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her most o all. She said little by little,

she spoke more English and eventuallythe Spanish came back.

When I began speaking in Spanishit came stronger and better than theEnglish, she said. I believe it isbecause it is my native language andalways a part o my lie. It was amazingthat I began in English, but it was scarybecause I teach Spanish.

Esther Alonso said Deana was inallyable to come home while waiting tohave the colostomy reversed. While

Alonso recovered rom the surgeryand the stroke, she started eeling illagain. She went back to the hospital orive more days, once again aced withdeadly consequences.

She had a bacterial inection thatruins your stomach and intestinallining caused by the colon surgery,

said Esther Alonso. It was verydangerous and painul or Deana.She had lost weight through the priorsurgeries, but this was the one whereshe lost the most. When released romthe hospital, she started climbing outo the hole all over again.

Alonso said it took about threemonths beore she began eelingnormal. Going to a speech therapistand with a colostomy bag, she said shecame out o the hospital like an oldrag, walking with a walker. She saidshe lost more than 30 pounds on top o

wounds rom two surgeries and a severeinection that set her back.

It was very diicult, both physicallyand emotional ly . I was jus t sodepressed, she said. hen they couldnot reconnect me because I had a hugetumor in my uterus.

It took our months beore the twosurgeons could work together. Duringthat time she got a huge cyst on herovary, once again in extreme pain andacing another surgery. She said she wasamazed that her current health beneitscovered it all.

But that surgery was good and I eltnormal, she said. It was hard, butnow I think my brain is between 95and 98 percent back.

For 20 days aculty ed her amily,Alonso said. Each day someone wouldbring ood to eed the amily or theday. She said her 76-year-old aunt cameto take care o her twice ater the irstand third surgeries.

My aunt is a swimmer, beginningat 15, and has won medals in herdivision, she said. And she is in better

shape than anyone. She would help mebathe. She made me walkevery day, even when Istarted at about 10 steps ata time. Now I walk threemiles every single day.

Esther Alonso said itwas Deanas personality,strength and tenacitythat sped her recovery.She said the tragedies andadversities that her sisterhas aced would have madeanother person give up,but her sister never losessight o her goals in lie.

Even when her husbandwas killed, she did not allto pieces because she hada 14-month-old baby that

needed a mother, saidEsther Alonso. She isincredible. I those things

would have happened tome, I would have crumbled.

Alonso said she notices small grammarmistakes or orgetting the right wordrom time to time, and experiencessciatic pain due to weakened muscles.

I am a ighter, she said. I amgoing to come out o all o this justlike everything else. I have my lie, myamily and my colleagues to supportme. I wont take no or an answer.

She came back in April with areduced load or six weeks to see i she

was ready to teach.It was invigorating to me, she said.

I love so much what I do, the minuteI got into the classroom I orgot all thepain, everything. So, this semester I

wanted to come back with a ull load.Its good to be home.

SWC has been home since 1979, shesaid, when her ather decided to movethe amily business. He sold everythingthey owned to make a home or hisamily. With the exception o her si ster,the entire amily moved to Chula Vista.

My ather burned all the boatsleaving Mexico City, like any greatSpaniard would do, said Alonso.

Alonso said she came to the UnitedStates well educated, just inishing herirst year o university in Mexico City.Her parents went back home to Mexicoater a ew years because they couldnot recreate the liestyle they had therein Chula Vista. Her brother moved

with his amily to ijuana, leavingthe Alonso sisters living in a tiny

apartment. Alonso earned a bachelorsdegree in mathematicsbecause she elt she didnot have a good commando English. Numbers, shesaid, are numbers.

Her experiences as amigrant and an Englishlearner gave her empathy o r S W C s t u d e n t sa t t e m p t i n g t o l e a r nEnglish without having aproper structure o theirnative language. Alonsoreturned to college toearn her Masters degreein l inguis t ic s with ane m p h a s i s o n s e c o n dlanguage acquisition atSDSU. She later earned

another Masters degreein English as a SecondLanguage.

I became ascinated inthe transition o going to English romSpanish, she said. I had gone throughit, but or me i t wasnt hard. I had a verygood educational background and youtranser all o those skills with you. Youdo not have to relearn how to think, ororganize thoughts or an essay. But mystudents had a lot o problems becausethey had no skills in their native tongueto transer into English.

Alonso said she is a strong believerin bilingual education and givingstudents the language they alreadyhave, strengthening and solidiying theoundation o language to transer tolearning English.

Beore coming to SWC she taughtat Castle Park High School, PasadenaCity College and Citrus College. Sheco-authored, along with her sister,two textbooks. Entre mundo an dInvitaciones. Ater many rejections andunwilling to give up, she publishedInvitacioneswith her own money andeventually sold the rights. It is now theoicial text in more than 100 collegeand universities in the United States.

Destiny has interesting ways o

inding what you are going to need,she said.

Alonso said she did not want to bea halway-there citizen. She wantedto make sure the United States did notbecome like parts o Mexico where theydo not protect their people. In August1987 she became an American citizen.

I wanted to be part o the people, to

have a say and this country has alwaysbeen so good to immigrants, she said.hose o us who want to work hardand do something. o be industriousand creative, this country has alwaysbeen there or us. It is just amazing.

I think anyone who comes to thiscountry and works hard can. It is notso in other countries.

hrough all her trials, Alonso saidthe people in her world, her countryand her home inspire her.

Lie has hit me pretty hard, shesaid. But it has also given me manyblessings, my daughter and my amily.

I have an awesome sister. And now Ialso have an awesome husband. hat isgood news. I believe I have been blessedall my lie by having people around methat make me a better human being.

Green thumbs upfor garden event

By Enrique Raymundo and MichelleRoblesStaff Writers

While people around the world continueto talk about going green, Bill Homyakhas spent a lietime doing it. His creation,the SWC Botanical Garden, is the regionsgold standard or green standards.

Green thumbs had their moment inthe summer sun during Green Scene,Homyaks homage to home gardeningand environmental sustainability. Sinceits creation in 2008, the Botanical Gardenhas put down roots.

Te whole idea was to have a gardenshow in the South Bay, said Homyak.It always seems like were going to DelMar and other locations that arent reallyconvenient or people in the South Bay.

Vendors oered a wide variety otropical plants, including an exoticsymbiotic ungus called Mycorrhiza thatgrows on the roots o a plant. Energy-ecient green technology products werethe talk o the event, including a quirkybut popular eco-riendly rearm cleaner.

I bought the biodegradable gun-cleaning solution or my husband whogoes dove hunting, said shopper SoniaFlowers.

Project Wildlie taught attendeeshow to support local indigenous auna.

An eye-catching woodpecker attractedmore spectators, giving volunteersopportunities to give easy tips on goinggreen. Proessionals oered lectures onnative Caliornian plants, composting,and foral design.

Local experts Dave DeDonato,recycling specialist or Chula Vistasenvironmental services division, andMark Valen, horticulturalist or the ChulaVista Nature Center, made a pitch orcomposting.

Composting is something anyonecan and should do, said Valen. SWCcould incorporate composting into itstrash operations and save money onlandscaping.

SWCs Botanical Garden opened in2008 and is registered with the AmericanPublic Garden Association.

Te Southwestern College SuncampusAug. 17 - Oct. 1, 2011 Vol. 55, Iss. 14

EtEr DafnE EstraDa/staff

MASTERFUL MAESTRA Multi-lingual and nationally-respected as a teacher and author,Deana Alonso-Post said she is thrilled to be back at SWC ater a series o lie-threatening illnesses.

I am afghter. I amgoing to comeout o all o

this just likeeverythingelse. I havemy lie, my

amily and mycolleagues tosupport me.

Deana Alonso-Post

Spanish Professor

Photosby sErina DuartE/staff

GREEN MACHINE Dale Rekus (above) o Mission Hills is a member o the Gardener Association o San Diego. Te group gives adviceabout home gardens, landscapes and pest management. (below) Copper fowers celebrate the creativity o garden art. (bottom let) Project Wildliesambassador was an eye-catching, ear-popping woodpecker.

Southwesterns Botanical Garden is South

Bay center of burgeoning green movement

Alonso: charismatiprofessor survives afrightening ordealContinued from Page 3