RITA FISHBURN

My life has been colored by the lives of so many people, especially my parents as examples of being compassionate and caring towards others. Born in Minnesota in 1954, my family moved to Saltillo, Mexico in 1960. They were very involved in trying to make this world a better place, dedicated to education, religion, and helping low-income university students get an education. My father died in 1969 in Missouri (where we lived while he was sick for 18 months). I had complicated grief for 30 years, and had an identity crisis as to if I was Mexican or American (I am “Human”) in my teens, being very happy to move back to Saltillo. These emotional issues have been re-signified in the work I do with others

I married young, and taught English Literature at the state teacher´s college for 28 years. I became very active in the breastfeeding organization of La Leche League, which improved my self- worth (managing LLL support groups, communicating with mothers, and public speaking) and guidance on how to raise my four children. In 1999, I studied a Thanatology (Grief and Dying) course, and then my Masters in Person-Centered Approach both at the Universidad Iberoamericana, and then a Masters in Families at Risk at Harvard Graduate School of Education in 2007- ‘09. I worked with children as an in-home-therapist in Holyoke, Massachusetts for 4 years. The PCA training was instrumental in establishing rapport with my young clients and their parents.

In 2013, I moved to Cabo, Baja, Mexico. My daughter and I started a Montessori elementary school there for her 2 children and friends, and now 75 students. I love working with the children, teaching them to cope with their socio-emotional issues, and helping parents. With the Covid situation, I moved back to my hometown, Saltillo, where my 3 sons and 6 grandchildren live. I´m currently giving workshops, doing grief counseling, and teaching PCA at our family-owned Universidad Carolina. I have a published book on random acts of kindness, Epidemia de Bondad, reminding ourselves of the importance of being kind and empathetic.