Right Place At The Right Time: My Journey In Politics

My first real job in politics had nothing to do with family connections or a friend willing to put their name on the line for me. Instead, it was fate that led me to a conversation with a State Senator in the emergency room of Hialeah Hospital at 3:00 am.

My father was a carpenter who was exiled from Cuba and started from scratch in the U.S in his mid 40´s.  He was an old school guy so my mother was a stay-at-home mom. I grew up surrounded by so much love and attention from my parents. I was a 19-year-old junior at Florida International University studying for the Law School Admission Test.

Here is how it all started.

One fateful evening I went to bed and woke up to my mother’s voice calling me in the middle of the night to tell me my father was short of breath. The hospital was just a few blocks away from our home, but the journey felt like an eternity. While my father was at the ER, I had an endless stream of thoughts. I felt my life would take on a new direction; I was fearful and contemplated the worst. 

In that fog of fear, I heard a familiar voice. – “Hello Carlito, Carlito” – It was Senator Roberto Casas. Precisely on that night, his 94-year-old father was in the emergency room as well. I vaguely knew Senator Casas at the time. I first got to know him when he came to speak to the Future Business Leaders of America (FBLA) forum at my highschool. Back then, I was president of FBLA, and I had volunteered on a few local campaigns and began to get the attention of the political elite in the city at the time.

As I waited for some news from doctors, Senator Casas saw I was distraught and asked me to come see his father, who was one of my father’s neighbors for the night. It was such a soothing gesture; it helped me to wake from my sorrow. After seeing his father, we walked into my father’s room. I noticed him in good spirits, but I saw a worried look. He told me he was sorry and didn’t want me or mom to worry about a thing. A short time after my dad met the Senator, the staff asked me to go home and get some rest. I hugged and kissed my dad on the forehead.

Later in the evening, before taking his dad home, the Senator gave me his card as he passed me in the waiting room and said, “Call me if you need anything.” I looked at the card, placed it in my pocket, and thought about his departing words. 

The next day, my father was admitted to the hospital and went through a series of tests. When I arrived at his room, I could tell he knew something was just not right. 

“Your dad’s heart is not doing well; he has to slow down” – the doctor said. Eventually, my dad was scheduled for surgery to have a pacemaker implanted in him. With the hope of prolonging his life, he needed to stop working.  At that moment, I thought to myself: How was I ever going to tell my father, my indestructible hero, he needed to stay at home?

My father was disabled due to open-heart surgery in the mid 70’s. Days later, I had a long conversation trying to convince him to stay at home for the sake of his health. But as a proud man, in a way, he felt he was letting me down by not being able to provide for my mom and me.

– “How do I make sure you do not abandon your dreams by getting a job to make ends meet?” – he asked. – “It will all be fine, and I will not let you down” – I said. 

I was a full-time student trying to get into law school with no full-time job. I had no brothers or sisters to lean on.  I only had a card with the promise from a politician who I barely knew. As I called the Senator to have lunch with me, I thought to myself that maybe all of these guys tell everyone to call them for anything all the time. But still, I took my chances.

To my surprise lunch was chewduled a day later.  I shared the news about my father. “I need a job” – I said. It just so happened that his aide was running for local office, so he needed someone to fill in for him. “If he wins and you are worthy, you will have a place to stay. If he loses, he will come back, but I will be able to get you situated somewhere else if you are worthy.”  – he said. 

I was wondering where the catch was. This was just too easy. After talking with Senator Casas for a while, he told me the catch was that I needed to go to school full time while working for him full time. I needed to stay on my law school track to prove to him I was right for the job. If my grades went down, I was not worthy. If my performance at work was not as impeccable as my grades, I was not worthy. 

At some point in the conversation, he told me he knew how hard I worked on his campaign and that he appreciated the way I calmed his father down in the emergency room. To mark his words, “You are hungry and have potential. Now let’s see what you are made of.” I started working for him that day. 

I attended School in the evenings and worked full-time during the day.  I managed to stay on track and graduated from undergrad in 1990. The Senator positioned me for an incredible opportunity with the newly elected Commissioner of Agriculture in 1991 as an executive assistant. To expand my universe as an aide to a cabinet member, I put off law school for one year. I started law school in 1992 and graduated in 1995. 

My father passed away two weeks before my graduation from law school. 

He helped me get through school to live a life full of opportunities and fulfill my dreams. To this day, as a lobbyist, coach, and real estate investor I still keep my promise of not letting him down. I know I never will. 

Earn what others have done for you by helping others along the way.  Pay it forward and remember to always be seen as a part of a solution.