ALUMNI profile
Margarita Romo CLASS OF 1980
The daughter of Mexican-American migrant workers , Margarita Romo learned firsthand the hardships these laborers encounter . Following several difficult years , Romo sought a better life for herself and enrolled at then Pasco-Hernando Community College , completing her Certificate in General Studies in 1980 . In 1982 , Romo founded and still serves as the Executive Director of Farmworkers Self-Help , Inc . ( FSH ), an organization which facilitates the self-development of farmworkers and their families through programs of education , advocacy , and health .
Romo organized Agricultural Women Involved in New Goals ( AWING ), the first farmworker women ’ s organized initiative in Florida . She developed the Norma Godinez Arts and Education Center and the Mi Otra Casa Community Teen Center . Through her vision and efforts working alongside families of the communities that FSH serve , La Casa de Esperanza y Salud , a free health clinic for farmworkers , opened in 1994 in Dade City . She was also instrumental in creating a farmworkers clinic in Gretna , Florida .
Furthering her mission to improve the quality of life of farmworkers , Romo has traveled extensively throughout North America including
El Salvador , Peru and Honduras . She has served on the Florida Education and
Employment Council for Women and Girls ; Pasco County Juvenile Justice Council ; Girls Initiative of Pasco County ; Pasco County Sheriff ’ s Council ; Youth as Resources , Pasco County ; and the Health and Human Services Board of Children and Family Services for HRS District Five .
Romo ’ s selfless work has not gone unnoticed . She is a recipient of the
Robert Bannerman Award as a distinguished activist of color , the Clairol Award for women over 35 , and the Cramer-Fisher Award from MAZON : A Jewish Response to Hunger , recognizing accomplishments toward alleviating hunger and poverty . She was honored as Hispanic Woman of the Year by the Tampa Hispanic Heritage Foundation ( 2010 ); the first Mexican-American woman inducted into the Florida Civil Rights Hall of Fame ( 2013 ); a Florida Department of Public Health , Public Health Hero ( 2014 ); a Blue Foundation / Blue Cross Blue Shield of Florida Sapphire Award recipient ( 2015 ); and a Tampa Bay Lightning Community Hero ( 2015 ). In 2015 , she was awarded a Doctorate of Humane Letters ( honoris causa ) by Saint Leo University . Most recently , Romo was honored by Pasco- Hernando State College as the tenth Distinguished Alumni Award recipient .
30 PHSC Perspective