Anyone who has ever experienced true crisis will recognize an angel on earth when they meet Elsa Varela, this year’s Beta Sigma Phi Lady of the Year.

She has been an essential part of the Douglas community since 1997, working with battered women and children in need of a safe haven at the House of Hope.

The fifth of eight children to Edgardo and Mercedes Varela, Elsa was born in Agua Prieta and came to the United States at the age of fourteen. She attended Twelfth Street Junior High and graduated from Douglas High School in 1978. She married shortly after graduation and became mother to three children: Genaro, 24; Diana, 22; and Veronica,  20.  Now a grandmother of three, Varela believes in what she does every day at the House of Hope: providing the best services for women and children, creating a safe haven, strengthening families in crisis, and offering needed practical and educational support.

For these things and more, Elsa Varela was nominated by local community leaders and then ultimately chosen as Lady of the Year, and will be honored at a special tea hosted by the Xi Psi Chapter of the Beta Sigma Phi Sorority in Douglas.

Varela’s contributions began to  impact our community and families in crisis when she enrolled at Cochise College in 1993, majoring in Business, and began working towards her goal to be a Professional Administrative Assistant. She earned a certificate in translating and interpreting from Cochise College in 2008.

Varela started working at the House of Hope before it was even a shelter in 1996. Under Virginia Levinson’s guidance, Varela gained experience and motivation to help the families in dire need of a safe place to heal and to regain their lives. Working her way up as a case worker, then as a childcare coordinator, Varela reached her current position as Assistant Program Director of both the House of Hope in Douglas, and Our House in Nogales,. Varela is a ombudsman volunteer and visits  assisted living homes to prevent elder abuse.

Varela works under program director, Sister Betty Adams, and umbrella of the Catholic Community Services of Southeastern Arizona. On call 24 hours, seven days a week, Varela maintains a caseload of clients, oversees the daily operations of the shelter, and travels to Nogales every other day.

“There is no typical day at House of Hope,” Varela explains when asked about the daily schedule. “There could be five women at the shelter, or eight with children.” Varela further clarified available services to women in need. “Each client works on an individual program plan – setting goals, finding housing, setting up childcare if working, receiving transportation to appointments, and most importantly, getting group support through open communication of staff and the women.”

Depending on the individual, women receive referrals from community members, the hospital, SEABHS, the police department, and even border patrol agents. After the interview, by phone or in person, the woman is offered shelter for forty-five to one hundred twenty days. “Everything depends upon what the woman needs and what we can do for her.”

Steadily gaining recognition for her good works and passion to help others, Varela is glad to see that the cause of women’s safety is so important to our community.

She was nominated for Community recognition by the Commission to Prevent Violence against Women, in April 2008, awarded the Courage of Conviction award in 2004, and spoke at the White House Faith-based Initiative Conference in Phoenix, in 2007. That same year, Xi Psi Chapter proudly presented the House of Hope a check for $2,000 from Arizona Beta Sigma Phis Against Domestic Violence.

The House of Hope was just recently awarded $750,000 by the Department of Housing to build a much needed, new shelter. Varela stressed that the women and children at the shelter still need basic things like travel-size toiletries, school supplies, and diapers. The House of Hope goes beyond helping women escape violence in their homes. The women regain a chance at a healthy, safe life with their children. To one special woman, Elsa Varela, “success is measured in terms of the contributions we make to the community and to our fellow human beings.” This philosophy is just one more reason why she is this year’s Lady of the Year.