The afternoon sun settled on the brilliant yellow courtyard walls of Pueblo de la Cienega Residence Hall, beaming bright through the halls as Maria Guadalupe Angeles made her cleaning rounds.

Angeles grew up in Mexico City and after she graduated from high school, she spent two years at college studying accounting. She got married at 18 and together, she and her husband moved to Los Angeles, where she worked at 1928 Jewelry.

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“I worked with the machines,” Angeles said. “It’s a big company, there were about 5,000 workers with me.”

Forty years and five daughters later, Angeles and her husband now live in Marana, a city roughly 30 minutes outside of Tucson. She worked for Sargent Aerospace & Defense, a public provider of aviation components and aftermarket services before joining the UA staff to be closer to two of her daughters who attend the university.

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With family spread out from Chicago to Washington, Angeles said in a thick Mexican accent that she would enjoy staying in the states after she retires.

“I will probably stay in Tucson, or maybe go to Los Angeles, because I have family there,” Angeles said. “My husband wants to go to Mexico, but I don’t think so. Mexico is not good today — it’s a bit scary.”

In between shifts, on weekends and after long workdays, Angeles cherished her time outside of the residence halls.

“I don’t have time for a lot — I often cook and clean in my house,” Angeles said. “But I go to the park, and I like yoga.”

With only two more years until retirement, Angeles recounted with a smile the best part of her experience at the UA.

“I like the students, but well, I like everything,” Angeles said.

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