By: Susana Villegas.
Few names are as synonymous with the community of San Ysidro as Andrea Skorepa. For 35 years, Andrea has been the CEO of Casa Familiar, a non-profit organization providing affordable housing, afterschool programs and cultural activities to the community of San Ysidro. Andrea’s South Bay roots run deep as her family bought land in the floodplain of San Ysidro in the early 1900s and she was born in National City living with her family on San Ysidro Boulevard. Her extended family straddled both sides of the border.
Andrea’s first job was as a youth summer worker in a Headstart classroom and later as an AmeriCorps VISTA volunteer. At the time, she married her Castle Park High School sweetheart, Daryl Skorepa and as a young kindergarten teacher, she started the first teacher’s union in the San Ysidro school district. It would be the first of many “firsts” for Andrea: she opened the first art gallery and was the first person from San Ysidro to win the prestigious Ohtli Award from the Government of Mexico.
Andrea officially retires from Casa Familiar at the Abrazo Gala on August 5 when she leaves behind a legacy of tireless dedication to the community that made her and that she, in turn, made better. Congratulations, Andrea!
