101,” said Elvita Reigosa, Pace’s public relations and special events coordinator.

Hearing Cabrera say, “You want coffee?” during her classes is routine. She uses the Cuban brew to teach her students to use phrases such as “Claro que sí” (yes, by all means), “Por favor” (please) and “Por supuesto” (of course).

“¡Sí, cómo no!, a former student told me the other day in the hallway,” said Cabrera, adding that it’s an educational technique that encourages students to talk, learn and share.

Serving coffee also breaks the stereotype that a teacher must be strict. She is not offended when some of her students call her “Celita” rather than Mrs. Cabrera. “Why, that’s my name,” she says smiling.

Celita in her closet, which in addition to uniforms, has everything children may need at school.

Photographer: ROCIO GRANADOS | LVC

Celita in her closet, which in addition to uniforms, has everything children may need at school.

Cabrera began teaching Spanish more than 40 years ago when she saw the phrase “Time, Talent and Treasure” at her daughters’ school, Immaculate Conception in Hialeah.

“I have time, I have talent and I don’t have treasure, but that inspired me and that’s how I started,” she said, recalling how she taught Spanish at Immaculate for 13 years as a volunteer, charging “not one cent.”

Then one day, Pace High called looking for a substitute Spanish teacher.

“They lent me!” she said, referring to Immaculate. “It was their biggest mistake: 28 years ago I came here for two weeks and I never left.”

Pace’s principal offered her the job fulltime. When told she did not have a degree, the principal said she was an “innate teacher” and arranged for Cabrera to receive a scholarship from St. Thomas University.

Cabrera strived to finish as quickly as possible, taking more than 24 credits a semester while keeping up the “guagüita” business — which by then included three buses — and taking care of her household.

“I finally graduated number one in my class, with degrees in Spanish and secondary education,” she said.

Feeling more secure about her work as a teacher, she stopped being a “guagüera”; one bus she sold, the others she gave away.

“Celita has many virtues,” said Ana Garcia, Pace’s principal.

Among them is her ability to make students feel welcome enough to ask for advice on any topic. Anyone who comes to see her is greeted with an enormous smile and a hug. All of her classes start with a prayer.

“Anybody can teach them math or languages. Celita teaches them how to overcome difficult moments. Her prayers turn into moral lessons,” said Garcia.

“I have always been very fortunate,” said Cabrera, which is why she likes to help others.

She recalled when she left Cuba at age 15 and arrived in Costa Rica with her brothers. They had no money but she obtained a scholarship for one of them to attend a Catholic school.

“He was very intelligent but I had to buy the uniform and I had nothing with which to do it,” Cabrera said. “I went store by store, asking and begging, until they gave me two pants and a shirt.”

That’s where she got the idea for what is known around Pace as Celita’s Closet.

“The students who graduate bring back their uniforms. She spends all summer mending them, washing and ironing, in order to give them away to kids who can’t afford them,” said Reigosa.

In Celita’s Closet, the uniforms are organized by size and sell for $5 or less, depending on the student’s ability to pay.

“One of Celita’s most beautiful traits is her energy. She has a passion for everything she does and that passion is transmitted with love to everything she touches,” said Garcia. “She’s like a charger, a battery, always doing many things.”

That energy is what led her to pursue more than a bachelor’s degree. She went on to get a master’s in English as a Second Language from Nova Southeastern University.

Then she noticed how much the school was spending on textbooks, so she wrote her own, on Spanish grammar and spelling for secondary schools, called “Nuestros Primeros Pasos” (First Steps).

When she finished the book she realized “it’s not the same to put Celita Cabrera from Hialeah as Celita Cabrera, Ph.D.,” so she pursued an online doctorate in literature from the Universidad Mayor de San Marcos in Peru.

She has since written other books: “Nuestras Raíces” (Our Roots) and “Nuestras Huellas” (Our Footprints). Her first book she dedicated to her father, the others to her daughters and grandchildren, and the third to her current husband.

She recently completed — and sold — a series of Spanish textbooks for grades two to six. She also has received many honors for achievements as a teacher, but the greatest, for her, is the recognition she gets from her own students.

Celita Cabrera, right, is shown with Anaika Alezi, a 10th-grader
at Msgr. Edward Pace High School.

Photographer: ROCIO GRANADOS | LVC

Celita Cabrera, right, is shown with Anaika Alezi, a 10th-grader at Msgr. Edward Pace High School.

“She is my rock. She is always there to give me energy when I need it,” said Cristina Cruz, a former student and now a colleague in the language arts department.

“I feel completely fulfilled when I teach,” said Cabrera. “When the students ask questions; when they want to know more; when I know they’re interested, I am completely happy.”

Not that her own family doesn’t make her happy as well: Three daughters, six grandchildren and her husband, who was her boyfriend in Cuba. They reconnected 20 years after she left and have now been married for 33.

“I could have retired two years ago but every time I think about it I say, really, I don’t want to go,” Cabrera said. “Thank God, I love what I do.”

Comments from readers

Tony Loperfido - 02/01/2014 05:48 AM
"Celita" - Congrats to you in all of your accomplishments . You have been a role model for so many of your students and colleagues. I have very fond memories of my "Spanish for Gringos" class with you and our field trips to the best Cuban restaurants in Miami. I recall you opening the doors to your home to your students on many occasions. You are an amazing individual and one of God's Angels. I wish you the best of luck in the rest of your career and thank you for being the "rock" for so many of us at Pace... God Bless...
Anthony Loperfido
Class of 1997
Alex Londono - 01/31/2014 04:03 PM
Congratulations Celita. Well deserved. What a wonderful story of grit and determination. It is truly inspirational. I'm only sorry that it took so long for me to hear it. Thank you for your service and commitment to the school and your students. Your warmth and kindness are not forgotten.

Alex
c/o 1994
Matthew Gomez - 01/27/2014 12:02 AM
The best quality that Celita has is her ability to teach life lessons. I will never forget the day that she taught us Kantian ethics without explicitly telling us what it was. During my third year at St John Vianney College Seminary, learning about the ethics of Immanuel Kant, I remembered the lesson Celita taught us in class about five years before, thinking to myself, "Celita taught me that..."

I am sure I speak for my classmates and all of Celita's students when I say that we are forever grateful for her commitment to teach and to live the charity found in the Gospels.

�Bendiciones Celita!
-Matthew
c/o 2009
Maria Elena Gomez - 01/26/2014 09:05 PM
Congratulations Celita!!! she deserves this recognition and much more. She is an excellent teacher, friend, counselor and everything else. She truly cares for the academic, spiritual and personal success of her students. May God bless you always!!!!
Ana Segal - 01/26/2014 11:38 AM
Celita gives so much more than anyone can truly verbalize. When there was a very significant downward spiral in out home, Celita was actually there to help me as parent.
It is not mentioned in the article that she has also served as a sponsor to many activities, including "Dance Line", to which she dedicated very long hours, days and years!!!
Truly a VERY UNIQUE woman!!!
God Bless you!!!
Joanne Rodriguez - 01/26/2014 03:12 AM
What a wonderful article...so well deserved! It was my pleasure to work with Celita at Pace for 16 years. I think she has more energy than all of us. The article forgot to mention the cookbook the Spanish Department produced a few years ago. I think of Celita and the Spanish Department every time I open the book.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY... You are truly one of a kind! Miss you and your Cuban coffee! Many blessings and love!
Barbara Kushner - 01/25/2014 02:33 PM
I am so very proud to say that I worked with Celita for nine very special years. She welcomed me with open arms. She even taught me to make 'Jewban' coffee. What little Spanish I know, I learned from working with her. It is about time that she has been recognized for all the special things she does for the Pace community. Sometimes I think that the campus would implode without her. She is a prize that G-d has given us, and we must continue to treasure her for as long as possible. Thank you Celita!!!
Crystle Tejas - 01/25/2014 01:56 PM
Celita was not my Spanish teacher but was someone I always felt approachable to turn to facing certain problems in high school. I remember alaways walking into the Spanish lounge and her smiling face ask me "QUE QUIERES CRYSTAL" lol. She deserves this recognition and so much more. Upon enetering Nursing school I visited pace for transcripts five years after graduating and went to see her. She gave me the best advice ever "Always believe you can acheive whatever you want no matter what you yourself thinks because you are your own best critict". She was totally right ! I will forever hold her in my heart and wish her nothing but the absolute best in life God has not only blessed her with an innate gift of teaching but also with the numerous amounts of love she receives from her students past and present .
Sonia Reyes - 01/24/2014 09:59 PM
I had the privilege to work with Celita when I first arrived in Miami in 2000. I was so scared of this new life here, no family, no friends. But Celita welcomed me like if I was one of her own. She was always willing to help me in my transition and that is something I will never ever forget. I will forever be grateful to her and my wonderful Pace family. Her coffee was the best. That is how I became addicted to this nectar called Cuban coffee. Thank you Celita for being who you are and for helping so many people throughout your life (teachers, students, parents, colleagues).You are truly Pace's greatest asset. God bless you and THANK YOU! I still miss all of you. This article should be published for everyone to read and enjoy. Love you.
Ana Plasencia - 01/24/2014 08:54 PM
Felicidades Celita! I remember Celita and her family from Immaculate Conception School. Great to see her recognized as the great teacher that she is. Love and Hugs out to you, Celita!
Jordanna Egan - 01/24/2014 07:14 PM
She is such brilliant Spanish teacher and person! She taught this gringa from England espanol many, many years ago. People were always so impressed that I spoke such great Spanish, and I would always tell them I had the BEST Spanish Teacher EVER! Today is her birthday, FELIZ CUMPLEANOS to one of the BEST teachers EVER!!!
Lucia Unzalu - 01/24/2014 06:57 PM
This is a fantastic story about a wonderful teacher. I never had her as a teacher but I did have Mr Soto which was right across from her. I love her so much. I still remember that great Cuban Coffee she would make. She is one teacher that I will NEVER forget. She is the best thing that Pace has to offer.
Jorge Fortich - 01/24/2014 04:02 PM
Where is the Miami Herald? This is the stories we need to be published about our educators. I had the pleasure to have my daughters at Pace and dealt with Celita which by the way she makes awesome Cuban coffee. I want to express my gratitude for her dedication not only to the Teaching vocation but as well to her students, parents, school and community. Celita the Fortich family Loves you and I am sure many other families as well! God Bless!
Sr Maria Elena Larrea, osf - 01/24/2014 03:42 PM
This is a great story. She is realy a truly example for everyone. What an indomitable spirit. Celita I am very proud of you are a truly mentor for anyone. May God continue blessing you!
Christina Lopez - 01/24/2014 03:26 PM
This is a great article. I am so fortunate to have met Celita throughout my high school career. I love her so much that I make sure to stop by her classroom every time I visit Pace. Her story truly inspires me and reminds me that anything is possible. I can only hope my children will someday have a role model in their life, the way Celita played one in mine.
Christina Lopez c/o 2012
Jessenia Rodriguez - 01/24/2014 02:15 PM
So happy to see Celita being recognized for all of her amazing qualities and traits. She was one of my favorite teachers at Pace even though I took French instead of Spanish. There was not a student that didn't know her and those that did had to love her! Wishing you continued success and that she may continue to bless the lives of so many. Love you Celita!!
Vivian Resende - 01/24/2014 01:57 PM
It's about time that Celita get the recognition she deserves. She is a fantastic teacher and a wonderful human being, she is mother hen to the students and a great friend to her peers. We are proud to be working with her,Pace is lucky to have her, when you say Pace High School you say Celita Cabrera. Have a wonderful birthday, se te quiere mi amiga.
Alina Rodriguez - 01/24/2014 01:04 PM
I am so proud to be a Celita's co-worker. You always learn from her. You always know she is there for you. Always unconditional. Love you, Celita.
Eduardo Flor - 01/24/2014 12:57 PM
Celita is a true gift from God and the Pace family is blessed to have her. May God continue to grant you with life and love so that you may continue his works of mercy! We love you Celita!

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