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Virginia Maestas was born in Colorado and grew up in Longmont, Boulder and the San Luis Valley. Both of her parents were born in New Mexico and worked as migrant farm workers. Later her father worked in the Great Western Sugar plant and Green Mountain Cemetery. Her mother did domestic work. Virginia describes her childhood, including the challenges of the living conditions, schooling without accommodation for her lack of knowledge of English (which led to her dropping out in Junior HIgh School), prejudicial treatment of Latinos, and the small size of the Latino community in Boulder County when she was growing up. She also tells about her return to school to obtain a GED at age 26, a college degree at age 46, and her subsequent career as a teacher. She discusses changes in the Boulder County Latino community and changes in attitudes toward Latinos over time.