As students in the advanced English class at Seward County Community College Adult Education program gathered to close out the semester, a mixture of emotions filled the room. Instructor Clarissa Carrilllo shared her students’ pride in their accomplishments — and their sorrow at the loss of a classmate.
Juan Moreno died unexpectedly in mid-December. His absence left a noticeable gap in the advanced ELA class.
“Juan was always bringing mints and candies for us,” said classmate Francisco. “He was a person who valued sharing.”
Moreno also brought laughter to the group, said Carilllo.
“When he started, he was shy. He told us, ‘To learn English I need to learn to be more extroverted. That’s why I am in this class.” Weeks later, after the group had bonded through hands-on activities and games, Carilllo noticed that Moreno was in the thick of things, joking and encouraging classmates. “I said, ‘where is that shy student?’” she recalled. “He wasn’t afraid to talk.”
Another student, Lorenza, knew Moreno from citizenship classes they had taken together.
“He was a good human person,” she said. “For me, Juan represents many of us who come to the U.S. with dreams.”
Both Moreno and Lorenza completed the citizenship class and became U.S. citizens in March 2024.
A union representative at his job at a dairy farm, Moreno frequently offered to help classmates who had employment problems or needed a job.
“He was always ready to help,” recalled classmate Rocio. “I know at his job, if workers didn’t know how to do something in their outside life, find resources, file taxes or go to the health department, he would take them there.”
At SCCC, Moreno also stepped up for others, said a classmate named Karina.
“We had a Thanksgiving fiesta for the whole adult learning center, and I was not sure I wanted to go. Juan said, ‘we can go, but we don’t have to stay a long time,’ and then we ended up eating a lot and staying for the whole thing,” Karina said. “We were having so much fun.”
Carrillo said it’s not unusual for students in her class to bond so intensely.
“When you think about it, some students do not have other family members or friends who they can practice English with,” she said. “Then, they come here for two hours every day, Monday through Thursday, for almost a whole year, and they get familiar, to feeling like family.”
The loss of Juan felt like the loss of a family member, several students said.
To keep his memory alive, the group plans to set up a small memorial in the foyer of the Adult Education center, with a photo of Moreno and a candy jar for students passing by.
“Juan taught us something important,” Carrillo said. “Life can be rough for us all. Sometimes you need something sweet.”
Categories: Adult Basic Education, Inclusivity, Meet our students
Thank you for sharing these sweet experiences, he will be sorely missed at the Adult Learning Center 🙁
Beautiful work! Thank you, Rachel, for taking the time to come to our class and helping us close the session by helping us recall many of the great memories we created throughout the year with Juan and as a class! My students and I are very thankful! Thank you!