BioCongressman Juan Vargas was raised on a chicken ranch in National City, in California's 52nd District. He is one of ten children, born to his parents, Tomas and Celina Vargas on March 7, 1961. His father, Tomas, immigrated to the United States from Mexico in the late 1940s as part of the Bracero Program which brought millions of Mexican guest workers to the United States on short-term, primarily agricultural labor contracts, as part of a series of bi-lateral agreements between Mexico and the United States. Through the Bracero Program, Tomas became a legal resident and Juan's mother, Celina, went on to earn her U.S. Citizenship.
Taught the value of hard work by his parents, Juan attained impressive academic credentials. He attended the University of San Diego on scholarship, graduated Magna Cum Laude receiving a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science in 1983. In 1987, Juan earned a Master of Humanities from Fordham University in New York City and in 1991 earned a Juris Doctorate from Harvard Law School, where he was a classmate of President Barack Obama.
As a young adult, Juan entered the Jesuits, a Catholic religious order, where he worked with disadvantaged communities, including orphaned children and internally displaced people in the jungles of El Salvador. For years, his work with the Jesuits focused on the health and welfare of children and issues of social justice.
Juan left the Jesuits in order to pursue family life. Two years later, he married Adrienne D'Ascoli and they returned to San Diego where Juan worked as an attorney with the law firm of Luce, Forward, Hamilton and Scripps. Although he enjoyed the practice of law, Juan decided to contribute to his community as a public official.
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