2010 About the Authors

Delta Winds: A Magazine of Student Essays
A Publication of San Joaquin Delta College
2010

About the Authors

These biographical statements were written for publication in 2010.

Jenny Taylor is thirty-two, having returned to school after a prolonged absence. She enjoys studying literature, in all of its various forms, and she appreciates the opportunity she has had to develop her writing skills through her courses at Delta. She is particularly interested in playwriting, which she plans to pursue in the future.

Kaneez Sayeed is currently completing general education courses and plans to graduate with an Associate's Degree.

Javier Villalobos, from Manteca, California, currently works in sales. When he’s not at work, he’s usually at church, school, or the gym. He is back in college at the age of 30 pursuing a degree in nursing. He states the following: “I believe in the power of prayer. And I remember, that around the time that I wrote this essay, I asked the Lord to encourage me, and to help me to do well in school. With my essay now being published I can safely say that God has answered my prayer.”

Deanna Tocco was born and raised in Manteca, California. She is a 46-year-old mother of three and grandmother of one; her children range in age from 31 to 23. She is continuing to pursue her long-time goal of completing her bachelor’s degree in business administration while also working fulltime as the Vice President of Operations for Guntert Steel in Ripon, California. Having started a family at such a young age, she has met many obstacles on her journey in life, but she wants to encourage young mothers everywhere to never give up on their dreams; with hard work and dedication all things are possible.

Nisa Shinagawa is 18 years old and attending her second year at Delta College. She hopes to finish general education along with pre-requisites for CSU nursing programs. Although reading and writing was not her strong point growing up, she has always loved it. She enjoys running, listening to music, and being with her family.

Supreet Mann has spent much of her 20 years in the Central Valley and is proud to call it her home. She has always had a passion for reading and writing and finds that the peace she gets from holding a pen cannot be matched. She is majoring in English and hopes to go on to law school in the future.

Amanda Marie Zimmerman is currently finishing her last semester at Delta and is transferring to the University of the Pacific in the fall to complete her degree in Studio Art. Her passions include laughing with family and friends, photography, sculpture, reading, and talking. Her parents always told her, "All you can do is your best," and that's what she strives to do everyday.

Charles Ogren, a returning Delta College student, is a native of this area. He grew up with a culture of music throughout his entire family. With a family filled with talent and sprinkled with professional performers, Charles was instilled with a raging passion to sing and to write music. Married and with three young children, he seeks to pass the fire on to his gifted ten-year-old daughter.

Alexandra Eriksen-Hisel is currently in her first semester at Delta College. She plans to stay at Delta for the next two years and is eager to see where her general education degree will lead her. The only girl of four siblings, she has grown up with a love for the outdoors, sports, biking and new adventures. With parents who allowed her to explore everything she was interested in, Alexandra has learned to never be afraid to try something new; she appreciates the knowledge she has gained from her experiences. To Alex, music is life, cooking is her passion, reading is her hobby and reality television is her guilty pleasure. But most important of all, she sees a white picket fence in her future.

Cara Pellegri is nineteen years old and was born and raised in Tracy. After graduating from Millennium High School in 2009, she enrolled as a full time student at Delta College at the Mountain House campus. She began attending Delta College when she was a junior in high school and took two to three college classes on top of her high school work. She plans to receive her AA at Delta in approximately a year and then transfer to Diablo Valley College to become a Dental Hygienist. She works at a nearby orthodontist where she plans to pursue her career in the dental field.

Gabriel Haro-Acosta grew up, attended Tracy High School and currently lives in Tracy, California. Born in Culiacan, Sinaloa, Mexico, he has been attending SJDC for over 2 years, studying for his AA in Graphic Design, and plans on attending the Art Institute of Sunnyvale for Computer and Game Design.