BRYAN, Texas — Maritza Sifuentez-Chavarria was once just a little girl in Bryan interested in the courthouse around the corner from her home. That interest led her to spend her summers in the courtroom and eventually to a career in law.
"My story is my testimony now and I just like when people understand that life doesn't have to be easy," Sifuentez-Chavarria said. "In fact, it's not going to be easy. It's going to be difficult, but it's up to you to take those moments and do something amazing with them because, at the end of the day, I promise you that if you work hard you will."
After graduating from Bryan high school, Texas A&M University, and South Texas College, Sifuentez-Chavarria spent more than eight years in the Brazos County District Attorney's office before taking up her current role as the Assistant Chief Public Defender in the county.
"As a prosecutor, I had amazing opportunities to work with not just strong female prosecutors, but also amazing support staff that I still have, and they're some of my closest friends," Sifuentez-Chavarria said.
When she isn't serving those who can't afford their own defense in the courtroom, she's sharing words of wisdom and inspiration with youth in Brazos County.
"I like to be able to say, look guys you don't have to be rich. You don't have to come from Houston, Dallas, or Austin, or have the most money in this particular town to follow your dreams," Sifuentez-Chavarria said. "You have to have heart. Once you have heart, you can make things happen. You just have to keep going and push through things."