Former Georgia Southwestern State softball player Natalia Herrera says most of her life lessons can be traced to her family's restaurant, Viva Mexico.
As a toddler, she would sit in the kitchen and watch her parents' hard work, determination and problem-solving skills as they managed the staff and customers at the Buford, Georgia, restaurant. As she got older, she helped her parents run the business.
She learned her work ethic from the long hours spent opening and closing the restaurant. She learned integrity from assisting customers and staff. She learned resilience from watching her parents navigate through both the tough times and the success.
"Everything I am, everything I have, I go back to my roots. (The restaurant) is my roots."
Outside the restaurant, Herrera often could be found at her abuelo and abuelita's house. Herrera said their house reminds her of music, food and family. For Herrera, family signifies her Mexican and Puerto Rican heritage.
"It's a huge part of who I am. My identity, our traditions and our culture is something that I'm very proud of, and I love to share it. It's just beautiful," she said.
These times spent with her parents in the restaurant and with other family members have set the values that Herrera took to her softball career. After high school, she began her collegiate career at Georgia Highlands, which competes in the National Junior College Athletic Association. After two transformative years, Herrera and two of her teammates transferred to Georgia Southwestern to play three more years.
"My time at GSW was some of the best years of my life," she said.
At Georgia Southwestern, Herrera built lifelong friendships with her teammates, forged bonds with her professors and befriended people in the local community. She took principles of family she knew from her own and created a family in Americus, Georgia.
Herrera's brother, JJ; father, Jose; and mother, Lupita, celebrate her graduation from Georgia Southwestern.
"My girls down at GSW, that's my family, too. Their families are my family," she said. "Professors, even members of the community would show up and ask how they could help. There's something really cool going down in Americus."
When Herrera started at Georgia Southwestern, she did not see playing time. Every student-athlete wants to be on the field, so she said she had to look for ways to turn this difficult transition into a lesson. In those moments, she reflected on how her parents faced adversity in their restaurant.
"There were times the business wasn't always good, but I saw my parents' resilience to say, 'Hey, we're gonna push through. We're gonna fight like we're gonna do whatever it takes,'" she said. "And they did. It shaped me so much."
She continued to show up and work hard. Her senior year, Herrera hit her stride, batting .440 and notching the fourth-highest single-season batting average in program history.
Off the field, the first-generation college student earned her degree in human resource management while maintaining a 4.0 grade-point average and earning All-America Scholar honors. Her academic excellence also stemmed from her parents' guidance.
"Growing up, my dad would always say, 'You could get hurt any day, but somebody can't take away your mind,'" she said. "My parents have told me since I was young how important education is. … It's a privilege to go to school, and I value my education a lot."
Herrera said attending a smaller Division II school offered her opportunities she felt she might not have received at a bigger school. One of those opportunities included coach Nicki Levering, then head coach at Georgia Southwestern, crafting an internship for Herrera to work with Georgia Southwestern's athletics department. Throughout the year, she worked directly with the sports information director, sat in on meetings with the athletics director and participated in fundraising for the university.
Herrera said her coach's efforts even opened doors after graduation. Her experience in the athletics department led her to apply for the NCAA Postgraduate Internship Program. This June, Herrera began working at the national office in the Division III governance department.
"I'm learning so much, not just about DIII but all of the NCAA and how student-athletes are affected by the decisions that are made," she said. "I just want to learn as much as I can while I'm here and share it with others."
Herrera has found success at every level of her personal and professional career, yet when talking about her success, she instantly praises the people who have helped her. She said her success is built upon her village, which includes her family, her friends and the communities she has come from.
"I wouldn't be here, getting to do this right now, if it wasn't for the people around me that have supported me," she said. "My biggest thing is probably to be able to give back and help other people get to positions. To just give back in the same way that these people have given so much to me, that's my ultimate goal."
Herrera found family in her community at Georgia Southwestern. "My girls down at GSW, that's my family, too."
