Anacari Anguiano of Healdsburg High School

By BRETT WILKISON
THE PRESS DEMOCRAT

Behind the busy schedule that Anacari Anguiano keeps these days is a goal the 16-year-old Healdsburg High sophomore has had for as long as she can remember.
The long days at school, including the full set of classes she’s taking this summer through the Upward Bound program at Sonoma State University, and the years of study ahead are all aimed at taking a little of the load off her parents.
Years ago, Manuel and Maria Anguiano came to Sonoma County from Michoacán, Mexico, and started their family, now including Anacari and her five brothers and one sister.
Maria is a janitor with the city of Healdsburg, and Manuel runs his own landscaping business. Hard work has been the norm in their household.
Their middle child wants to land on her own two feet so that some day her parents can rest.
“The way I see it is I’ve always worked hard so that my parents have to work less,” Anguiano said.
That drive has deep roots. It started with the lawn mowing jobs she and a friend solicited when she was just 7. It’s continued at school, where she has put in extra hours with her teachers, polishing up essays or going over tricky math problems.
“I’ve never been shy about seeking out help,” Anguiano said.
Her work ethic has earned her praise from instructors and the respect of her schoolmates.
“She’s had leadership qualities since she was a kid,” said Lillian Fonseca, a Healdsburg Junior High School teacher who taught Anguiano and many of her siblings.
“She knows how to speak her mind without bringing other people down. She looks out for the underdog. And she’s humble. That’s a very beautiful trait in a kid that age,” Fonseca said.
There are sacrifices for dreaming big, and Anguiano confesses that she has her career sights set high, hoping one day that she’ll wind up a family doctor.
“Years and years of studying,” she said, acknowledging the reality of that academic horizon. Already it’s pinching the time she has for friends, she said.
Her studies are set to ramp up to advanced placement classes this year. But there also will be soccer and volleyball to look forward to and her first year in the FFA program. She wants to raise chickens or rabbits.
Her family keeps her grounded. Six siblings will always do that.
But they also cheer her on, recently throwing her a last-minute quinceañera bash before she turned 16. The party of 200 made her feel “like a princess,” she said, blushing.
“This is all work for where I want to go. I’m pretty patient. I know I’ll get there.”

You can reach Staff Writer Brett Wilkison at 521-5295 or brett.wilkison@pressdemocrat.com.

Anacari Anguiano
Age: 16
Lives with: Her parents Manuel and Maria, five brothers and one sister: Yackelin, 19; Fabian, 18; Marcos, 17; Joel, 14; Adrian, 10; and Jesus, 7.
ages 7 to 19
Hobbies: Sings in choir at St. John’s Catholic Church in Healdsburg, volleyball, soccer
Favorite food: Homemade lasagna
Favorite band: Mägo de Oz, Spanish rock band
Dream job: Family doctor
Inspired by: Her father and his work ethic

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