Staff profile: Cristina Tobón
Cristina Tobón has dedicated herself to helping people adjust to “living in America.” After moving from Colombia to Miami she experienced the common assimilation difficulties. She said, “Having the privilege of education and language skills, I thought others without those would struggle even more, so I decided to help.”
For the following six years, Cristina worked as a program manager for the Family and Children Faith Coalition of South Florida, which provides after-school services, prevention education, and mentoring. In mid-2010, the organization was forced to severely cut its budget. Cristina decided to visit her daughter in Portland. She quickly fell in love with the city and decided to stay.
In her new start, she volunteered at the Center for Intercultural Organizing, which helps immigrants and refugees settle in Portland’s communities. One of her co-volunteers was Hikari Ward, who worked as a care coordinator at Project Access NOW at the time and who told Cristina about job openings there.
“I was looking for a job, so it was perfect timing,” Cristina said. She’s been with Project Access NOW since December 2010 as care coordinator in charge of Multnomah County.
“Ninety percent of the time I interact with clinics that are part of the Coalition of Community Health Clinics,” Cristina said. “I take care of patients’ medical reviews, assign them to providers, and help Spanish-speaking patients navigate the system.”
So far, Cristina has had a positive impression. “I love it here. Not only what I do, which is helping people connect to health services, but also the people who work here. Everybody’s doing a great job because they have a calling to do it. It’s amazing how committed everybody is.”
When not following her own calling, Cristina enjoys discovering the city and taking weekend trips around the state with her daughter. She said, “I’m a reporter of Portland’s beauty. It reminds me of Bogota. The green mountains, the rain… I think it was meant to be.”
(March 2011)
