Today, we highlight Sor Cristina Vargas Díaz-Granados – Class of 2007.
Cristina is a Salesian Sister (FMA) currently serving as a missionary in Tunisia, Africa, where she works in the education of vulnerable children. Over the past seven years, she has dedicated her life to mission work in Africa as an educator.
Before beginning her mission, she completed missionary formation in Rome and France. Cristina holds a Bachelor’s Degree in English as a Foreign Language, an ICELT Certificate from the University of Cambridge, and has pursued studies in Missiology at the Pontifical Urbaniana University (Rome) and French at the Catholic University of Paris.
We recently had the joy of reconnecting with her during the KCP Softball Community Match while she was visiting her family.
We are proud to see our alumni making a difference around the world.
Read the full interview:
- Can you share some of your most meaningful memories from your years at KCP?
I have so many! I must say that I just loved everyday life at KCP, the comings and goings, exams, everything. Memories that stand out…. The Read-a-thon experience in elementary school, sleeping in the library at night, and then waking up and going to the pool, that was so much fun! When I was in high school, I did some community service, going to school on Saturdays to teach computers to young people from underprivileged schools… the song festival, the sports tournaments…
- What makes you most grateful or proud to be part of the KCP community today?
What I’m most grateful for, looking back, is the QUALITY of the education we received. We had so many opportunities, and also so many extracurricular activities, so much to do outside of the academic aspect, and that was really enriching.
- When did you first feel called to religious life and missionary service, and how did that journey unfold?
The answer is a bit long…
I have to begin by saying that with my family, we were practicing Catholics since I was in 3rd grade, more or less. I was an altar girl (monaguilla) and actively participated in mass. However, I never, ever thought about being a sister; the idea didn’t even cross my mind. This changed in 10th grade, during our summer vacation, when I went to Tampa, Florida, where I have some family. One day, we had nothing special to do, and I invited a cousin of mine to come with me to visit the Campus of Saint Leo University (which is near Tampa).
Here I must stop and give you some backstory… while I was in KCP, my dream was to study in a good university in the US with a full scholarship. I was really, really focused on that, and that’s why I studied a lot and why I started looking for universities early. St. Leo University had come to KCP during a “University fair”, and that’s why I had known about them. At the same time, I had no intention to go study there because they didn’t give full scholarships, but because I was on vacation, and a bit bored, that’s why I convinced my cousin to go visit!
Back to St. Leo… without knowing it, that trip would change my life! I remember this young girl showing us around campus; it was really beautiful because there’s a golf course around it. She finally took us to the dorms: there were 2 buildings of about 4-5 stories each. I thought one building would be the dorms for the girls and the other for the boys, but I was wrong. We were told that only one building served as dorms for the students, and that the other building belonged to the religious community in charge of the university, the Benedictine Monks. In that moment, something in me just “clicked”. I remember going back to Tampa and telling my cousin how amazed I was that there would be monks in a university. We didn’t even get to see them! But just knowing that opened something in me. From that day on, I started thinking about the possibility of choosing religious life. When I came back to Barranquilla I spoke about it with my mom and dad, who, to say the least, were not at all happy with the idea… but little by little I got to know the Salesian Sisters, who are educators (they have the school “María Auxiliadora” near the Cathedral, and also la Normal de Fátima in Sabanagrande) and at the time I thought that being able to serve God, and to do so by teaching, which I love, was the perfect WIN-WIN situation.
To make a super long story a bit shorter… after graduation, I took a 6-month “sabbatical” to get to know the sisters more, in Medellín, and after that experience, I discovered that this was my calling! Once a sister, and with their help and guidance, I was sent to the missions. First, a 2-year preparation in Rome and in Paris (where I had to learn French because I had been sent to an African, French-speaking country), and then to Africa, where I’ve been living and working since 2019.
- How has your mission and work as a teacher in Africa (Tunisia) shaped your perspective on service and education?
My mission as an educator, first in Colombia in different regions of the country, and later in Africa (Benin and now Tunisia), has reinforced what I felt while I was at KCP. That the education I received wasn’t “normal”, it was extraordinary, it was a privilege. Being aware of this has put me in a stance of “giving back”, and for me, this has been a source of joy and gratitude. Indeed, giving yourself to others is a source of great joy, and being conscious of all the good that I received from KCP fills my heart with gratitude.
The young people and kids I’ve worked with in the past, and those I work with now, haven’t had the chance to receive the quality of education that I received at KCP while growing up, but with the means we have, we try to do and give our best so that by the quality of education we offer them, they can also benefit of many opportunities going forward.
- In what ways did your experience at KCP influence your vocation and the life choices you have made along the way?
I would summarize my experience in KCP in 2 words: empowerment and gratitude. These two things have been essential in my life as a Salesian Sister. I am part of a religious family, community, where we strive to empower young people through education, and to do so from a place of gratitude, because even though education is a “right”, it’s also a gift we receive and that we are called to “give back” to society by being honest citizens in our daily lives.
- What advice would you give to our young Tigers who feel called to serve others, whether through education, mission work, or community leadership?
To those who feel called to serve others, I’d say, GO FOR IT. It’s not always easy (like all the good things in life), but you’ll have a GREAT TIME/LIFE… meaning, purpose, you’ll always have lots of that!
You’ll never feel greater joy than when you learn to give yourself. And I say “learn”, because serving is an ART and it takes time, and lots of love and patience to learn how to really do it. I’ve learned throughout the years that to really serve, I must get to know the people I’m with and try to put myself at their service, as Jesus did. He said, “The Son of Man came not to be served but to serve.” (Mark 10:45). That means Jesus didn’t just come to help others, but to love them, that is to offer his whole self (his time, energy, attention, life!) for them, not just doing occasional helpful actions.
I’d also like to add a teaching from the late Pope Francis, about “self-referential service”, which is “like giving someone a gift but looking in the mirror the whole time to see how nice you look giving it.” This is a kind of service we can fall into, but true service goes beyond, and it implies some soul-searching (why do you want to help? Is it for you or those in need? The person or people you’re helping, do you know them? What are their real needs?).
And the very last thing I’d say is: don’t forget to PRAY! It’s not easy to serve; it’s not easy to live a life at the service of others. In prayer, we can connect with ourselves and with the loving God that lives in us, and from there, we can find comfort, strength, and the wisdom to live fully!
