STORY BY KAREN BOSSICK

PHOTOS BY KIRSTEN SHULTZ

As a first-generation Latina, Alejandra Campoverdi never left work at night without turning around to see the lights outlining the White House.

That—and riding on Air Force One--was a breathtaking experience for a 28-year-old who, as a youngster living on Food Stamps, could only dream of attaining the American Dream.

But her journey from living in government-subsidized housing in Santa Monica to Harvard University and the White House is one that might not have happened without a certain amount of calculated risk taking and the willingness to deal with emotional toll that included a panic disorder while working multiple jobs as an undergraduate student at USC.

Campoverdi recounted her journey, told in her book “First Gen,” a couple weeks ago for Wood River Valley students, their parents and other members of the community during a packed three-day visit to the valley organized by Sun Valley Writer’s Conference.

Campoverdi discussed what it took to be the first person in her family to cross several thresholds, warts and all.

That included enduring isolation as she attempted things no one in her family had ever done, feeling imposter syndrome as she emerged from social class she was born in to find herself in board rooms where she was the only one who looked a certain way and breakaway guilt, which she said occurs when you’re making more money or having different experiences than those who grew up with.

“Overachievement can be a coping mechanism because it gives you a feeling of control,” she said. “Feeling out of control let me achieve things.”

Campoverdi discussed the tendency of first and onlys to take on the role of an adult, serving as family translator at the doctor’s for instance. Even recently, Campoverdi said, she became the parent to make sure her mother got the hospital treatment she needed.

Although Campoverdi served as class president and homecoming queen, getting to USC was disorienting. She fainted at the iconic Tommy Trojan statue during freshman orientation while having a panic attack.

“It was harder for me to get from childhood to college than from college to the White House,” she said. “Skills, wisdom, perspective—guts—these are the tools that got me through.”

Campoverdi went to Harvard without financial aid, waiting tables so she would leave with no debt. She gave up a business school scholarship to take an unpaid job with then-Sen. Barack Obama’s campaign after graduating from Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government.

When he became President, she moved into the White House as assistant to Obama’s deputy chief of staff and, eventually, the first-ever deputy director of Hispanic media.

“You’ve got to decide for yourself how much risk you’re willing to take,” she said. “There’s no right or wrong. I’d rather fail and fall on my face than think, ‘What if?’ Working on the Obama campaign I could have ended up with no job, no car, no home. But I decided business school was not my path—that government was where I wanted to go.”

In doing so, Campoverdi found herself straddling the world of the nation’s biggest power players and the impoverished neighborhood she grew up in. She recounted how she learned to guard against the disappointment of her mother not celebrating some of her accomplishments the way she would have liked.

When she got her book deal, for instance, she called friends first who immediately joined her in a celebratory party. A few days later she told her mother about the deal.

“Nice,” her mother replied. Then, “Are you coming to dinner Sunday?”

“My two siblings haven’t even read my book,”Campoverdi said. “They’re happy for me, but they tell me, ‘I’m so busy.’ My mom and aunt were the only ones who visited while I was in the White House.”

Her family expresses their love for her and their pride for her in ways other than celebrating her achievements, Campoverdi said.

“I made the choice to hold off telling my mother about my book deal so could celebrate the way I wanted to. And, because I did that, I didn’t hang up the phone and cry. I celebrated three days later with my mother in a way that seemed natural.”

Campoverdi told students that, instead of chasing a job title, they should choose their passion and purpose. She, for instance, figured out she loved telling stories, and that took her to the White House and to a career as a book writer.

“I’m still as motivated and goal oriented as I’ve ever been. I still have things to do. But I ask myself:  Why am I doing this? Because it looks good on my resume or makes me feel good? Or, is it because it’s an important thing to do?”

What if you feel you’re meant to do something and don’t know what that is?

“That’s a real thing you’re going to have to address,” she told the students. “And don’t ask people for directions to places they’ve never been.”

Andrea Lieberman, a longtime supporter of the Writers’ Conference, said she was ecstatic to see the Sun Valley Writers’ Conference expand its reach into the south valley and into the schools.

“Alejandra connected with the kids--she could find each kid where they were,” she said. “And the things she said were so true for everyone.”