We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Valerie Garcia a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Valerie , appreciate you joining us today. We’d love to hear stories from your time in school/training/etc.
I love school. Is that weird to say?
I love the process of learning– listening to a lecture, taking notes, reading, sometimes procrastinating, the nerves before taking a test, and the overwhelming relief of turning in an assignment. I have yet to discover a feeling like it. In high school, I considered becoming a teacher, just so I could be part of a school environment for a little longer.
Since I was a little girl, I admired and looked up to those pursuing a higher education. They shaped in me a desire and value for growth and personal development. I took my first tour of a university campus in 2011…I was ten years old. They were so kind to me and my family. I received a lanyard that day that said, “Welcome Class of 2017!” I would not actually graduate until 2019, but they tried their best to accommodate me (which I am so grateful for)!
I attribute my ability to dream and believe in great possibilities to my parents and the home environment they created for me and my older brother. Thanks to them and our church family, I grew up believing that there are no limitations when you are determined to work hard for something.
As a young person, school eventually became a lifeline for me in big life transitions (like moving to four states in less than three years). It was a source of comfort and security that I could lean on when things felt uncertain. It became more than just academics for me. It was a physical institution that God would use to shape me, my character, and my future.
I still love school, and I plan to continue pursuing a higher education. Whether that be a doctorate, PhD, or M.Div, I do not know yet. I would need to consult with God, my pastors, and my ten-year-old self and get back to you. When I finished my master’s degree in 2023, I decided to take a break from school, start working, and get hands-on life experience. I thought I was taking a break from school, but I quickly realized I had enrolled in the University of LIFE–my biggest challenge yet!
I love school because it is more than just about earning a degree and achieving what people consider success in your field. School is a reminder that in this life, we are presented with opportunities to grow and learn every day (no matter if you are enrolled in a physical institution or not). God has entrusted us with the tools and the ability to choose to grow. It will be up to us to make the most of it.
Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.
Hello, beautiful humans, my name is Valerie Garcia. Thank you for taking the time to read this!
I was born and raised in the Sunshine State! I have lived in Florida, Washington State, Georgia, and now the great country of Texas! In middle school, I became an Arsenal FC fan for life. I love Whataburger (number 8, only ketchup and cheese, with a Dr. Pepper, please!). One of the biggest highlights of my life was becoming an Aunt last year! Lastly, for now, I have been part of Fuego Church, an incredible community of Christ followers, since 2017.
After graduating with my undergrad at Nelson University in 2022, I was praying and asking God about my next step in life. I had studied music and thought I might continue in that field, but I was also open to trying new things. A few months later, an opportunity opened for me to start interning in the administration department at Fuego Church, which was a whole new world for me! I am forever grateful for the leadership and guidance of our Senior Pastors, Joshua and Lavan Rivera, and Executive Pastor, Elizabeth Ortiz. Eventually, I would become an Executive Assistant to Pastor Elizabeth, learning the ins and outs of the operational side of Fuego Church. As of March 2025, I now serve as the Executive Pastor of Ministries for our church.
Looking back, I am blown away that I get this opportunity to serve my Senior Pastors and church family. This place and community have been a second home for me, and it has been a dream come true to serve in this role. I get to oversee our ministry leaders and teams, events, and service planning. It is one of the biggest learning experiences I have ever had.
In my role, as a second-chair leader, I get to be part of something bigger than myself, literally. Recently, we have seen exponential growth at the church. We have taken on the challenge of believing for and working towards a larger building for the future of Fuego Church. I am honored to get to witness and be part of this chapter of Fuego Church’s story.
Pastors Joshua and Lavan have consistently invested in and believed in young leaders since they planted Fuego Church 15 years ago. I am a fruit of their leadership and belief!
Do you think you’d choose a different profession or specialty if you were starting now?
I once heard that, in life, the dots only connect when you look backwards. In other words, when it comes to our future, a lot of times it seems uncertain or full of unknowns in the moment. That can be paralyzing or terrifying at times, especially as a young person who is learning how to make life-defining choices like: where to work, what church community to be part of, who to marry, etc…
If you had asked me a few years ago, I would have never thought I would be working in the field that I am currently in. But if I could go back, I would not change the decision to go all in with this role. I strongly believe in giving your best to what God has placed in your hands in the moment. “Faithfulness in one season will unlock the door to the next one” (Joshua Rivera). I would, however, love to go back and encourage myself to trust God more in the decisions I believed He was leading me to make.
When I look back at the trajectory of my life, I have had one goal, and that is to listen to and obey God’s voice and direction. By no means am I saying that I am good at this. Often, I have placed more focus on what I think is best or what other people think. Learning to listen, trust, and obey God will be a lifelong journey for me. What blows my mind is that God wants to and does provide counsel to those who are willing to listen (Psalm 32:8-9).
The challenge for me has been overcoming self-doubt. I want to get to a point (and I believe I will) where I can trust God’s direction fully, no matter the challenge in front of me or the voices around me.
I always thought He would give me a full picture of what life was supposed to look like (and sometimes He does). I am learning that He often gives us bite-sized pieces that we can hold onto, enough for today, and little by little, so that our dependence and reliance are on Him, not ourselves or other people.
Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?
I love this question. I think any resilience I have demonstrated in life, I have learned first from my parents.
They grew up in Colombia and navigated different challenges in their teenage years. They had my older brother when they were very young. Any statistic at the time would have predicted that their marriage would not have lasted, let alone for them to still be happily married to this day, 35 years later. Due to a situation that became dangerous for them, they immigrated to the United States and restarted their lives with my older brother, who was three years old at the time.
About seven years later, when they had me, they were more established as a family. I grew up in a loving, safe environment. My parents met Jesus soon after they arrived in Florida, and they decided to build their family and lives centered around their faith. I now know that their resilience, ultimately, came from their trust in Jesus.
When I was fourteen, our family’s life changed drastically. My parents and I moved across the country from Florida to Washington State, due to my parents’ legal status at the time. (We recently celebrated them receiving their papers after 30 years of living in the U.S. That is a story for another time that I will let them tell!) This was a life-defining moment for me because it was the first time I can remember needing courage and resilience to face the unknown. I was moving away from everything I had ever known. I began homeschooling at the time, which was a gift and a challenge. We were moving from a city to a small town in Washington State, called Toppenish. Financially, from what I knew, we never lacked anything in that season, but we were not in the best position. We were also saying goodbye to an influential person in our tight-knit family, my older brother, Juan.
This was not my parents’ first time going through something challenging, but it was my first time getting to see firsthand what resilience truly is. It was a marking moment for me. I learned what it looks like to not back down from challenges and to fight for what truly matters and for the people that you love, and overall, I learned what daily trust in God looks like. It was not the easiest season to go through, but I am forever grateful for it because it equipped me for future endeavors and for future moments that call for courage.
Contact Info:
- Website: fuego.church
- Instagram: v_garcia4
Image Credits
Elizabeth Vose