November 25, 2014

Building Strong Relationships is a Life Lesson

November 25, 2014/ LAW SCHOOL … Sí Se Puede

By Paula Black, Mentor

Building strong relationships is the foundation of a career. They create openings for opportunities that are unimaginable at the time.

More than 30 years ago there were two young women whose paths would cross one day because they both forged strong relationships.

One was a young associate being interviewed by a law firm in Miami that impressed her by their interest in her as a person. They asked to meet her husband. Wow, no other law firm she interviewed with asked that question. She was excited to accept the job offer from this firm that demonstrated they cared about people. Her first impression turned out to be true. She forged a strong relationship with the lawyer she worked for, John Kozyak and to this day still stays in touch with him even though she left Miami decades ago.

The second young women is “yours truly.” I met this same lawyer, John Kozyak over 30 years ago and had the same impression. He is a caring “real” person. I have worked for his firm and socialized with them many times over the years. I built a strong relationship.

Fast forward to 2014. The lawyer that these two women became so fond of closed the loop and introduced the two women... Judge Arguello and me! As young women we both built strong relationships with John Kozyak never knowing that one day he would put the two of us in contact. I was opening an office in my home town of Denver and my good friend John Kozyak said you must meet my friend Judge Arguello. Judge Arguello and I both grew up in Colorado and we both had strong relationships that brought us together.

I took one look at what Judge Arguello was doing with Law School... Sí Se Puede and knew that I must help in any way that I could.

Two young women long ago built strong relationships that would bring us together to do this important work. Where will your strong relationships bring you one day?

“Sí, Se Puede” is a phrase born of farmworkers, who, under the leadership of the UFW, César Chávez, and Dolores Huerta, fought valiantly for equal protection under the law. As a result of the efforts of the UFW, “Sí, Se Puede” has become well known as a call that engenders hope and inspiration in those who face similar battles. We thank the UFW, whom we acknowledge to be the sole and exclusive owner of the Trademark SI SE PUEDE, for granting us a limited license to use“Sí, Se Puede” in connection with our efforts to recruit, in Colorado, students of Hispanic or Latino descent for our law school pipeline program. For more information about the programs offered by the UFW, please see UFW’s webpage (www.ufw.org); UFW Foundation’s webpage (www.ufwfoundation.org); and UFWF’s immigration services webpage (www.sisepuede.org)