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Strong women have always inspired Wanda Borges ’72. When listing strong women who shaped her, Borges gives much inspirational credit to her mother. Yet, it is the Sisters of Mercy she says that helped to germinate her thirst for lifelong learning — a thirst that would eventually lead her to a now 43-year career in law.

“Mercy nuns were there for me every step. My mother was very close to them growing up,” said Borges, who recalls her mother sewing for the nuns in her school. Raised in the Bronx, she and her older sister, Cynthia, were both educated at St. Catherine’s Academy, an all-girls school in the Catholic tradition.

Her parents, born in Puerto Rico, intent on both of their daughters assimilating into American culture, were adamant that they not learn Spanish and speak only English in and out of the home. “It was a different time then,” said Borges, explaining how her parents in the ’50s and ’60s strived to ease the pathway of success for their children when multi-culturalism was not as embraced as it is today.

Her mother’s job as a secretary and legal assistant for a female attorney in the legal department of Paramount Pictures Corp. first sparked Borges’ interest in the field of law. “I remember going into this library with ladders all around just looking in complete awe at the shelves of law books that reached almost to the ceiling,” said Borges. “This exposure introduced me to a possibility I never considered before. I wanted to read each one of those books.”

To read the full Maverick Magazine article, "Wanda Borges ’72 Credits Multi-Cultural Upbringing and Strong Women with Inspiring Successful Law Career," please click .

To read the full fall 2022 Maverick Magazine, please click .