10 Minutes with Senator Aguirre

When the Arizona Legislature is in session, Sen. Amanda Aguirre typically spends Sunday through Thursday in Phoenix. And as chief executive officer and president of the Regional Center for Border Health, she spends Fridays taking care of business in Yuma.

Though the Yuma Democrat's public life is public record, she recently spent about 10 minutes sharing a little of her private life with Southwest Living. Few would probably be surprised to learn that her well-known efforts to address tough issues overlap with her private life.

Q: If you had one week, all expenses paid, where would you go and why would you pick that place?

A: I would like to visit Africa. I have never been in Africa. I think I would like to visit several other countries there and just learn about the programs and the need - I know there's a lot of need for public health. I know HIV/AIDS is one of my biggest concerns, so I know that that's an issue down there. And just to learn a different culture. That's one continent that I've never been to.

Q: What's your favorite way to decompress?

A: Well, I do it different ways. I do gardening, and I like to enjoy talking to my two children ... my son and my daughter, and I think that just gives me a lot of joy when I do that. And reading a good book. I do some potted plants and some flowers and then of course just keep my garden nice and good looking.
I don't read a lot of nonfiction, but I like poems. I like Maya Angelou, and I like Toni Morrison's stories, too ... The last book I read was "The Outliers." It's a pretty good book about successful people, and so anything that has to do with leadership also. And "Outliers" is a pretty interesting book. It was on the New York Times list of bestsellers for quite some time.

Q: What's your passion?

A: My passion, I think, is what I do. It's my community and interest in the issues. And I really mean that from the bottom of my heart, because that's how I've dedicated my life, basically, my work. I enjoy what I do, so I do it with passion, either here at the Senate, addressing the issues that families are facing, that our community faces, or back as CEO/president, trying to address issues with access to affordable health care.
And besides that passion, of course, my two kids. My daughter is Amanda Lucille; they call her "Lucy." And my son is Anibal. My daughter is in Boston. She's attending MIT (Massachusetts Institute of Technology). She's seeking her Ph.D. in organic chemistry. ... And my son is first lieutenant with the U.S. Air Force. He was a graduate from the Class of 2005 of the U.S. Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs. Beautiful, beautiful place. He just recently got married in the church right there, and they have a beautiful chapel. He just came back from Iraq, too, his first tour from Iraq. He's a pilot. They are the biggest blessings in my life.

Q: What is your favorite possession?

A: I have picture of my mother that was taken when she was probably about 25, and I can say that that's my most precious possession ... I was raised by a very conservative family, and she just represents to me a lot of the things I think a good human being represents. She was caring, very honest, her integrity was intact. I mean, she was just a beautiful woman, always cared for all of us. .... Also, it reminds me of my grandma, which represents a lot of things and values that I have, and that she's passed down to us.

Q: What is the most daring thing you've ever done?

A: Well, I think that my most daring thing might have been running for state legislator because for minority women and minority, the odds were all against me. And people always told me, ‘You're never going to make it'. ... Yuma is very conservative about electing a woman or Latina/Latino to these positions, so I think that was a big challenge for me.

Q: What should people know about you?

A: That I work very hard. That's one of the things that I mentioned, that my passion is my career. I do things with passion, and I dedicate basically my life, and I enjoy every minute of what I do. So that's why I don't see it as work, as working hard. I do apply myself, but I don't see it as work. I do it because I enjoy every minute of it, and so I'm hoping that my kids also will follow that.
My son, he's an engineer. When they graduate from the Air Force Academy, they come out with a bachelor's degree as well, and he's a mechanical engineer. He decided to be a pilot, and he's committed to make his career in the military. ... I said to him (that) he puts his life in danger. He said, ‘Mom, I wouldn't do it any other way, and somebody has to do it, and I'm going to do it.'
(My daughter) is very interested in finding cures for cancer and HIV/AIDS and things. She works in the field of molecular syntheses ... and she designs pharmaceuticals, basically. So she's looking into natural plants for pharmaceuticals.

Q: What words do you live by?

A: Honesty. I think if we all are honest with ourselves and honest with each other, we can accomplish more and understand each other better.

Q: What's your latest obsession?

A: Well, I've been working on several projects that I would like to get done, and one is to establish a detox center for pregnant women in Yuma. We've got a problem with drug abuse, and there is a need for the treatment center for pregnant women, and certainly trying to save the babies from becoming addicted. It depends on the addiction, whether it's alcohol or methamphetamines or heroin. The babies are impacted by it.
So I think that I would like to see a center like that built in Yuma. If everything goes fine, because I'm working very hard on that, I'm hoping that (it will be open) within three years.

Q: If you could change one thing about your job or your daily routine, what would it be?

A: The paperwork. There's too much paper that comes through my desk. A lot of things to be reading and things, and I don't mind reading. It's just too much paper goes through it, and I would like to minimize that and ... have it more computerized. But the paperwork that comes through sometimes is overwhelming.

Q: Is there anything you'd like to add?

A: I enjoy what I do. I enjoy my life. I've been blessed with so many opportunities and so I think that one day doesn't go by without me thanking God for those blessings and of course taking care of my children. And so, I just feel blessed, that's all.