WASHINGTON (Map, News) - Ask Maria Gomez what it takes to be a successful adult, and she’ll tell you that it takes a healthy childhood.

“As a nurse, ... I know the impact. From the moment a child is conceived, [health care] can make a world of difference,” said Gomez, who moved to the District from war-torn Colombia with her mother at the age of 11.

Gomez said she was lucky enough to have successful, encouraging people surrounding her and to graduate from Georgetown’s nursing school in the 1980s.

She got a job as a nurse at Georgetown University Hospital and settled into a comfortable life. But while Gomez successfully transitioned into adulthood, she quickly realized there were many women just like her and her mother, who had fled to Washington from other war-torn South American countries, but weren’t so lucky.

“When I was a nurse and I started seeing a community that looked very much like me ... it was just too hard to stand there and not do something about it,” she said.

So Gomez founded Mary’s Center for Maternal and Child Care in 1987. The mission of the nonprofit is to provide health care, as well as educational and support services, for Latina women trying to make a new life for themselves in a new country.

The central question of Mary’s Center is “How do we nurture these women so they can really nurture their children?,” said Gomez. “We teach them how to live in this country.”

Mary’s Center was started in a Columbia Heights basement with just 10 employees and a limited client base.

Today, Mary’s Center serves about 10,000 people a year from diverse backgrounds. It has plans to open an additional facility in Montgomery County and is looking for a Northern Virginia location in either Fairfax or Prince William County. In addition to health care, the center offers a wide variety of classes and other social services for both women and men.

The hope, said Gomez, is to help first and second generation immigrants find success in the U.S.

“If we can save them from having to go on welfare,” she said. “If we can move them up the ladder. If we can make them citizens and they can vote, then that’s a success.”

BUSINESS

»Current job: President/CEO, Mary’s Center for Maternal and Child Care

» Last job: Public Health Nurse at D.C. Commission of Public Health (1985-86)

» Number of e-mails a day: Between 100 and 150

» Number of voice mails a day: Around 50

» Essential Web site: www.google.com

» Best perk: Helping the community

» Gadgets: BlackBerry

» Education/credentials: University of California, Master’s of Public Health, 1987, Berkeley, Calif.; Georgetown University, Bachelor’s of Nursing, 1977, Washington, D.C.

» Last conference: Latino Health Conference of the Virginia Common Wealth University, Center on Health Disparities, Richmond, Nov. 16

» First job: Staff nurse at Georgetown University Hospital 1977-80

PERSONAL

» Date of Birth: March 28

» Hometown: Cali, Colombia

» Sports/hobbies: Karate

» Transportation: Car

» Favorite restaurant: Lauriol Plaza

» Computer: Dell Optiplex GX620

» Favorite clothing: Casual

» Vacation spot: The mountains

» Reading: Poems

kwilmeth@dcexaminer.com

Comments from Examiner Readers

4:42 PM MST on Fri., Jul. 6, 2007 re: "Curreri has grand plans for his latest venture"

Examiner Reader said:
An excellent article on Mike Curreri,an outstanding individual.

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9:20 PM MST on Mon., Jun. 18, 2007 re: "Birdsong fosters culture of customer satisfaction"

Garret Ohm said:
This man has great taste in cars!

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