“Loving others means accepting others, no matter how different they are,” explained Lesbhia Morones, a leader with Faith in Action East Bay (FIAEB)—formerly Oakland Community Organization (OCO)—for over twenty years. “This organization has taught me to accept differences in a loving manner.”
Lesbhia’s involvement grew through education, first as a mother to five children and eventually through becoming an interpreter and working for Oakland Unified School District’s Office of Bilingual Education. As OCO grew its presence in schools, she began interpreting for OCO research meetings. There she saw that people could be in conflict but still be respectful.
“The research meetings felt empowering, joyful! That’s what gave me a lot of pride…it made me feel proud to be part of an organization that could have conflict. You could be professional and say what you have to say without being rude, without yelling.”
Lesbhia was born in Nicaragua and immigrated to San Francisco with her family when she was six years-old. She finds the values of Faith in Action East Bay are not in contradiction to to her Catholic faith.
Developing as a Leader
“I have really developed as a leader, learning better people skills. I received good skills from my parents, but it’s hard when you are a chatterbox [like me] to respect when people are quiet, it’s just not natural. I learned to listen.”
As Lesbhia grew as a leader working in education, she learned more about local politics, unions, budget-making, and how to work through the various aspects to create positive change for students.
“As a FIAEB leader you start little by little….you are in the current and you learn. FIAEB has always come through for me,” she said. “God is with this organization.”
Expanding Engagement
When the pandemic hit, Lesbhia decided to retire and has become involved with other issues such as housing, illegal dumping, mass incarceration, and civic engagement. She credits FIAEB with helping her not become depressed in the isolation of the pandemic and keeping her in touch with community.
“What gives me hope is seeing all these new organizers! I love seeing new clergy people and some people that are coming back. I see strong new leaders strong in their faith,” she said. “I had no idea I was going to be here this long. God has used this organization to grow me to be a better person.”