At-Risk Girls Learn of Other Alternatives : Counseling: As many as 20 Latinas meet weekly with a South County community worker.

Cristina Valadez went away to UC Berkeley in 1989 with plans of becoming a civil rights attorney. Along the way, something changed her career path.

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Her oldest brother, then 15, was dressing like the gang members who frequented Lemon Park in Valadez’s hometown of Fullerton. At the request of their parents, the young woman intervened.

The brother, who didn’t join the gang, is now enrolled in community college. And instead of becoming a lawyer, Valadez is working with as many as 20 young Latinas in San Juan Capistrano, many of whom live in gang territory or have boyfriends in the local gang.

Each Thursday afternoon, she and the young women meet at the Boys and Girls Club of Capistrano Valley to talk about such sensitive subjects as pregnancy, alcohol, drugs and AIDS.

“You have to be very upfront and frank,” the 23-year-old Valadez said. “When you have things like AIDS and high teen pregnancy rates, it’s important to put your cards on the table and say, ‘This could happen and these are the consequences.’ ”

Gangs have long been the domain of young men who sometimes die over casting a wrong look at a rival. But girlfriends of gang members can still become indirect victims of the dangerous lifestyle through teen-age pregnancy, AIDS or drug addiction, Valadez said.

She works for Community Service Programs Inc., which has a one-year contract with San Juan Capistrano, Dana Point and San Clemente to reach at-risk youth.

According to the latest figures, the nonprofit organization has made contacts with 554 teen-agers and 323 parents in the three cities through group sessions and home visits. The organization receives referrals from schoolteachers, principals and probation officers.

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Valadez said she took an interest in girls with links to gangs because they are often overlooked in gang prevention.

In the privacy of a small room, the young women can share experiences, hear from experts and build self-esteem.

For Maryann Doporto, the group lends hope and support. Doporto, 20, said she once took drugs and liked to fight, but those days are long over.

“Girls are more likely going to listen and follow through,” Doporto said of the program. “The guys, it’s like a rock in their head and they can’t listen.”

Another young Latina in the group said that the sessions offer avenues of help for girls who are unsure what to do.

“Some teen-agers, especially the young ones, they don’t know where to go,” she said.

Last week, the group listened to a guidance counselor speak about career planning. A future session will cover how to plan for a college education.

Valadez, a Fullerton native and UC Berkeley graduate, said that she preaches education as a way for at-risk Latinas to seek success.

“A woman gangster is the lowest on the rung,” Valadez said. “You can’t move up far in that world.”

The city counts between 30 and 40 male gang members, along with about 60 “associates” or loosely tied participants, Sheriff’s Lt. Paul Sullivan said. There has not been a gang homicide in four years.

But such peace and quiet doesn’t make Valadez’s job a breeze, she said.

“It’s harder,” she said, “because they don’t see the violent, bloody results of being in a gang.”