Ana Yesmid Saldarriaga Roso was born into a rural family in Guamal, just south of Colombia's capital Bogotá. As a mother of four, she used to work various jobs, including as a housekeeper, a private security guard and a seller of tamales, the traditional Mesoamerican dish.
One morning, everything changed.
At the age of 42, Ana Yesmid woke up to find herself struggling to speak or move from her bed. She would go on to spend the next five years in various hospitals, relying on her dedicated husband to bathe and get dressed. Doctors diagnosed her as suffering from Guillain Barré syndrome, a rare disorder whereby the body's immune system attacks its nerves, sometimes leading to total paralysis.
While confined to a wheelchair, she repeatedly told herself that one day, she’d walk again. She underwent many surgeries, learned to use crutches and faithfully completed physical therapy and finally, one and a half years later, was able to start walking again with the help of a cane. She also eventually fully recovered her speech.
It was then that she came across Breaking Barriers with Love Bonds (Asociación Rompiendo Barreras Con Lazos de Amor - ASROBLAM), an organization that assists people with disabilities. The association helped her and its 29 other members produce ecological bags and desserts to sell for a living. Ana Yesmid soon became ASROBLAM's representative, dealing with the government.
Right from the beginning, Ana Yesmid argued that the organization should help others with disabilities gain livelihoods. In Colombia, people with disabilities still face a lot of discrimination in finding employment.
"I said this must be made bigger: We have to improve people's quality of life, so that we are able to demonstrate to others in a similar condition that, yes, you can move on," she said.
