disneyland. it's the part of the o.c. where people know that to survive, they'll have to work hard. maribel ramos arrived here as a baby, leaving mexico behind. she would not only survive here, but thrive. to tell you the truth, this should be the story of a woman who worked hard to change her life, and in doing so, carved a path for others to follow. >> hello? >> but this story is going to end differently. >> why are you crying? >> because i'm afraid. >> there are some parts of life that hard work just can't fix. >> i'm just scared. i'm just like calling to let you guys know that if something happens, i did it because i was trying to defend myself. >> some things that are beyond our control. >> all i'm trying to say is, i'm warning -- honestly, i will fight for my life. i swear, i will kill him.

especially her niece giselle. >> she kind of adopted you as this project. >> yeah. >> now, why did she do that? >> i think it was because she wanted me to have the best. >> as giselle grew older the self-improvement message sometimes came complete with pushups. after all, maribel was all army. >> when i would get in trouble, she would make me do exercises in order to, like, work off the punishment. >> all this while maribel was hammering away at gisele, you will finish school, study hard and have a career. >> yes. this is what you're going to do, mija. this is what you're going to do. she would tell her. yes, dija. >> maribel got a dog and rented a two bedroom apartment in the city of orange which she shared with a roommate, a quiet chemist named k.c. joy, who also had a dog. >> i thought it was the perfect match.