Maria Guadalupe Gonzalez was able to buy her daughter her first phone and computer thanks to her job as a night building attendant, which she has worked at for 11 years.
“For me [working here] is important because it gave me the opportunity to raise my daughters and because day to day, I love seeing the youngsters that are working hard to move forward,” Gonzalez said.
She resides in Hidalgo with her husband, Jose Luis Gonzalez. She begins her day by thanking God and conducting her daily routine, which includes cooking and tending to her garden.
Then Gonzalez makes the one-hour drive to the Edinburg campus on her own and works from 6 p.m. to 3 a.m.
Asked if her work schedule was overwhelming, she answered, “No, I mean, I am just like a housewife. Since my daughters are not with me, I just wake up, I have lunch, I cook for when my husband gets back from work, I clean my garden and then I wait some time to come here to work.”
As a night building attendant, Gonzalez is responsible for cleaning, sweeping and mopping a variety of office spaces, buildings and restrooms.
“My favorite thing about my job is to always keep the restrooms well cleaned so that all the students that are here have a clean restroom,” she said. “I think that is the most important thing. I mean, everything is important on campus, but for me, primarily the restrooms.”
Besides being able to better the lives of her children, Gonzalez said working made her a better person overall.
“It has given me the opportunity to have the satisfaction of having done something good in my life,” she said.
Since working with the university, Gonzalez’s favorite memories include seeing the students being comfortable and productive on campus because they are in a clean environment.
Carlos Chavez, an assistant director of Facilities Programs and Services, recalls speaking to Gonzalez and being inspired by her passion, determination and love for her daughters.
“She had told me, ‘I love what I do. It’s a cleaning job, but it helped me put my kids through college–and that to me is rewarding. What matters to me is that my kids have a better life than me, thanks to me having this job,’ and that’s what got me thinking about it,” Chavez said.
For Gonzalez, her job is more than simply coming to work. It’s being able to provide for her daughters, Candy Sheila Gonzalez, who earned her master’s in communication from legacy institution UT Pan American in 2013 and is now a teacher, and Jaqueline Gonzalez, who earned a bachelor’s degree in criminal justice from UTRGV and went on to graduate from law school.
Additionally, she encourages her co-workers to keep doing consistent work and to stay positive daily.
“[To my co-workers,] come do our job the way it has to be done,” Gonzalez said. “Always come with the desire of doing better each day.”
For the campus community, she advised them to be thankful for any opportunities they are given and to help their children succeed.
In addition to thanking God and the university for giving her the ability to help provide her daughters with the resources to pursue their ideal career, she also emphasizes the importance of education and encourages current students to follow their dreams.
“Tell children to keep moving forward, to fight for their dreams,” Gonzalez said. “Do not stop studying just because you feel tired one day. To keep studying and keep following your dreams to wherever they take you, because you are going to have the opportunity to have a better life.”
