Jorge Herrera, 30 Years with the Charles Darwin Foundation

In 1986, our dear colleague Jorge Herrera became a part of the Charles Darwin Foundation (CDF) staff. With the motivation to achieve a college scholarship that the Foundation could grant, Jorge accepted the position of Supplies Manager. He soon found himself in a very friendly atmosphere where he would make great friends who have been very supportive of him. Soon after his start with the Foundation, the CDF was recognized as the most prestigious institution in Galapagos. Jorge describes those years of the Charles Darwin Research Station (CDRS) as "younger days". No doubt his work was vital to the functioning of the operations of the organization and its successes.

Three years after he started working at CDF, Jorge Herrera's life changed drastically when he suffered an accident that left him bound to a wheelchair. Despite the personal challenges, Jorge has continued to work with great tenacity and remembers gratefully the support of Dr. Gunther Reck, former director of the Charles Darwin Research Station. Dr Reck supported him immensely during that time and Jorge remembers Dr Reck and his family used to invite the staff to share moments in their home -- always very considerate of the personal situations of each member of the Foundation.

In 1990 Jorge took on a new challenge for his career at CDF when he was transferred to the accounting department of the Foundation. In that year, manually accounting processes were still performed and Jorge had a lot of new things to learn. He did so energetically and with great vigor.

Our dear colleague says the CDF has given him many opportunities for training both as a supplies manager, and when he assumed his current position of Accountant Assistant.

"I didn't even know the word accounting, I wanted to be a biologist, but my life changed and now I like what I do," says Jorge while talking about the work done in this department.

Jorge, a great person and with a stunningly positive outlook, has faithfully devoted three decades of work to the Charles Darwin Foundation. He is proud of his 30 years as a member of CDF staff, and his tenacity has led him to accept both job changes and personal challenges that life has brought him with grace.

As he says, "You learn every day."

"If you are disabled, it is probably not your fault, but it is no good blaming the world or expecting it to take pity on you. One has to have a positive attitude and must make the best of the situation that one finds oneself in; if one is physically disabled, one cannot afford to be psychologically disabled as well."
Stephen Hawking