About a year ago, when she was just 16, she knew that by the next year she would be enlisting.

Finding out she could enlist through her parents’ lawyers, they contacted the school recruiter, and from there they started the process. She knew this would be the opportunity to give back to her

parents.

On March 19, she took the oath. By doing this, she was going to help her parents out in any way possible.
Senior Zamantha Loza-Barraza made the decision to join the National Guard. She plans to gain a more beneficial future not just for herself but for her parents as well.

“The reason was for my parents,” Loza-Barraza said. “They did not force me or anything. I decided to do it for them, and it also has many benefits … “ Loza-Barraza said. “In a way, it will help my parents for future benefits as well.”

Carmen Barraza, her mother, was so proud to see her daughter make it through basic training. She knows the sacrifices her daughter went through while being far away from home, knowing that her daughter has never been far away from her and their family.

“Well, every parent feels nervous and a bit worried because it is not an easy decision to make,” Barraza said in Spanish. “But also very glad and grateful, because not just any young

teenager makes that important decision at their young age.”

Loza-Barraza went through many days of trying to stay mentally strong throughout all the physical work, not knowing she had to jump off of a 40-foot tower, go through gas chambers, shoot a weapon and throw a grenade, all just at the age of 17.

Although she felt homesick from time to time, she knew she was doing this for a reason. Many of Loza-Barraza’s friends are aware of the route she decided to take for her loved ones. One of her close friends, senior Van Chin, felt heartbroken for the Loza-Barraza family knowing the struggles and the difficult times they have all faced.

“The things this girl has been through, I couldn’t imagine, I can’t fathom,” Chin said. “ … I just want to say Zamantha is a warrior. She has been through thick and thin.”

While Loza-Barraza was away in training, she learned many valuable skills and lessons. She even got the chance to learn what she believes is the true meaning of discipline.

“What I learned is something that my drill sergeant said. He said, ‘We’re doing this so you sweat now and don’t bleed later,’” Loza-Barraza said. “So even if it was hard, we just had to push through, because later on at the end of the day you’re going to go home, and you’re going to be okay.”

Along with all the other lessons, she learned how to improve her communication skills.
“The military is all about teamwork,” Loza-Barraza said. “And that’s one thing I learned over there. You can’t be an individual over there, you have to learn how to talk and communicate with everyone around you.”

Loza-Barraza will continue to be in the National Guard to finish her eight year contract specializing in aviation. For six years, she will be active, and for the two years left she will not be working.
Being the first generation in her family, she joined for her parents to gain their citizenship. It was a way for her parents to ask for forgiveness. In order for them to live freely

without any worry.