Catching up with Councilman Dominguez - newlondonspeaks.org

Councilman Dominguez - A Man on a Mission

From Crystal Avenue to City Hall

By Roxanne Jones

Newlondonspeaks.org Publisher

Step inside the tidy Terrace Avenue home of recently-elected City Councilman Efrain Dominguez Jr. and you instantly feel surrounded by love. From his mother Ana Luz’s warm hug to Efrain’s contagious smile, it is clear at the doorstep that you are in for a treat – which, if you are lucky may even include a delicious dish from Ana’s kitchen.

Dominguez, who was New London’s second top vote getter with 1,620 total votes, was recently sworn in and elected by his peers to President Pro Tempore of the City Council. He has also been appointed to the sit on the Public Welfare committee.

All this new responsibility is a huge undertaking, especially for a freshman councilman who has never held a political office. But Dominguez, a teacher at the Dual Language & Arts Magnet School in Waterford with a master’s degree in education from the University of New Haven, said he is up to the task.

“I’m ready. I love this city and I want to make a difference; to help people like me and my family. And to serve all citizens,” said Dominguez, who is also a director of Christian education and a translator during bilingual services at Oasis of Restoration Church in New London.

Efrain Dominguez is a rising star in our city.

The Dominguez family story is a classic American tale. It mirrors the history of thousands of other families that reside in our vibrant, diverse city today. According to the 2010 Census, Puerto Rican’s are New London’s largest group of Hispanics making up 15.4% of the population of 27,620 residents. The overall Hispanic population for New London is 28.3 percent and growing.

And like many of those residents, Efrain’s parents - his father Efrain Sr., and his mother Ana Luz - arrived here from Puerto Rico in search of a better life and more opportunities. Which for them meant the first employment they found on their initial visit to Connecticut was as migrant workers in Willimantic, CT., where Efrain Jr. and his sister, Adacil, were born. The youngest son, Ethien, was born in New London. Eventually, his parents both found more stable employment at the American Thread company and began to settle into their new life.

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"My brother is a man of his word.

... He won't sell you dreams."

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Efrain and his two siblings grew up in the Crystal Avenue high-rise apartments, where Ana Luz kept close watch over her family. She was determined to keep them safe from the temptations of drugs, gangs and crime lurking just outside their door. Their mother fought off those threats by showering children with love, discipline and by teaching them strong Christian values. You see for Ana Luz, her children are her greatest blessing, a miracle to be cherished.

And you understand why upon hearing her testimony: after a near-death bout with Leukemia as a child Ana Luz, who was born in the town of Dorado, P.R., was told that she would never be able to have children. She said that she became known as “la nina bonita,” when a man named “Bebo,” one of the village’s first Christian believers, revived her with prayer after she had been pronounced dead by a local doctor. Desperate after losing two children already, her parents had turned to the only thing they knew to save their sick daughter: prayer. It worked. And from that day on, Ana Luz said she gave her life to the Lord. When she became a mother she dedicated her life to her family.

“That woman you see right there is priceless,” Efrain said watching his mom slice up a plantain for dinner. “She taught us to love everybody, no matter what race or how much money they had. She said everyone was a child of God. We had to go to Sunday school and church all the time and she didn’t just send us off to church she came with us because she knows that adults are role models. Their behavior has to be the behavior they expect from their children,” Efrain said.

Growing up in the projects with people of all ethnicities, Efrain learned to appreciate and understand the lives the ordinary people. One of his favorite childhood memories is of Mike, the ice cream man, whose arrival each afternoon was a highlight of every child’s day. “If we didn’t have money for ice cream, Mike would let us do a little work for him like take out the trash on the truck, clean up a little. Then he’d give you a free ice cream,” remembered Dominguez. “We so were proud to work for our ice cream. That was a good lesson.”

A timid boy who suffered from asthma, Efrain said he didn’t worry about being the most-popular kid. And undoubtedly, he got teased a lot for spending so much time in church. But Dominguez had no problem making friends even if things could get a little rough  – like the time a bigger kid tried to take his bike and his big sister jumped into the fray and slapped the bully around a bit. “I was like a lioness when I saw that boy picking on my brother. I’ve always been protective of Efrain, even now,” said Adacil, the nurturer of the siblings who works in the healthcare industry.

Dominguez slowly learned to hold his own and became a stand out wrestler at New London High School and even went on to be the school’s head wrestling head coach from 2004 to 2011. A firm believer in the power in sports to teach life lessons, Dominguez is a longtime community leader, has volunteered with the Special Olympics and this he year celebrates the 10th anniversary of a youth basketball camp he organizes at the courts near Crystal Avenue.

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" ... God didn't put me here to be timid and afraid." said Dominguez."

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As an educator, Dominguez has worked throughout Connecticut but he proudly admits he’s a local boy at heart. When he went off to study at Eastern Connecticut State University, he had a rough time. Dominguez said he often felt lonely and isolated and was the only Puerto Rican in many of his classes. “I felt like I didn’t belong. I was homesick,” he said. He dropped out of college and returned to New London for a while but he eventually found his way back to college, earning a bachelor’s in Spanish from Eastern and master’s degree in Education at University of New Haven while working and attending college.

It was a part-time job at New London’s Nuestra Casa Day Care that helped Dominguez find his calling. He wanted to be a teacher. So he set his goals. And when Dominguez returned to college he was a confident young man with a purpose. Today, Dominguez, who is single, spends much of his time working with and mentoring local youths because he relates with many of their experiences.

“I knew God didn’t put me here to be timid and afraid. I went back to college, put my Christian posters on the wall opposite my roommate’s bikini babe posters … and I learned to be confident about myself and stand up for what I believed in,” Efrain said. He became a leader.

Efrain’s brother, Ethien, who works at Millstone nuclear power plant, has enjoyed watching his big brother come into his own. “My brother is going to be a great city councilman because he is the embodiment of the people of New London. Whatever the critics say about the city, we love it here. The city has the perfect mix: people from all walks of life, different religions and economic backgrounds, and gender [identities] … We learned early to get along with everyone.”

“My brother is a man of his word. He will do what he says but he will only tell you he will do it if he can. He won’t sell you dreams. He’s always been an honest dude and that’s rare to find in a poltician these days."

Efrain Dominguez Jr. sounds like a man New London needs right now.