Laurymarie Cruz is the kind of person who sees a need and works to fill it.

That’s why Cruz, who moved to Steamboat Springs in 2015 from her home island of Puerto Rico, is working toward a master’s degree in clinical mental health counseling to serve Spanish speakers in Steamboat.

“I want to give back to that community that’s welcomed me with open arms,” Cruz said. “There are so many bilingual kids in these schools, and the resources in many cases aren’t there yet. I want to fill that need.”

Cruz came with her husband, Juan Oliveras, to Colorado nine years ago when Juan got a job offer here. She’s visited New York and Florida a few times before but had never lived anywhere but Puerto Rico. Colorado was a big change.

“I loved it right away, but my first thought, honestly, driving from the airport to the apartment was, ‘What the heck?'” Cruz recalled. “Where did my husband bring me to live? You start coming from Denver and get into the mountains and you just keep going. My first impression was of course it’s very beautiful, but also very far.”

Cruz grew up in Carolina, Puerto Rico, a large city not far from the capital of the territory, San Juan. The biggest change, initially, was the size of the community.

But it felt like destiny to arrive in Colorado.

“I fell in love with the community,” Cruz said. “You can say you love the mountains, and I do, but for me, it’s the people here that I fell in love with. You can find pretty mountains many places. People make a difference. When I got here, that small-town feel was very different for me. Saying ‘hi’ to people in the grocery store, or having a circle of friends just from the park or from work.

“It’s not like that in the big city where I grew up. People look out for you, think about you. If there’s a job they think you’d be good for, they push for you to get a chance. That’s special.”

She works at Steamboat Springs High School as a paraprofessional now, working closely with students with special needs, and she’s previously worked at Horizons.

It’s through this work that she’s realized her calling.

“I think things don’t happen by coincidence; they happen because they have to happen,” Cruz said. “I was motivated to get this degree because after working with schools, seeing the Hispanic kids are the ones that are — they are a population here who suffers the most because of the lack of professional counselors that can speak Spanish that are bilingual. I want to help. I want to do something to help these kids.”

While Cruz acknowledges increasing resources for students and families who speak Spanish, she wants to be a part of that solution.

“They receive a lot of these people at the schools, and the school is where the kids build up their social skills, build their self-esteem,” she said. “It’s at the home, but it’s also at school. It’s a major transition point for them to feel like either they belong or they do not, and if they belong, they’ll do good for the community. If not, it’s not going to go as well for them.

“They might live here, but that doesn’t mean they’re going to feel compelled to put anything here. I want them to feel welcome and like they are a part of something.”