By: Mary C. Barrera

Earlier this fall, UMTIA hosted a memorable St. Paul Lunch and Lock Mississippi River Cruise. This social event brought together our vibrant community of interpreters and translators to celebrate their dedication and hard work and our organization’s ongoing mission to serve as a supportive and educational resource. With beautiful river views and a delicious barbecue lunch, the day was filled with camaraderie, reflection, and a special moment to recognize some extraordinary members of our community, including Aida Azzazi.

Aida received the Service to the Field Award in recognition of her exceptional leadership and dedication to UMTIA and the field of Educational Interpreting and Translating. The day was especially meaningful for her, as it also marked her 27th wedding anniversary. To make the occasion even more memorable, Aida shared that her wedding reception had taken place on the same riverboat, the Anson Northrop, just one day before UMTIA’s River Cruise took place, 27 years earlier.

Reflecting on the honor and the meaningful coincidence of the day, Aida shared her thoughts with us:

“It was an honor to receive the Service to the Field Award from UMTIA this year. UMTIA feels like home; it is a place where I feel supported and enjoy the community. I became President of UMTIA during the pandemic when we needed to feel the strength of our community as interpreters and translators. We all learned and excelled in our development. We survived a challenging time to become more resilient and to support the next generation of interpreters and translators.”

“It was also a special day because it was my 27th wedding anniversary. I was married on October 11th on the same boat the UMTIA Cruise was held on. The Anson Northrop held my wedding reception. It brought back many fond memories as well as made many new memories.”

Aida’s contributions to the interpreting and translation profession are as inspiring as her personal story. Since her time as UMTIA President, she has continued to leave her mark in the field. She is now the official Spanish interpreter for Colectiva Bilingüe, a nonprofit supporting bilingual education in five Spanish Dual Language Schools. Beyond her interpreting duties, Aida has become an educator and advocate, introducing high school students in Dual Language Programs to careers in interpreting and translation.

She described her student-centered initiatives in detail:

“I presented Exploring Interpreting and Translation as a Career to high school students in the Dual Language Program. We had a good discussion about whether being bilingual was enough to become an interpreter. A student cohort shadowed me for 20 hours of community events, observing interpreting in person, virtual, consecutive, simultaneous, and sight translation. They briefed/debriefed, took notes, tried interpreting their notes, and helped develop a glossary.”

“I received a grant from Colectiva Bilingüe to expand the student training. I took the 40-hour training through Blue Horizon Interpreter Training online and the Train the Trainer Program from Cross-Cultural Connections to become a licensed trainer for the 40-hour Community Interpreter Program. My next student cohort training will be held in February and I have 10 interested students.”

Aida’s professional journey continues to open doors for her—and others. She has interpreted for Principal candidate interviews for three Dual language schools, district LPAC (Latino Parent Advisory Council) meetings, and even events for the League of Women Voters, where she provided live simultaneous interpretation streamed on Zoom during a House of Representative Candidate forum and a School Board candidate forum where Dual Language students observed and got to use headsets.

In addition, Aida remains deeply involved in shaping the future of interpreting education. She serves on the advisory board for Century College and is a reviewer for the TRIN (Translation and Interpreting) program class on interpreting in Education, which recently invited her to participate in a panel discussion on remote interpreting.

Aida’s dedication and accomplishments reflect UMTIA’s mission—building a strong and inclusive community while paving the way for the next generation of interpreters and translators. We were thrilled to honor her achievements on such a special day and look forward to seeing her continued impact in our field.

Congratulations again, Aida, and thank you for your enduring contributions to the interpreting and translation community!