Wyoming — Anna Rivera is working hard to ensure school families have presents under the tree come Christmas morning.
She connects them with organizations like Toys for Tots, Santa Claus Girls, and Angel Tree, helping them register in time for the holidays. The mission feels personal, bringing Rivera right back to when she was 14 or 15 years old and an unexpected visitor showed up at her door.
From a meeting room at Gladiola Elementary, Rivera, Wyoming Public Schools district support coordinator, begins her story:
It had been a challenging year for her family. Her parents were migrant workers from Mexico, and Rivera was the oldest of five siblings, the youngest of whom was 6 or 7. After a forklift fell on his foot, Rivera’s dad was off of work, and the family would not be migrating south from the tiny town of Walkerville, Michigan to Edinburg, Texas, for the winter months to work in the produce industry.
Rivera recalls seeing the emotional and financial toll on her Spanish-speaking parents as she helped them navigate the workers’ compensation process as the family’s main translator. Things were moving slowly; her mother had become the sole provider, and her father did not receive immediate treatment. He was in a lot of pain.
“Throughout that time, we started to receive a lot of help from the school,” said Rivera, who split the school year between Walkerville Public Schools and a public school in Texas.
The family had a conversation about how Christmas wasn’t going to be the same and gifts would be few.
“I had walked alongside them for the whole thing, so I was aware of what was going on; but obviously, being the oldest and having to brush it off and make it OK for my siblings was hard,” she said.
Then something happened, Rivera said, pausing to take a moment to reflect. The memory still makes her emotional — of jingling bells and “ho-ho-hos” that came at just the right time.
“Santa Claus showed up at our door. He started naming each of our names and handing us gifts from his red sack. To this day, that is one of the most precious memories that will forever live in my brain and my heart.”
Rivera’s parents were just as surprised as their children by the jolly old elf who came either from the North Pole or Walkerville Public Schools.
“It really helped bring a little magic into our lives during the challenging time we were living,” she said.
“The fact that I experienced that brings a lot of the work that I do full circle, or gives me those ‘aha’ moments, where I’m like, ‘Yeah, I’ve been there.’”
‘It Makes a Difference”
Rivera was born in Michigan and grew up following the crops with her family, who worked in vegetable processing factories. She often helped care for her younger siblings, and had to become reaccustomed to school in Michigan and in Texas as the seasons changed. In Walkerville, she said, about 50% of students were migrants, there for only the warm months of the year.
‘Anna is a representation of what I hope our students get to become. I know her background, and I know the strength it took for her to do this.’
first-grade teacher Maggie Cousino
Rivera graduated from Walkerville High School in 2015 and Ferris State University in 2019, where she earned her social work degree. She interned with Kent School Services Network at Lee Middle School, in Godfrey-Lee Public Schools, and began working as a KSSN coordinator for Wyoming Public Schools after that. In 2023-24, she began in her current district role, which has expanded from serving two elementary schools to all four, plus Wyoming Intermediate School.
Much of Rivera’s work involves helping Wyoming families meet basic needs: food, transportation, clothing and help finding affordable housing. She works with about 10-20% of K-6 families. Needs are consistent, but vary throughout the year. Last month, for example, she worked to get Thanksgiving food baskets to families.
Rivera’s main focus is on attendance. Oftentimes, chronic absenteeism is a result of financial obstacles, she said. She approaches her work in a preventative way, helping students feel comfortable and successful at school and addressing issues before attendance becomes too big a problem. She helps families establish routines and provides ways to stick to them.
“It’s about walking hand in hand with parents to help with any removal of barriers,” she said. “Sometimes it could be as simple as an alarm clock, and sometimes we are getting into the nitty-gritty of homelessness, food scarcity, hygiene essentials, so it really varies.”
If she can, Rivera covers needs immediately, or begins working to find resources. A housing issue might be compounded by financial and transportation needs.
“They are not trying to miss school, but they are facing these barriers that have no quick solution,” she explained.
Gladiola recess teacher and mom Hilda Rodriguez said Rivera literally walked hand in hand with her daughter, Sophia Limas, now a third-grader, to help her get to school every day. Sophia struggled with anxiety as a kindergartner and often did not want to go to school. Rivera helped her take her time, setting goals to get to class closer and closer to the start time and walking her from the office to the classroom.
“I just love Anna,” Rodriguez said. “Sophia only felt comfortable with her, and (Rivera) helped her become stronger and braver in school. … I thank God every single day for her.”
Now, Sophia likes school, and still looks up to Rivera. “I think she’s a very kind person,” Sophia said. “She helps other kids, just like me when I was little.”
Rivera also works with community partners, tapping into local resources. She is currently working to address a need for snow pants, boots and gloves for elementary students.
“The holiday season is difficult in general. After COVID, it’s gotten harder. … It’s about just being able to provide different avenues of support and loving on all the kiddos that are in school. I know firsthand that it makes a big difference.”
‘She shows them what they could become’
About 50% of Wyoming students are Latino, and Rivera’s bilinguality helps assist parents. She loves being able to connect with them in their native language. Their relief is palpable when they are understood and can understand, she said.
She remembers feeling disrupted herself, due to language while adjusting to different environments.
“In Michigan, because Walkerville is so small, I knew all my friends would be there when I came back,” she said. “It was harder in Texas. The schools were much bigger. … I was never sure who remembered me.”
As a child, Rivera spoke mostly Spanish at school in Texas and mostly English in Michigan, catching up with academics in both languages depending on the season. It was difficult, but she also worked hard to excel and serve as a role model for her siblings.
First-grade teacher Maggie Cousino said Rivera is an incredible example of success in school and beyond for students, especially those who are Spanish-speaking.
“Anna is a representation of what I hope our students get to become. I know her background, and I know the strength it took for her to do this,” Cousino said. “I think she would be a hero to some of our kids because she shows them what they could become and that they are strong and that they are going to have a great future if they are like Miss Anna.”
Gladiola volunteer Yvonne Diaz described how Rivera helps out with food truck distributions, going above and beyond to recruit volunteers.
“She is just awesome. She loves helping out as many people as she can. She is a very sensitive person and very kind to everyone,” Diaz said. “I always ask her for advice on everything: financial… mental, if it’s just needing someone to listen to me.”
Staff and students said they notice Rivera’s consistent presence, the smile that touches her eyes, how she’s always busy but always available. They notice the many ways she gets families what they need, when they need it — but that it becomes something more meaningful than anything tangible.
“I don’t know what I would have done without her,” said Rodriguez. “I appreciate her so much. I don’t even know how to describe how I feel about her.”
For Rivera, it’s about doing the work, finding ways to help and recognizing the “full circle” moments.
She again remembers the time when joy touched her family and it meant so much more than the toys and trinkets handed to her by a mitten-clad hand.
“Seeing Santa Claus and being able to share that moment with my family was the biggest gift I could have ever gotten.”
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