{"id":24725,"date":"2016-10-03T20:21:23","date_gmt":"2016-10-03T20:21:23","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.ufcw.org\/?p=24725"},"modified":"2026-06-24T12:32:32","modified_gmt":"2026-06-24T16:32:32","slug":"hispanic-heritage-month-member-spotlight-monica-jimenez","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ufcw.org\/hispanic-heritage-month-member-spotlight-monica-jimenez\/","title":{"rendered":"“It takes six ponytails to create one wig, so we helped a lot of people.”"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Adapted from UFCW Local 1428<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n

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Monica Jimenez, a pharmacy technician and Local 1428 union steward at Rite Aid, loves helping others. At her job she helps patients fill their prescriptions and in her spare time she runs races to fund research to cure diseases.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n

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She began her career at a laboratory, but after three years she wanted a change and applied at Rite Aid.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n

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\u201cWe treat each other like family, so going to work doesn\u2019t feel like going to a workplace.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n

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\u201cWhat I like about Rite Aid is that the people in the store come together,\u201d Jimenez said. \u201cWe treat each other like family, so going to work doesn\u2019t feel like going to a workplace.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n

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Jimenez thought she had it all: a loving husband in Earl, two daughters, Vanessa and Emily, and a job she loved. But an earthquake in 2012 taught her she needed something more: to help the less fortunate.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n

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\u201cI felt like I needed to make each day count, so I signed up for a 5K race and then another one and then another one,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n

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Her volunteering spirit quickly spread among her family and friends. Her daughters joined her in races and then her co-workers followed suit.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n

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At work, Jimenez encouraged patients to donate to the Children\u2019s Miracle Network, which benefits children\u2019s hospitals.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n

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\u201cWhen customers check out at Rite Aid, they are occasionally asked to donate $1 so they can write their names on balloon cards that are displayed in our store,\u201d Jimenez said. \u201cOur store raised the most funds for the Children\u2019s Miracle Network, so we were invited to an event to meet the kids our donations helped.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n

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Last year, Jimenez and her sister decided to grow their hair out and donate their ponytails to Locks of Love, an organization that creates wigs for people who lose their hair while having chemotherapy.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n

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\u201cPeople asked me why my hair and my sister\u2019s hair was getting so long,\u201d Jimenez said. \u201cWe told people it was for Locks of Love and we got so many people who wanted to help that I needed a place to host an event to cut people\u2019s hair.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n

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UFCW Local 1428 stepped up and offered its auditorium. By the end of the night, Jimenez and her sister collected 85 ponytails for Locks of Love.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n

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\u201cThat night was so special,\u201d Jimenez said. \u201cIt takes six ponytails to create one wig, so we helped a lot of people that night.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n

\n
\"Jimenez<\/a>
Jimenez participates in the Labor United Against Cancer Fun Run\/Walk<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n
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\"Monica<\/a>
Monica Jimenez with other volunteers at 2014\u2019s Big Sunday event, which collected and sorted canned goods to feed more than 1,000 families during the holidays.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n
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\"Monica<\/a>
Monica Jimenez gets her hair cut for Locks of Love<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n
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\"Jimenez<\/a>
Jimenez participates in the Labor United Against Cancer Fun Run\/Walk<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Adapted from UFCW Local 1428 Monica Jimenez, a pharmacy technician and Local 1428 union steward at Rite Aid, loves helping others. At her job she helps patients fill their prescriptions and in her spare time she runs races to fund research to cure diseases. She began her career at a laboratory, but after three years she wanted a change and […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":24770,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[17,41],"tags":[69,96],"class_list":["post-24725","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-stewards","category-ul","tag-awards-and-accolades","tag-community"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n"It takes six ponytails to create one wig, so we helped a lot of people." - The United Food & Commercial Workers International Union<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.ufcw.org\/hispanic-heritage-month-member-spotlight-monica-jimenez\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\""It takes six ponytails to create one wig, so we helped a lot of people." - The United Food & Commercial Workers International Union\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Adapted from UFCW Local 1428 Monica Jimenez, a pharmacy technician and Local 1428 union steward at Rite Aid, loves helping others. At her job she helps patients fill their prescriptions and in her spare time she runs races to fund research to cure diseases. 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