Oral History Program Reyna Aburto Interviewed by Catherine Diamond 7 February 2018 Oral History Program Weber State University Stewart Library Ogden, Utah Reyna Aburto Interviewed by Catherine Diamond 7 February 2018 Copyright © 2023 by Weber State University, Stewart Library Mission Statement The Oral History Program of the Stewart Library was created to preserve the institutional history of Weber State University and the Davis, Ogden and Weber County communities. By conducting carefully researched, recorded, and transcribed interviews, the Oral History Program creates archival oral histories intended for the widest possible use. Interviews are conducted with the goal of eliciting from each participant a full and accurate account of events. The interviews are transcribed, edited for accuracy and clarity, and reviewed by the interviewees (as available), who are encouraged to augment or correct their spoken words. 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These oral history assignments were created to help Weber State students learn the value and importance of recording public history and to benefit the expansion of the Weber State oral history collections. ____________________________________ Oral history is a method of collecting historical information through recorded interviews between a narrator with firsthand knowledge of historically significant events and a well-informed interviewer, with the goal of preserving substantive additions to the historical record. Because it is primary material, oral history is not intended to present the final, verified, or complete narrative of events. It is a spoken account. It reflects personal opinion offered by the interviewee in response to questioning, and as such it is partisan, deeply involved, and irreplaceable. ____________________________________ Rights Management This work is the property of the Weber State University, Stewart Library Oral History Program. It may be used freely by individuals for research, teaching and personal use as long as this statement of availability is included in the text. It is recommended that this oral history be cited as follows: Aburto, Reyna, an oral history by Catherine Diamond, 7 February 2018, WSU Stewart Library Oral History Program, Special Collections and University Archives, Stewart Library, Weber State University, Ogden, UT. iii Abstract: The following is an oral history interview with Reyna I. Aburto, conducted on February 7, 2018 in Reyna’s office in the LDS (Latter-day Saints) Church Relief Society Building, in Salt Lake City, Utah, by Catherine Diamond. Reyna discusses her life and her experiences in leadership roles in the LDS church and her company. CD: We are doing a study on leadership styles, as well as women and minority leaders in Northern Utah. I appreciate your cooperation with my interview today. I have some set questions that I will go ahead and ask you. I have read a little bit about you in your biography on LDS.org and it was interesting to hear about you. Some of these questions will reflect on that. The first question is, please start by telling us about your background (childhood, teen years, where you grew up, hobbies, family values, education, etc.) RA: Well, yes, I was born in Nicaragua. I was one in four children. It was a very simple life, the life that I lived when I was little. Very simple. We didn't really have a lot. I remember taking my children to Nicaragua a few years ago and when I took them to the high school where I graduated they were in shock because it is a very, very simple place. It was a private, modest school, but still when they saw it they thought, "Ok, I will never complain about my high school." I had the opportunity to go to the university over there. I was in my fourth year when I decided to come to the United States. Over there, you have to go for five years so I was really almost to the end of it. My major was Industrial Engineering. But things were so bad over there that I decided to just leave. 1 Which was probably not a good idea, but it was what I decided, at that point, without finishing my schooling. CD: And you left at what age then? RA: I was 21. I moved to California, and I started going to English school at night, and then, right after I finished my first course because I qualified for a higher level in English. When I finished that year, they allowed me to take some tests for college, and I passed them. They told me, you can start college now. I started taking some computer related classes in San Francisco, California. Then, I decided to move to Utah and transferred my credits—some of my credits helped me here, so that's when I started going to UVU again at night. I was able to finish an associate degree after many years of schooling, because it was not easy for me to go to school. But that's what I did. Fortunately, by that time, I already had a job working in a translation department in a big software company. That's where I actually got the knowledge about the translation industry. I also had so many coworkers there that we worked together, and at some point, that department got disbanded. So everyone just went to different states and different companies. That's how we started our translation company with my husband because of all the connections that I had from that job. We've been working with our company for over 15 years now. CD: And you and your husband own that company together? 2 RA: Yes, and we are basically it. Sometimes we outsource, but it's usually just what we can do. I still work a little bit in that. CD: No employees? RA: No, not really. Sometimes we hire outside help, but that's basically it. Does that cover it? Well, we have a family of three children. I think our hobbies are just to spend time together, doing anything that we need to do—a project at home, or go watch a movie, or go eat outside, or go for a walk. I would say that is my hobby— just to be with my family. That's me. I have a very simple life because this calling changed my whole life, but I'm enjoying it a lot. I'm enjoying it a lot. CD: How would you say your values with the church influence your business? RA: Yes, I think it does a lot. I joined the church when I was 29. I had been living in California for about 5 years at the time. You know, just learning about the gospel, the principles of the gospel, the example of the Savior being so kind to people and knowing that your relationships with people are more important than anything. That has been a great influence in my job because we deal with a lot of clients. Sometimes our clients have gone through hard times, and there are times when they cannot pay us on time, or they ask for a lower rate for some projects and even for free work—for some agencies that don't have money to pay because they're not lucrative. What is the word you use in English? Non-profit organizations. 3 Sometimes they come to you, and say, "I'm sorry, but can you lower your rate? Can you do this for free?” And we say, "Yes, of course, we can do that.” Those kinds of things make a big difference because you establish a relationship because then when a big project comes, you will be the first person that they will think of. Ok, probably that sounded bad. You don't really do it thinking that you're going to receive something back, but in the end, you do. Does that make sense? You receive the blessings because you were so flexible with them. Then the blessings come years later. They remembered that you did that for them, and then they come and they give you big projects. That's the way we have been doing it—knowing that the relationships with the people are more important than the money or power or whatever. I don't know if that makes sense. We have really strong relationships with our clients. Anytime we need to take some time off, like when we go on vacation with our family to visit our families back in our countries, or to serve in the church, or to go for a week with the girls because they went to camp. We have such a good relationship that they will accommodate their needs or their timelines to our needs. CD: Great. Thank you. What experiences did you have in childhood, teen years, and adult years that led you to believe that you were or could be a leader? RA: I think the fact that I was the second in our family. My oldest brother died when I was nine. That kind of left me being the oldest and then there is a big gap 4 between me and my next sister. We are nine years apart, and then I'm 12 years older than the next one. I kind of was like their second mother. You know, them growing up, I helped a lot with their raising because my mother worked outside of the home so I will get there from school and I will take care of my brother and sister, and I felt that responsibility. Also, the fact that when I was a teenager, it was hard in our home because there was a lot of conflict between my parents. I felt the responsibility to protect my siblings many times, and even my mother, in a way. So I think that that shaped me. CD: To take charge? RA: Yes. To know that what I did mattered and that I needed to do something. To help them with their homework and even when we moved to the United States. Because I came first, but then my mother and my two siblings came after, like a year after that. My siblings didn't speak any English, and they had to go to school. Of course, we had help there, but also at night. Even after a long day at work and then night school, I would come home and I would help them with their homework and so we did it together. CD: Thank you. What are your core values? How have they influenced your leadership experiences/abilities? RA: Well, I believe in God. I have always believed in God, and I think that makes a difference because I think that knowing that you have to be accountable to somebody. You know, it helps you to have limitations in the way that I know that there are some lines that I should not cross—in so many ways, with honesty with 5 people, in kindness, and I honestly think that, like I said before, that relationships with people that make a difference. Those are more important than anything else in the world. So I think that that really makes a difference in how you see people and how you treat them. Even when you think that others are being unkind to you, or not fair, unfair to you. If you look at them as people, and you realize that probably they are hurting, or that there is something inside of them that don't really let them be the best they can, then it makes a big difference. I try to apply that to everything. I remember hearing someone say a long time ago, they said, “You don't really know people enough to hate them.” That has really been a big help for me. CD: Name a person who has had a tremendous impact on you as a leader. Maybe someone who has been a mentor to you. Why and how did this person impact your life generally, and your leadership abilities specifically. RA: For some reason the first person that came to my mind is Julie Beck. I can probably say she is the reason that I am here. I remember listening to her talks and for some reason, they always had a big impact on me. The way she will present things and the way she will help us women understand that we have a responsibility to step up and be leaders in the church—really had a huge impact on me. Years ago, I was called as a Stake Relief Society President. During that time in which I started that calling, I heard that they were looking for volunteers downstairs in the resource room, that they used to have downstairs. But you had to be like a Stake Relief Society President, or a Stake Young Women's President 6 or Primary President, to be able to work there. When I heard that, because I had that calling, I said. “Okay, I want to volunteer there. If I can just see Julie Beck from a distance that will be my pay.” And that was the reason I volunteered just because she had such a big influence on me. And then, as they were analyzing my application for that—not an application but a request—she invited me to a focus group where they had just Spanish speaking sisters. That was the beginning of many things. A year after that, I was called to the Primary General Board and now here. But it was just that, that influence she had on me. For some reason, I felt the connection every time she would speak. I just thought, “okay, there is something about her- in the way that she inspires us - and now that I am in this position - I wish I could be like her.” When I have to give a talk on something like that, I want to make women feel the way that she made me feel. That is my prayer. That is what I ask the Lord to bless me with that ability. CD: That's sweet. Thank you for sharing that with me. What do you see as the biggest challenges of being a woman and/or minority leader in Northern Utah? What do you do to overcome these challenges? RA: Well I think that being a foreigner; it is a disadvantage because it is obvious that English is not my first language. I struggle with that and that's one of the things that I ask myself, "Why am I here if I don't even speak good English?” But I know the Lord has a purpose for me and I have tried to not let it become something that hinders me, but maybe that helps me. 7 I think the language is a problem because the thoughts don't come out the same way as they do in my language. People may think that my thoughts are not really that clear because my language is not that clear. But I have put this into practice since I moved to the United States. I think that each of us, we need to somehow gain the respect of people. You do that only by being yourself and being true and being honest and being kind. That is something I have also tried to instill in my children. We tried not to talk about discrimination with them when they were growing because we didn't want them to expect that. Because I honestly think that in a way we all discriminate, you know, when we judge somebody by the way they look and we just put them into a category, we really in a way are discriminating. And we do it without thinking and sometimes without really wanting to do it. But I think that if you work hard on gaining the respect of people—for them to get to know your strengths, then they see you differently. I don't know if that makes sense. You know I think with our children we probably talked about discrimination for the first time when they were about 15, just because you know at the dinner table those topics come. But we never told them that they should expect to be discriminated or what they would do if they were discriminated. We never told them that because we didn't want that to be what defined them. You are yourself. You act the best you can. We tried to instill in them—principles of kindness and fairness to everybody, to treat everyone the same way, and never to expect that. And that's what I have tried to do to gain the respect. 8 CD: They're lucky to have you. RA: Well hopefully we have done a good job. Hopefully. You know how it is, when you're a parent. It's hard. You are always asking yourself, or God, “Am I doing a good job? Am I being too flexible? Or too strict?” Sometimes you feel that you're going to one extreme or the other and you want to have a balance and be flexible sometimes. But sometimes you also have to be strict. That is the balance that we're trying to find. CD: Right. And you're never really sure. RA: Yes and we have to keep looking for that revelation in everything. CD: Your children are adults? Are they grown? RA: Yes. My oldest is 31 and he's from my first marriage. He lives in Phoenix. He has two little boys. He just finished his master’s about a year ago. My next one is a daughter. She is at BYU-Idaho right now. She's 23 and she finished her mission in Modesto, California last year. The youngest, he came back from France just a few months ago, also serving a mission there. He's going to UVU. He's 20. So yeah, they're old. He's living with us right now. CD: That's great. It sounds like they're up to good things. RA: Yes. Hopefully. CD: Alright, thank you. What advice would you give emerging young women/minority leaders in order to be successful? 9 RA: I think that we just have to take one day at a time and do our best that day. You know, there are many times in life in which we feel that we hit a wall and we don't know where to go next. But sometimes it's good to pause and just stop and think. For example, in our business, translation is very subjective. And sometimes we will get messages that say, "Your translation was really bad.” Our client is really mad. So, we will get something like that and then you would just ... I would just stop. Sometimes not even answer the message right away and sometimes even wait until the next day, so I would be relaxed. And then I will get these ideas and the revelation, "What is the right way to answer to these messages? And then think about it, and say something like, "Okay, we appreciate your feedback.” We appreciate feedback from our clients because that's what makes us do a better job. “Will you please ask your client to give a specific, so we know exactly what is wrong so we can improve on that?” And then they will come back and say, "Oh, because this word and that word.” Then you know you can actually work on the problem in a professional way and then you gain their respect. Because sometimes it's just that one word that they didn't like, but they're saying the whole thing is wrong. And then when you focus on that issue and you let them know that. What is a good solution for that? So is this a matter of preference? Do you prefer to use that? Then we would start using that word or sometimes you have to go and look at the dictionary or some books to defend your position, but you do it in a professional way. 10 I don't know if I'm answering your question, but it's just to take one thing at a time and gain the respect of people. That they know that you are a professional. That you're not defending yourself, and saying, “Yeah, but you still have to pay me because I sent you a translation. You have to pay me.” Instead of going into that direction, you go in the other direction. And you try to solve the problems and do it in a professional way. In a way that they know you are trying to do your best job for them, because if they are successful, you are successful. So look at your clients and even at your peers, and colleagues. You know, people that do the same kind of job or work as your “partners”. Not your competition. “Okay, you do a job for me, you pay me.” It's not just like that. It's establishing a relationship with every one of your clients. But also, with your peers because sometimes you need their help. And sometimes they will need your help. If you collaborate, then you do more. Having a collaborative perspective and approach to everything I think makes a difference. CD: That's powerful. Thank you. I love that answer. What other insights can you share about being a woman/minority leader in Northern Utah? RA: I think that as women, instead of trying to fight for equality with men, we should fight for unity. Men and women are different, and even if you compare to women, we are different. We have different skills. I think that if we just look at it. If we just think about the best way we can contribute to society, to a company, to family, to communities—instead of trying to compete and try to fight for equality. Because really, each of us is different and we have something different to contribute. But to fight for unity and to just look at everybody as a person that 11 needs your help and that can help you at the same time, and so we can help each other. I don't know if that makes sense. CD: Yes, it does. I can see why you are where you are. You have a lot of wisdom. Anything else that you would add? RA: I think that we just have to be persistent in our dreams—you know, to follow our dreams. And to try to have a place where you want to go—a destiny. Not necessarily a strict plan, because sometimes when we are too strict with our plans, we miss opportunities. But just to know where we want to go and to be open to the opportunities that are presented to us. Sometimes we have to change our plans and go in a different direction. So just be open to the opportunities and God will bless you, whatever, wherever you are and what you're doing. If your intentions are righteous, you will get to a point in which you will feel like, “Okay, I have accomplished something good in my life and I feel good about this.” CD: Great. Thank you. Those were great words for the study and personally they were great words for me. Thank you. 12