SALINAS, Calif. —With flags in hand, roughly 60 members of the Salinas United Farm Workers of America group cheered as they heard President Barack Obama’s speech Thursday night.

"We’ve been moving, working and fighting for this for 14 years, and it’s time to celebrate," said UFW Regional Director Lauro Barajas.

Obama announced a series of executive actions that could affect as many as five million people living here illegally. The three steps include making it easier for highly skilled immigrants to stay and work here, boosting enforcement at the border and extending deportation protections to parents of U.S. citizens and permanent residents if they’ve lived here for more than five years.

"Now my parents are going to have the same opportunity that I did. They’ve been working here for 16 years. They’re going to be able to get back what they gave this country," said Martza Coriea.

Coriea said she went from working in the fields to being an assistant manager for the UFW Foundation, after she received help from the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program and went to college.

She said she is hopeful the president’s executive action will help others like her; however, not everyone in the farm business is as thrilled as she is for this reform.

California Farm Bureau Federation President Paul Wenger released a statement Thursday saying: "While we appreciate the president’s interest in reforming our inadequate immigration system, we’re afraid his action may complicate efforts to achieve a comprehensive, long-term solution.”

The UFW agrees, saying they commend the president for taking the first step, and call on congress to finish the job. And local members say they’ll keep fighting as well.

"This is not the end. We are going to be looking and moving forward to get more action," said UFW Foundation representative Ricardo Nunez.

The UFW Foundation will also host information sessions for immigrants at the office on East Alisal Street. Those will begin Friday at 5 p.m. and go through Wednesday.