Hello Everyone! I’m Gloria Barragan, a newbie to the Young Life organization and all that it entails. However, I’m honored and appreciative to be selected to be a part of the 3rd annual Dancing with the Stars. I was born and raised in Tulare as a Catholic, having worked my entire career in Visalia. I graduated from Tulare Western High School, followed by College of the Sequoias, and ultimately graduated from Fresno Pacific University with a Business Administration degree with emphasis in Accounting. As a member of this community, I volunteer at the Visalia Rescue Mission, Lighthouse Rescue Mission, Saint Rita’s Church in Tulare, and as a board member of the Visalia Fox Theatre. 

At a young age, the importance of values like compassion, charity, kindness, forgiveness, hard work, integrity and loyalty were instilled in me. As a Catholic, values such as these have illuminated my life and I believe that without Christ’s love I wouldn’t be the woman I am today. I truly believe that helping others is one of the best feelings and most important things that we can do, which is one of the reasons I enjoy my profession as much as I do. I’ve owned my own accounting practice, Gloria Barragan Tax, Accounting, and Business Management for nearly 8 years. I serve as an accountant, tax preparer and business manager to several health care practices, small businesses, and individuals. I’ve developed great relationships with my clients through the years where I can help educate them financially, and develop a clear sense of financial direction/goals. The joy that I feel when I see the progress that they make towards these goals is nearly unparalleled. As someone who was in a starkly different financial position as a young mother, I can empathize with the enormous burden that is financial stress. So being the person that people can look to for help and direction is truly important to me. I think that the purpose of this organization lines up very well with my own values and is one of the reasons why I am so enthusiastic about being involved with Young Life. Especially when I saw that it combined two of my favorite things, helping others and dancing, I was absolutely on board. 

Finally, I’m engaged to my loving fiance and partner Phil. I’m a mother to three sons and one daughter; Jon, 22, Matt, 18, Urijah, 14, and Gianna, 17. Being a mother and partner is one of the great joys of my life, I’ve loved watching them grow and being there for them as they continue through life. As a business owner, I don’t have a lot of free time. Particularly during tax season! But when time permits, I enjoy hiking, spending time with my family and friends, traveling, dancing, and volunteering.