Latino Leaders Magazine | Dec/Jan 2015

Marcela Valladolid From the 40 Acres to the Olympic arena

Serving authenticity, Mexican style

Exclusive interview with silver medalist and MIDDLE-DISTANCE champion

Leonel Manz ano www.latinoleaders.com

December 2014 / January 2015 Vol. 15 No. 7 Display until 02 /10/2015

Luis Gutierrez

Illinois’ Latino defender tackles immigration reform

CONTENTS december 2014 / january 2015

CONTENTS July / August 2014

40

COVER STORY: Leonel Manzano:

Mexican-American middledistance superstar Leo Manzano talks about his introduction into running, his road to UT Austin and his challenges and triumphs as a professional runner. Manzano shares his motivation to succeed and goals for the future as he prepares for his upcoming indoor season.

CONTENTS december 2014 / january 2015

58 30 Antonio Pulgarin: Now based out of New York

City, this Bogota native is quickly making a name for himself in the photography industry. A finalist in PhotoWorld’s 2014 New York Photo Festival, Pulgarin addresses a wide variety of themes in his work, including sexuality, masculinity and identity in Latin American culture.

58 Lily Eskelsen Garcia: As the first Latina president of the National Education Association, Eskelsen Garcia is well aware of the challenges facing America’s student population. Twenty-four years after leaving teaching full-time, Eskelsen Garcia talks college costs, leadership and doing what’s right for America’s children.

34 Marcela Valladolid: Co-host of the Food

Events Coverage

Network’s “The Kitchen,” Marcela Valladolid is dedicated to bringing the rich and distinct flavors of Mexican cuisine to her audiences in an authentic way. Also a celebrated author, Valladolid shares one of her favorite recipes with Latino Leaders.

46 Luis Gutierrez: Illinois Congressman Luis Gutierrez encourages others to look at immigration as not just a numbers game but also as a human issue involving real people. Gutierrez discusses President Obama’s recent executive action, working across the aisle and passing a bill that would keep thousands of families together.

16 64 72 76

Latina Vanguard 101 Most Influential Latinos Luncheon CLF Houston Dallas Maestro Awards

In Every Edition 06 08 10 12 80

From the editor’s desk Conversation with the publisher Lexus Luminaries Southwest Landing Cellar

Letter from the editor New year opportunities

M

Maintaining the tradition of looking to new opportunities as the new year approaches, we see the possibilities for hope in the Latino community, specifically in relation to the new executive order on immigration reform.

No matter where your politics lie, is it clear to see that immigration reform will have an impact on millions throughout the country, and representing one of the largest minorities throughout the country, the Hispanic community will not only feel the impact of policies made on Capitol Hill but also policy’s effect on the lives of family members and friends.

As you will see throughout the pages of this edition, our leaders – whether managing a nonprofit, serving in government, fighting for education or excelling as athletic figures – all have one thing in common. They are proud of their stories of immigration, and it is that experience they hope to pass onto others to cling to.

It is now our challenge to see where we progress from here. How do we make a lasting impression on the next generation? Though we have come far, the future beckons us to push forward.

Connecting Leaders, Inspiring the Future

Publisher Jorge Ferraez

President and CEO Raul Ferraez

Editor-in-Chief: Esther Perez eperez@latinoleaders.com Director of Journalism: Mariana Gutierrez mariana@latinoleaders.com National Director of Events: Yol-Itzma Aguirre yaguirre@latinoleaders.com National Sales Director: Gil Castro gcastro@latinoleaders.com Administrative Director: Pedro Alvarado palvarado@latinoleaders.com Circulation Manager and Editorial Assistant: Carlos Anchondo canchondo@latinoleaders.com Washington, D.C. Sales Associate and Representative Deyanira Ferraez dferraez@latinoleaders.com Art Director: Fernando Izquierdo ferdiseno@latinoleaders.com Editorial Art & Design: Rodrigo Valderrama Carlos Cuevas Luis Enrique González Human Resources Manager: Susana Sanchez Administration and Bookkeeping: Claudia García Bejarano Executive Assistant to the Publishers: Liliana Morales Circulation System Manager: Andrea Luna For advertising inquiries, please call 214-206-4966 x 225.

Twitter to the editor As a publication, we are always excited to hear your thoughts, questions and concerns about how we are doing. Please share your stories of immigration and how immigration reform has impacted your life. Remember that every first Monday of the month, we encourage our Twitter to the Editor, but feel free to respond on any day because your feedback will help us to better connect readers and inspire the future. Also, follow us on Twitter and Facebook to get live result of event coverage and sneak peeks at our upcoming editions.

Latino Leaders: The National Magazine of the Successful American Latino (ISSN 15293998) is published seven times annually by Ferraez Publications of America Corp., 15443 Knoll Trail, Suite 210, 75248 Dallas, TX, USA, October / November 2014.

Subscription rates: In U.S. and possessions, one year $15.00. Checks payable to Ferraez Publications of America, 15443 Knoll Trail, Suite 210, 75248 Dallas, TX, USA. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Latino Leaders, 15443 Knoll Trail, Suite 210, 75248 Dallas, TX, USA.© 2001 by Ferraez Publications of America Corporation. All rights reserved.

No part of this periodical may be reproduced without the consent of Latino Leaders: The National Magazine of the Successful American Latino. The periodical’s name and logo, and the various titles and headings therein, are trademarks of Ferraez Publications of America Corp.

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Audited by Member of Reg. # 283/01

MEMBER OF SRDS

6 • December 2014 / January 2015

Latino Leaders The National Magazine of the Successful American Latino 15443 Knoll Trail, Suite 210, 75248 Dallas, TX, USA Phone: (214) 206-4966 / Fax: (214) 206-4970

a conversation with the publisher

How politicians can understand the Latino community

o

ne of the most recognized Latino journalists is Ruben Navarrette Jr. Widely known for his fierce positions and his very strong points on politics and other national issues that are relevant to Latinos, Ruben writes permanent columns in more than 100 newspapers, has a weekly show on CNN.com, is a regular CNN contributor, has a regular radio show and gets invited to give speeches and remarks everywhere.

From his San Diego, California, headquarters, he talks to a lot of people and writes his heated and busy social media pieces as well.

On a recent visit with him in San Diego, we had a great conversation that started with analyzing different leadership styles of Mexican presidents, and later compared them with some American presidents. We discussed how President Peña Nieto seems to have a gift for people and knows how to surround himself with intelligent people: “Bush (George W.) was the same,” he told me. “He understood very well how to empower smart people around him.”

We also commented on President Fox’s “Montessori Cabinet,” as it was called, criticizing the way they were picked and coordinated.

Later, we talked about one of his favorite issues: Latinos.

“You know, Jorge, Latinos are in a political haze right now. Nobody seems to really understand and relate to them. Both Democrats and Republicans haven’t found the way to really engage them. Sometimes, it seems that candidates have to be contradicting themselves on what they say to Latinos and what they say to non-Latinos. We discussed how President Obama has not related to Latinos.” (At the time of our conversation, the executive order on immigration policies had not yet been signed by President Obama.)

“American presidents either understand Latinos or not; there’s not a middle point,” he said.

Again, we discussed why George W. Bush was so good at that: “He has appointed probably the only Latino that has broken into a major cabinet position – Alberto Gonzalez as attorney general – and Bush grew up in Texas, next to Mexico and living and growing with Latinos all his life (Jeb Bush, his brother, is married to a Mexican woman).

But is difficult if you are not related to the Hispanic culture and community.”

I asked him about an issue he’s also been discussing: Why do you think there are no new (political) leaders?

“I have been told many things, but one that is recurrent is that there’s that sentiment of working alone, for my own interests and a lack of cooperation to advance common goals. So politicians attack each other, and they don’t grow enough muscle to transcend to higher levels.”

Ruben told me how important he feels “being independent and brave” is for the emerging political leaders, and I couldn’t agree more with him.

8 • December 2014 / January 2015

LANDING

Jhojana Valbuena Founder and president of 33 Degrees Story and photos by: Emilia Gaston

F

or Jhojana Valbuena, founder and president of 33 Degrees, making a successful life in America was never a dream; it was a guarantee. So when she left home at 16 to pursue a new life, her mother asked no questions.

“She wasn’t surprised that I was leaving, she always expected it,” Valbuena says.

The Venezuelan native always knew that she wanted a different life from the traditional dynamic she often saw in her home country, where the mother moves from her parents’ home to her husband’s home to take care of the house.

“Traditionally, I feel like the women don’t really have an identity,” Valbuena said.

So at the young age of 15, an age at which most American children are maturing as high school students, barely old enough to get a job, Valbuena was working on an island in Venezuela in the all-inclusive resort business when her boss offered her a job in Cozumel, Mexico.

“My mother was very trusting in me that I would make the right decisions, and she just said, ‘I knew it.’ She knew I would leave, and it was just a matter of time.”

Being unable to speak English at the time, Valbuena’s language barrier did not fair well with her superiors at the mostly European and American-visited resort, and she was released from the position.

“It was all very stressful, and I didn’t know what I was going to do, but I knew that I wasn’t going back to Venezuela,” Valbuena said.

For the following two weeks, Valbuena would take a daily ferry ride and bus ride to Cancun, going from hotel to hotel asking for a job and eventually landed one where she stayed for two years.

She felt if she could keep moving more and more north, she was getting closer to her goal. But going north took an extreme turn when friends invited her to stay with them in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, complete with a culture shock and climatic realization.

“I came from a place where the coldest it gets is about 80 degrees, and there, it was snowing in September. I also had friends in Dallas, so I decided to try it,” Valbuena explained.

So in 1998, Dallas it was.

Her first order of business was to buy a car and begin English classes while working at restaurants to make ends meet. However, times were tough and struggling to get her citizenship proved difficult.

“I couldn’t go home for 10 years, and I even had to deal with the passing of my grandfather, which was very hard for me because I couldn’t be there. But I knew I was on the right track.”

With a marketing degree that she earned in Venezuela, Valbuena landed jobs at local TV channels and radio stations in sales, working up a repertoire with clients, some of whom would even follow her from job to job.

But selling one product, tied down by the companies she worked for, started to weigh on her and she moved to a small advertising agency to broaden her skills.

Clashing personalities and questionable business practices led Valbuena to finally become an independent contractor.

“I appreciated the opportunity, and it pushed me to where I knew I had to do it on my own.”

Thus, 33 Degrees was born, a one-stop-shop for all things advertising, specializing in the Hispanic market and “the new Hispanic reality.”

33 Degrees offers production, marketing, media buying, creative efforts and live demos, where companies don’t have to go from agency to agency to reach their marketing goals, especially within the Hispanic community.

Valbuena wanted to create a company culture that could provide insight into the diversity of Hispanic countries and regions, especially with the new age Hispanic demographic that are mostly young and multicultural.

“These people are like me. They may live here in America, speak English but also be native to another country. So they understand the best of both worlds,” she explained.

“I think sometimes people think they know the Hispanic market, and it’s very complex, and even for us when we speak the same language, our cultures are different from country to country, city to city.”

Valbuena cites a commonly used example of an American Airlines campaign in the 1970s to market their new leather seats. When the copy from the ads were literally translated in Spanish, the ads ended

Adios, Wright Amendment! Hello, America!

BY: Ron Ricks executive vice president and chief legal and regulatory officer

S

outhwest Airlines has been proud to call Dallas home throughout our entire 43-year history. While we started as a fledgling intrastate carrier serving just three Texas cities (Dallas, Houston, San Antonio), we have grown to carry more passengers today than any other airline in the United States. But we haven’t always had the freedom to spread our wings out of our hometown airport of Dallas Love Field.

The passage of a law known as the Wright Amendment in 1979 made our home airport of

Dallas Love Field the first and only airport in the United States to be restricted to a small service area—flights out of the airport would be limited to destinations in Texas and its neighboring states (later expanded to include Mississippi, Alabama, Kansas, and Missouri). Ten years ago, we set out to repeal this restriction, leading a successful effort to overturn the Wright Amendment, which officially expired on October 13, 2014.

This is good news for Southwest and anyone who travels to and from Dallas. And we didn’t waste any time exploring our newfound freedom.

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up saying to fly in the nude rather than in the intended leather seats.

33 Degress knows and understands the uniqueness of each market and strives to offer clients the very best services possible.

A new company, 33 Degrees has been in business since the summer of 2013, but Valbuena is looking to the future.

After landing the company’s first national client, she hopes to open offices in national markets within the next five years, and business is definitely on the up-and-up.

On October 13, we installed new non-stop service to seven cities from Dallas Love Field (Baltimore/Washington; Denver; Las Vegas; Orlando; Chicago Midway; Los Angeles; Reagan National). Another wave of new service will follow that in November with an additional eight nonstop destinations—from New York and California, and several points in between. And, we’re just getting started.

Fittingly, our brand new Dallas flights will be provided from a new, revitalized airport facility at Love Field with over 20 new concessions and a brand new infrastructure that will rival the nicest airports in the world.

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TIPS FOR ASPITING MARKETING PROFESIONALS 1. Learn about your client beforehand, about how they’re doing in the market, make them feel special and important.

2. Figure out how you are going to help them to grow.

3. Fight for them, know how far you can push the sales people to get what you want.

4. Negotiate to get the best rates, promotions and added value.

5. Be honest to your clients.

6. Under promise, over deliver.

7. Meet your deadlines.

Amendment, we set out to breathe new life into our hometown airport with the Love Field Modernization Program (LFMP). The artwork in the airport is modern but keeps a splash of the history, for which, Love Field is known. The new Love Field is a showpiece for the city of Dallas, and its convenient, close-to-downtown location provides even more benefits for our customers.

The Wright Amendment repeal allows us finally to carry people where they want to go from our hometown airport, giving customers access to our vast network and making Dallas more accessible for the rest of the country. The city now joins eight other

major metro areas in the United States that have more than one airport providing longhaul domestic service. This means more flights, more destinations, more choices, and lower fares to and from North Texas.

So, if you live in the North Texas area or if your travels take you to or from Dallas, I hope you’ll share in our excitement over the final departure of the Wright Amendment. It only took 34 years, an act of Congress and a hard fought battle waged by our employees to overturn the restrictive legislation. But we prevailed, and we’re now free to move about the country from our home, Dallas Love Field.

Bridging Borders

By Tommie Ethington Contributed photos

14 • December 2014 / January 2015

Felice Gorordo connects cultures and champions immigration reform

B

y the age of 32, Felice Gorordo co-founded a nonprofit organization, served under two United States presidents and worked as CEO of the fastestgrowing Hispanic-owned corporation in the country. Yet, it’s his roots he wants to talk about.

The son of Cuban immigrants, Gorordo grew up hearing stories of his mother and father’s journeys to American citizenship. His father arrived in the U.S. alone at 5-years-old under Operation Pedro Pan, a secret joint effort between the Catholic Welfare Bureau and Cuban parents who were concerned about their children being indoctrinated by the communist government. Gorordo’s mother arrived in his teens by way of Spain. Gorordo’s maternal grandfather then spent five years working in the Florida sugar cane fields to earn citizenship for his family.

“That backdrop, that experience, shaped my whole perspective growing up,” Gorordo said. “Hearing those stories of our family coming here and seeking that opportunity, that American dream, really inspired me to get involved and bridge the divide between young people here and young people on the island.”

But it wasn’t until Gorordo was in college that his personal journey began.

While studying at Georgetown University, Gorordo took a course on Cuba and decided the only way to fully understand the country was to travel there himself.

“The trip was born out of an identity crisis, a sense of curiosity and a little bit of naiveté,” Gorordo said. “I wanted to better understand what Cuba meant to me and what personal connection, if any, I had and that my family still had.”

For almost 50 years, members of Gorordo’s family didn’t speak because of political differences, but when he arrived in Cuba his uncle welcomed him with open arms and Gorordo found hope in the country’s youth.

“I met young people who were risking everything to bring about change on the island,” said Gorordo, citing a young student leader who was expelled for collecting signatures for a human rights petition.

“He lost his ability to pursue a higher education, was ostracized and harassed but, regardless, continued to fight on in a non-violent way because he had hope for a better future,” Gorordo said. “It was that courage, that great inspiration, that also inspired me to not let these be stand alone experiences, but to do something.”

Gorordo returned to Georgetown and co-founded Raíces de Esperanza, or Roots of Hope, a nonprofit organization focused on youth empowerment in Cuba. Today, the nonpartisan group is an international network consisting of more than 4,000 volunteers. Together, they have organized marches, collected used cellphones for Cuban citizens, supported young entrepreneurs and coordinated a peace concert with Juanes at the Plaza de la Revolución that drew a crowd of more than one million Cubans.

“Over the course of the last 12 years, Cuba has changed dramatically. There are those that think the reforms haven’t gone far enough, but the reality is, in the Cuban context, it’s been pretty dramatic,” Gorordo said. “When I was traveling there, Cubans couldn’t have their own businesses or be selfemployed. Only 5 years ago, personal computers and cell phones were illegal.”

Now, Cubans are opening up their own micro-businesses and, according to Gorordo, cellphone ownership is up from 25,000 in 2008 to two million in 2014.

“That’s dramatic, significant and worth noting,” Gorordo said.

“Little by little, Cubans are beginning to carve out a piece of society for themselves, independent of the government, and defending it and making their voices heard and amplified.”

Gorordo has grown alongside Roots of Hope, adding to his resume with experiences in the U.S. departments of State, Commerce and Homeland Security under President George W. Bush, and as one of 15 leaders appointed by President Barack Obama to the White House Fellows, the country’s most prestigious nonpartisan leadership program.

Throw in a stint as CEO of Liberty Power, the fastest growing Hispanic-owned corporation in the U.S., and it’s clear Gorordo values different points of view.

“It’s very important to be able to understand the perspective each [area] brings to the table,” Gorordo said. “In business, often times we lose sight of the greater impact our decisions have on important stakeholders, and one thing I’ve gathered working in a non-profit space, as well as the government, is the importance of taking into account the greater good.”

Gorordo’s most recent endeavor, as CEO of Clearpath, a company that provides multilingual software to assist immigrants in attaining citizenship, is attempting to do good, while still making a profit. “[Clearpath is] similar to Turbo Tax, but for immigration. Our mission is to empower immigrants and democratize the immigration system by adding transparency,” Gorordo said.

“We’ve heard stories of people paying upwards of $7,000 [in legal fees] just for filling out a form.

That’s not right and our technology can help.”

Given Obama’s recent executive order, Clearpath could be a valuable resource for more than five million individuals seeking citizenship. But Gorordo knows there’s a long road ahead when it comes to reform.

“We feel [the executive order] is a huge opportunity to help people … but what is unfortunate is that it’s just a reminder that it is temporary,” Gorordo said. “We need a permanent solution, and we need to push forward and demand one. … This is not a political issue or a partisan issue; it’s a human issue.” latinoleaders.com

events

May 15, 2014 La Valencia Hotel

Story by Carlos Anchondo Photos by Ejen Chuang

On May 15, 2014, five distinct Latinas gathered at the SLS Hotel in Beverly Hills to share their personal narratives, to expand on life lessons and to discuss the notion of leadership. Over a long lunch, the women talked about the impact of their childhoods, challenging traditional gender roles and what it means to work hard for success.

Presented with the support from:

Publisher Jorge Ferraez opened the luncheon by asking the women to tell their own stories first, before drawing on their unique experiences to theorize about leadership. “I want you to talk about your own vivid moments, experiences that have put you where you are, and then we can see what can be drawn from those stories to build and create more leaders,” said Ferraez.

16 • December 2014 / January 2015

Jackeline Cacho “I believe that things always happen for a reason. In my career and in my life, my success has a lot to do with my spirituality. I have always believed that one day I could make a difference.”

Maria del Pilar Avila

CEO of the New America Alliance Today, Maria del Pilar Avila guides the New America Alliance, an organization committed to providing access to investment capital for Latinos and giving back to the community. Before she ever heard of the NAA, Avila grew up in Puerto Rico in a family with humble origins but also a history of civic engagement and law. Avila recalls her mother telling her and her three sisters and one brother that she was raising “all boys” because she wanted her children to be free to make their own decisions, regardless of gender. Avila said that she encourages others not to neglect themselves and to “find what makes us happy, what drives us, and what will make us stronger.”

Maria del Pilar Avila

Jackeline Cacho

Founder of Finding Productions Jackeline “Jackie” Cacho is a native of Peru, where she lived a charmed childhood until her father suffered a stroke when she was 7 years old. Over time, the family lost the majority of their material possessions, and Cacho quickly learned the power of prayer and the importance of education. Cacho moved to the U.S. after earning a modeling contract through the Miss Peru pageant and vowed to one day bring her family. After a few years, Cacho made the change from modeling to broadcast journalism, working at Univision and Azteca before launching her own company, Finding Productions. “I truly believe that I am living my dream, and I am inspired with every story I cover,” said Cacho.

“It is my belief that in life, to find peace, contentment, joy, happiness or anything positive that you dream about, we should first look at taking care of ourselves. Otherwise, you aren’t worth as much to the people around you.”

Latina

vanguard 2014

Maribel Benitez-Zisch Martha Montoya

President and owner of Los Kitos When Martha Montoya left her homeland of Colombia, she was not sure she would survive the journey. Montoya and her family spent three days in an overturned raft at sea. “Literally, I am a survivor,” said Montoya. “Now, I face business and life that way as a result. You never know when life can be taken from you.” Before Los Kitos, the lead diversity produce supplier for U.S. retail chains and food service, Montoya began life in the U.S. cleaning buildings and working as a receptionist.

She would, however, develop into a successful businesswoman while nurturing a love for cartoons, working with mentor Charles Schultz for seven years while he taught her the licensing business.

Martha Montoya and Jorge Ferraez Dr. Juan Alzate

“I would not be who I am without my husband supporting me.

At an early age, I said that no man is going to tell me what I can and cannot do. It has been a blessing to be married to someone who is gravitated to a strong woman like me.”

Maribel Benitez-Zisch:

Financial advisor at Northwestern Mutual At heart, Maribel Benitez-Zisch says that she has always been a teacher. After a career in corporate pharmaceutical sales, BenitezZisch did not like where the industry was heading and started her own business, joining with Northwestern Mutual to provide financial security for clients. “I saw that I could teach people and that dream of educating came alive again.” Benitez-Zisch, whose father is Cuban, said that although the transition was not without sacrifice, the risk paid off, as Northwestern Mutual is a company that prioritizes potential, not just funds. “Every person has value. Treating everyone with that kind of respect keeps you humble but does not degrade you,” explains Benitez-Zisch.

18 • June 2013 18 • December 2014 / January 2015

“I understand what it is to educate a kid who has to take a bus with no food in their stomach or people with no money. And so my approach to life and business are a consequence of the history of Colombia.”

From left to right, Montoya, Carmelo, Avila, Cacho and Benitez-Zisch exemplify Latinas of leadership in Los Angeles.

Marisol Camelo

Owner of Camelo Jello Marisol Camelo admits that it is difficult to talk about herself because every day since her birth, she says, has been filled with stories. Camelo described a difficult childhood, filled with family sickness, divorce and feeling like a “black sheep.”

Despite this, Camelo has established herself as a thriving entrepreneur, starting her jello business out of a small kitchen, selling to friends and neighbors before expanding to markets, restaurants and eventually vendors. Camelo said she takes great pride in being a mother to three children, ages 24, 20 and 9. She also said how grateful she is for her husband, with whom she has been married to for almost 25 years.

Marisol Camelo

“We have been able to give a very nice life to our kids, and I have always, always been aware of taking care of my children.”

Jackeline Cacho leads the discussion at La Valencia Hotel.

RECRUITING the

BEST

OF EL PASO TALENT Story by Amanda

Cassanova Jackson

Photos by: Ray

A

few years ago, Humberto Rios was a business owner in El Paso, Texas, working with twin plants in Mexico. It was a perfect job for the self-made entrepreneur, but his financial knowledge and workplace experience caught the eye of a Northwestern Mutual recruiter— that is, his wife, Natalie Rios.

Humberto took a position with Northwestern Mutual, and today, he is a field director/ financial representative now working on the recruitment side to bring others into the company with his wife, Natalie, and Recruiting Field Director Jaime Acosta, who were also brought into the company by others.

“You learn through experiences, and I’ve been through it,” Humberto said. “I was recruited, too – that’s the knowledge I bring when I help mentor new people. Once they come in, one of my goals is to help those financial representatives have a good start by helping them do the things you need to do to have success,” he added. “I love the company that I represent, and as I was getting started, I saw how others were helping me get to the point I wanted to get.”

Looking for key elements in recruits, the El Paso team focuses on reaching out to the community in search of talent and equipping the perfect candidates for success.

“I’m looking for people who are self-motivated, who are not afraid of working hard,” Natalie said.

20 • December 2014 / January 2015

Natalie Rios, Humberto Rios and Jaime Acosta highlight how opportunities at Northwestern Mutual bring change to both employees and the individuals the company serves.

“We need people with entrepreneurial spirit but who are teachable and coachable.

“We want people that genuinely like people and want to help people.”

It is part of a company-wide campaign to recruit more than 6,400 financial representatives for 2014. In 2013, the company brought in more than 5,500 financial representatives with hopes of narrowing the gap of Americans who do not have a financial plan in place.

Rios said when he comes across people with the potential to “dream big,” he passes their names onto Natalie, who is the director of recruitment and the operations manager for the El Paso office.

Natalie says the company not only employs recent college graduates, starting the next stage of their lives, but it also welcomes people who are looking for a career change or, as in Natalie’s case, didn’t realize they could make a career change.

Natalie was working as a certified personal trainer in El Paso, manning her own clients and hours when her brother, who worked for Northwestern Mutual in New Mexico, told her about a job with the financial planning company.

She said she wasn’t sure about making the move to another industry, so she started part-time work for the El Paso Northwestern Mutual office.

“I started seeing what Northwestern Mutual was about, and I fell in love with it,” Natalie said, who has now been with the company for five years. “I saw the development and

the opportunity. I was impressed every step of the way.”

Now, Natalie meets with potential candidates during the interview process. If hired, new representatives first take part in what’s been ranked as one of the best training and development programs in the country by Training Magazine.

Part of the recruitment process includes learning from a mentor, such as Acosta, who also made the transition to Northwestern Mutual from another career. He was working at a booth in a mall selling cellphones when a friend, who worked for Northwestern Mutual, told him about the potential of working for the company.

He was hired and has been with the company for six years, where he now oversees El Paso office field force and also mentors new representatives.

“Helping others is probably the most important part of why I decided to get into leadership,” Acosta said.

“I am grateful that our company looks at how we can be the best, and puts so much time and effort, blood and sweat and tears to make sure those representatives represent the company in a professional way and takes care of our clients.

Northwestern Mutual is the marketing name for The Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance Company, Milwaukee, WI and its subsidiaries.

“It makes me feel good to impact people’s lives.” - Natalie

“The company makes sure you know how to do that, and that is something I haven’t seen at a lot of other companies.”

According to Northwestern Mutual, the company expected more than half of new financial representatives hired in 2014 to be career changers, like Rios, Natalie and Acosta.

“The alignment between Natalie and Humberto and me has been very important to the success of this office,” Acosta said. “It’s amazing how it changed the office and how it started growing.”

In addition to recruiting efforts, each year, the El Paso team takes on about two to four interns to get a hands-on look at the financial planning industry. Sometimes, interns are hired on for full-time positions.

“It’s about being able to connect at personal level with potential candidates,” Natalie said. “I love to hear their stories and hear where they’re at. It makes me feel good to impact people’s lives.”

Story by Carlos Anchondo Illustration by Andrei Dobrescu

Leticia Van de Putte Just two weeks after losing the race for lieutenant governor of Texas, Leticia Van de Putte began yet another campaign, tossing her hat into the ring for mayor of San Antonio. Van de Putte, resigning her seat in the Texas Senate after 24 years, could be the city’s first Latina mayor. The sixth-generation Texan talks about working through the holidays, life on the campaign trail and the city that she loves.

What is your favorite part of San Antonio during the holidays? The River Walk and Alamo Plaza. Every part of San Antonio has beautiful lights, but for me, I love the River Walk and the way it meanders. What is a Van de Putte holiday tradition? The holidays are a time of joy, with lots of family get-togethers, but actually for the San Miguel and Van de Putte families, the holidays are one of the heaviest work times. I have my own pharmacy, as my grandfather had his own, and as a health care professional, the holidays are one of my busiest times. Still, my family treasures the time we spend together, especially going to church together on Christmas Eve. What drove you to run for mayor of San Antonio? I am a sixthgeneration Texan, with three generations in San Antonio. My husband Pete and I have built our lives here, and San Antonio is a very special place for me, a unique city with all the makings of a great American city. If elected, what are some of your greatest priorities? We have a young, diverse and plentiful population. The quality of our education and our workforce is going to be critical to attract new jobs to our current businesses.

It is working to provide that format, that infrastructure, so that business, political and community leaders can improve the lives of San Antonians. It is about creating better transportation, working with educational partners to increase graduation rates

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and completion of college, securing our future water supply. As mayor, I will absolutely do the sort of things that will attract that type of investment in our community. If elected, you would be the third female mayor of San Antonio and the first Latina mayor. What would that mean to you? It would be historic to be the first Latina mayor

of San Antonio but really of any large U.S. city, not just San Antonio. Look around the nation. We have not had a female mayor of a large city who is Latina. What lessons did you learn in your campaign for lieutenant governor that apply to the race for mayor? Stamina.

Absolutely. After seeing the goodness of this big, beautiful state and the commonalities that we have — people are so proud of their cities and their towns — it was apparent to me that I had an intense respect for those Texans who really do love this state. It also gave me an even greater appreciation of my own hometown. And that is something that is very very precious to me. What is the greatest challenge facing San Antonio today? We really need to make sure that all sectors of the community have opportunities for higher education, opportunities to have a thriving business. San Antonio is still a growing city, but is one that is celebrating it’s 300th anniversary in two short years. What would you say to someone in Bexar County who did not vote for you in the race for lieutenant governor but who you are hoping to gain their vote for mayor?

I have been so proud to serve for over 24 years as their voice in Austin, and I will dedicate each and every day to making San Antonio the next great American city.

The Man Behind the Transactions Edgar Aguilar, CTO of Operations at MasterCard, leads the payment company amidst an ever-changing technology landscape Story by

Carlos Anchondo

Photos

Contributed

Family photos: Edgar (left) with his grandfather Nestor.

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ach day, MasterCard processes transactions in more than 150 currencies, reaches 36 million merchants in 210 countries and operates with more than 2 billion cardholders, all while maintaining one of the most prominent payment networks.

Edgar Aguilar, Chief Technology Officer of Operations at MasterCard, makes sure all this happens without a hitch.

Aguilar’s team guarantees that the infrastructure and operational support exists and is in place to hold up MasterCard’s daily processing. In November 2014, Aguilar was recognized on Computerworld’s list of the 2015 Premier 100 information technology leaders.

“I’m really just the face of the operation,” Aguilar says, humbly. “It’s a team award that I accept on behalf of the many, many people who keep MasterCard running and the wonderful things they accomplish day in, day out.”

Since 1998, Aguilar has served MasterCard, bringing with him experience from his days at Bell Laboratories, AT&T and Alestra. Aguilar describes being recruited to MasterCard in the age of the dot-com bubble and the different economic climate that existed in the late 1990s. At that time, only 15 percent of MasterCard’s revenue came from outside of the U.S, compared with the 55 percent of today.

From the start, Aguilar has focused on developing MasterCard on a global level and balancing the need to grow without losing sight of the quality service that keeps the company at the top of the industry.

“For me, the idea of being a part of something that could be that global and a part of the discussion of how we shape the future of the company was an

24 • December 2014 / January 2015

opportunity that was hard to pass on,” said Aguilar, describing his move to MasterCard in 1998.

Aguilar, a Puerto Rican native now based out of St. Louis, Missouri, says that his passion for technology and engineering was fostered at an early age, particularly through the example and guidance of his grandfather, Nestor Guido.

Although his grandfather did not have any formal education as an engineer, Aguilar describes a naturally inquisitive man with a “strong intuition.”

“He was a brilliant man,” says Aguilar. “I could see how he was able to transform different items and turn them into something else, whether it was building his own power generators or creating his own telescope. He had the genes, the DNA.” A love of engineering has become a family tradition, passed down to Aguilar’s son Pablo, now a freshman at the Missouri University of Science and Technology in Rolla. While Aguilar let his children choose their own paths, he says he is proud to have this commonality with his son and to serve as a Latino in an executive level position at MasterCard.

“Honestly, I believe we, as Latinos, have an obligation to lift up other Latinos in every corner of the world, and that’s just one reason I’m so proud of MasterCard because we have such a deep history in terms of diversity and inclusion.”

Alluding to “exciting new projects” coming down the pipeline, Aguilar says “to be on the lookout,” as MasterCard is at a great crossroads of digital convergence. Wherever the company takes him, Aguilar says that his mission will stay the same, to provide safe and secure transactions to all cardholders and to make sure that customers understand they are in “good hands” with MasterCard.

Eager to continue the MasterCard legacy of dependability and success, Aguilar encourages others, particularly young people, to follow their passions, no matter how unpopular or unconventional the choice may be.

“Do what you like, not what makes you popular or seems correct,” says Aguilar. “But don’t try.

Be excellent. It goes back to Aristotle’s famous quote that excellence is a habit. I truly believe that. You are what you consistently do.”

Celebrating a quinceanera Story by Carlos

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Anchondo

Photos contributed

xactly 15 years after its foundational meeting in Mexico, the New America Alliance (NAA) hosted its 14th Wall Street Summit and 15th anniversary gala at the WaldorfAstoria in New York City. The conference held from November 18-20, gathered NAA members from across the country to discuss the contributions made by American Latino businesses and new opportunities to build upon past success and to move Latinos forward.

Two new features of the summit were the initiatives #NewGenR3, which discussed the next generation of American Latino business leaders, and the American Latina Leadership Caucus (ALLC), an organization that will focus on the promotion of American Latinas across various sectors and the aggregation of these women into an empowerment group.

Maria del Pilar Avilar, NAA CEO, has been with the organization since its inception and called the two new initiatives an essential part of the NAA’s future.

“It was not a coincidence that we opened the summit with the next generation’s panel,” said Avila. “At this 15th anniversary juncture, the organization has been going through a generational transition and now is a time where we are rapidly engaging a younger generation of leaders.”

Frank Herrera Jr., NAA Inc chairman of the Board, said that the NAA is actively preparing the next generation of leaders so that those individuals are well acclimated and ready to assume future leadership roles. Herrera discussed the changing face of the NAA’s board of directors and how more of its members are in their 20s and 30s.

“They are the future of this country,” said Herrera. “Exposing them to leadership in a high-level arena is a positive. It informs them, and it’s good to diversify the board with these young Latinos and Latinas.”

Both Avila and Herrera emphasized development of the NAA’s next generation of leaders and introducing new blood into the organization’s upper echelons.

“We wanted to be very clear that this organization, built over the last 15 years, really belongs to a new generation of American Latino leaders,” said Avila. “Beyond the session itself, the NAA also wanted to introduce our newly appointed board members, who have all already served the organization in a number of ways.”

Calling the contributions of Latinas “unmistakable” and a critical component of the NAA’s past and future success, Herrera and Avila said that it was time for the organization to build a group solely focused on the promotion of Latinas across all sectors.

Thus, the American Latina Leadership Caucus (ALLC) was born.

NAA Board members celebrate the NAA 15th anniversary with a brindis, or toast.

26 • December 2014 / January 2015

“We rather aim too high and have to settle for less, than aim too low and then try to reach for the stars.”

- Raul Yzaguirre, NAA Co-Founder Frank Herrera Jr., Raul Yzaguirre and Maria del Pilar Avila stand with musicians at the NAA 15th Anniversary Gala

Avila said that the caucus will bring together Latinas of all careers, from those elected and appointed to political office, entrepreneurs, corporate leaders, to those working with nonprofits, academia and more. The ALLC will identify vacancies in these various sectors and select qualified Latinas to fill those positions.

“The NAA has been very blessed to have about 20 percent of our members be Latina,” said Avila. “And, in average, Latinas have been on our board and have led our committees at about a 30 percent rate. There has been a very strong voice of Latinas.”

Other sessions, including the U.S. Mayors Forum and Pension Fund Diversity Day, called to mind the NAA’s key mission of providing access to investment capital, exposing members to the workings of Wall Street and developing a strategy to return that wealth to the Latino community.

Herrera called the U.S. Mayors Forum one of the summit’s highlights.

He said he enjoyed seeing Latino mayors from cities that do not have a predominantly Latino populous, calling it an encouraging trend.

“Look at Angel Taveras from Providence,” said Herrera. “The fact that some of these mayors represented what I would call nontraditional Latino cities just shows the growth of Latinos, and hopefully, in the coming years, you’ll see a substantial number of mayors and perhaps even governors in states that are not traditionally Latino.”

For this to happen, Herrera said, Latinos need to focus on keeping young Latinos in school and encouraging them to graduate not only from high school but also from four-year collegiate institutions.

“There are really two prongs to the NAA,” said Herrera. “One is securing

Left to right: Ana-Maria Fernandez Haar, Lorraine CortezVasquez, Jackeline Cacho, Carmen Ortiz-McGhee, Alice Rodriguez and Alejandra Y. Castillo

access to investment capital, and the other is giving back to the community because accumulating wealth does us no good unless we give back to others, to ensure that our community is educationally and economically empowered.”

Anchoring the summit was the 15th anniversary gala, which brought together many leaders instrumental in the NAA’s success, including one of its founders, Raul Yzaguirre, former U.S. ambassador to the Dominican Republic.

“What a blessing, to be in a room with our founders and members who have served so diligently along the way,” said Avila. “It was just a great moment for the NAA to have an opportunity to celebrate the 15th anniversary, not only reflecting on where we have been over the last 15 years but also looking forward to the next 50. The NAA is not about the amount of members that we have but who they are and the network created around our members.

The gala was such a special moment for the NAA.” Latino Leaders Magazine is a proud media partner of the NAA and a member of the NAA Business Roundtable.

Left to right: Pedro Segarra, Mickey Ibarra, Angel Taverras and Jorge Elorza

latinoleaders.com

Paying it forward Story by

Julie Garcia

Photo contributed

Growing up with a surgeon for a father in Mexico was motivation for young Jesus Esquivel.

In a small town with limited medical resources, Esquivel watched his father do everything from minor incisions to major surgeries.

“A

t that time, general surgeons did everything,” he said.

“We do have general hospitals in which anybody can show up regardless of insurance, even for non-acute emergencies. But once a disease process requires a more sophisticated therapy, it wasn’t available in great part due to the lack of economic resources and lack of professional resources. Doctors didn’t have appropriate training to take care of more complex diseases.”

Esquivel knew he wanted to follow in his father’s medical and professional footsteps, but he also knew he wanted to be able to provide specialization and knowledge to his craft.

The only place to go was America.

“My father said, ‘If you want to be a surgeon, go to the United States, and don’t marry an American,” Esquivel remembers. “I finished medical school obligations on a Friday, and that same day, one of my cardiology professors called his friend at a hospital in Washington. One of the interns got sick and wasn’t coming back. His friend said, ‘Why don’t I just see you on Monday?’”

Two days after that conversation, Esquivel made the move from his native Mexico to Washington D.C. for an internship and never went back. That was 25 years ago.

After the internship, a general residency in New York City, a fellowship in D.C., Esquivel is now the Medical Director of International Oncology Initiatives and National Director for Hyperthermic Intraperitoneal Chemotherapy Research at the Eastern Regional Medical Center in Philadelphia.

HIPEC is a heated chemotherapy treatment delivered by a surgeon directly to the abdomen, according to CancerCenters.com, which allows for higher doses of chemo treatment to be received by the patient. By heating the solution, doctors believe it may improve the absorption of the chemo drugs by malignant or benign tumors and destroy microscopic cancer cells that remain in the abdomen after most of the cancer has been removed.

“I evaluate patients that have advanced abdominal cancers to see if they’re surgical candidates. My career is focused on a particular group of patients who are usually told that nothing can be done,” Esquivel said.

“We remove all the tumors in the abdomen, and then it’s warmed up to 107 degrees inside the abdomen. It’s concentrated chemotherapy.”

In a regular week, Esquivel evaluates patients, treats others and then does research to advance this particular field of abdominal cancer treat-

28 • December 2014 / January 2015

ment. He is also a leader in treating advanced colon cancers, which is one that presents itself with tumors around the abdomen.

Appendix cancer is the most common treated successfully by HIPEC, Esquivel said, and has about 1,500 patients diagnosed each year.

With the combination of extensive surgery and HIPEC, there are 120 out of more than 10,000 hospitals capable of doing these types of procedures, Esquivel said.

“It’s less than 1 percent, and in terms of surgeons, there’s probably about 100,” he said. “Some of the surgeons go to several hospitals all over the country with no hope but giving someone another chance.”

While Esquivel has fulfilled his dream of helping others through surgery, he wanted to bring back his knowledge of cancer treatment to the small towns in his native country.

“Part of my mission in life is to pay it forward, so I go back to Mexico every year and perform the types of surgeries I do here in the U.S. and train the surgeons there,” he said. “We usually go to underserved areas, like Mareda, Oaxaca, Taluca, Mexico City and Guadalajara.”

Esquivel teams up with his longtime mentor Dr. Paul Sugarbaker to make the annual trek to perform surgeries and host daylong lectures for area doctors over the course of a few days.

When he’s not trying to educate the world, Esquivel can be found running long distance races with his children.

“I ran a half marathon in Philadelphia with my 13-year-old daughter – it was her first. It’s a way to keep the family involved,” he said.

Esquivel is married (to an American) and has three children. They live in Philadelphia.

Americanized

Latino Story by

Julie Garcia

Photos contributed

Following in the steps of Andy Warhol and Truman Capote, award-winning photographer Antonio Pulgarin talks about the perception of himself and his culture through his camera lens.

30 • December 2014 / January 2015

D

uring a tumultuous childhood and adolescence in New York, Antonio Pulgarin had his native Colombian “beat out of him.”

Immigrating to the states at the age of three, Pulgarin is left with jagged memories of his birth country through old songs and smells from his mother’s kitchen.

Being in Brooklyn’s melting pot, Pulgarin never felt like he was enough.

“I had the very Colombian accent, which New York kind of beat it out of me,” the 25-year-old said. “’An Americanized Latino.’ Growing up in the neighborhood, growing up Latino in America - you weren’t American enough or Latino enough. In my neighborhood, the originals that came over would say ‘Not Latino enough, you’re American,’ and America made us feel like we weren’t Americans. It was a weird disconnect that just stuck with me. I’m getting there; I’m still working on my way through it all.”

Pulgarin has attempted to find his true self from behind the lens of a camera.

“It can’t be seen as this one thing; there are very different factors that make Colombia. I remember people’s ignorant views of who Colombianos are, and I wanted to challenge that with my work. Show them faces in Colombia people should be aware of.”

Photo from Calle 4 Sur

While in high school, he bought a small 35-millimeter camera by selling some possessions and saving money. Like many before him, he started out by photographing his surroundings.

“I jokingly say ‘hood famous.’ To the neighborhood, you’re famous - characters of an everyday narrative,” Pulgarin said. “I thought, ‘You’re famous to me, I want the rest of the world to know who you are.”

Pulgarin’s stepfather, a native of the Dominican Republic, and his brothers worked in neighborhood bodegas, or grocery stores, which is where Pulgarin spent many of his young days.

“My parents taught me to work for mine, and they had me work in the stores and markets, doing it the old-fashioned way,” he said. “We were the one store in the neighborhood, and every day these characters came in. As a photographer, I pay attention to details and look at someone and analyze what they do. I see (them) every day; (they) drink coffee the same way with the same movements. There are certain iconic figures, even outside the store, like an episode of ‘Cheers,’ - everybody knows your name.”

One portrait Pulgarin remembers is of a local police officer who patrolled the crossroads. “(She was) so revered in the neighborhood,” he said. “Everyone knew her and had this respect for her. She didn’t need the uniform to get that level of respect. She was on a pedestal in our neighborhood.”

Though young, Pulgarin knew his small section of Brookyn was beautiful, and he wanted to share it with the world.

“For the people that were iconic and instrumental in my narrative, there was something that intrigued me about them,” he said. “There’s more to them than what everyone else saw.”

In 2007, the then-high school senior submitted his portrait work to the NYC Regional Scholastic Awards for Writing and Art. He never imagined what would come from next.

“While photographing my friend one evening, I hear my other friend on the staircase yelling at me about $10,000 and mimicking my mom’s accent,” Pulgarin

Pulgarin’s native Colombia

remembered. “I thought, ‘What is going on?’ Then she mentioned Scholastic, and it all kind of clicked.”

Pulgarin was named the 2007 Scholastic Art and Writing Awards National Gold Medal Portfolio Winner, winning a $10,000 college scholarship, an award at Carnegie Hall and an art show at Brooklyn Museum. Andy Warhol, Truman Capote and John Baldessari are just a few of Pulgarin’s predecessors.

“At the time, it was overwhelming in the best possible way. All over, you don’t want it to go away. I thought ‘How do I make sure this is my life for the rest of my life,’” he said.

Following a short break after high school, Pulgarin applied to the Foundation for Contemporary Arts in New York and was accepted to study art and photography.

Naturally timid, Pulgarin has been transformed by his craft. With a camera in hand, he’s able to approach strangers when he needs to fully realize his vision.

But on a recent trip to Colombia where he gathered work for Calle 4 Sur: The Faces of Colombia, he transgressed back to old insecurities.

“I was that little boy again when I tried to approach people,” Pulgarin said. “I had my cousins come with me (to translate) because my Spanish sounded horrible, all nervous and jittery. If I’m not comfortable, it’s hard for me to approach.”

The first two weeks he was in Colombia, Pulgarin didn’t pick up his camera. He took that time to reconnect with his family, the people and the land. latinoleaders.com

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can’t be seen as this one thing; there are very different factors that make Colombia. I remember people’s ignorant views of who Colombianos are, and I wanted to challenge that with my work. Show them faces in Colombia people should be aware of.”

One of those was a skateboarder in a tie-dyed T-shirt who is a biology major at a local university. Pulgarin met him before a protest as the young man handed out flyers.

“I asked him, ‘Can I photograph you?,’ and he said, ‘Are you a cop?,’” Pulgarin said. “We made it work.”

Though an inherent observer, Pulgarin didn’t want to be perceived as an outsider on his trip.

“I didn’t want to be that guy that goes to the zoo and gawks at them,” he said. “Putting the camera down and getting to know them helped me better understand why they were going through what they were going through.”

Since the 1960s, Colombia has been through varying degrees of war, protests and heartbreak.

Photo from Welcome to Wyckoff Gardens Currently, Generation Y and Millenials have taken up the fight their grandparents started and “Something I learned from my professors and are viewed as terrorists by many of their countrymen. mentor is that sometimes, you have to live in the “Student protesters have their faces covered and organize mass protests moment. Photographers constantly look through in Colombia on college campuses,” Pulgarin said. “It’s a very radical end and a view finder and never stop and experience demonized in Colombia, and that’s what’s wrong. I didn’t see it that way.” the moment and then shoot the photograph.

Pulgarin was careful in photographing them and told them he “I wanted to just kind of talk to citizens from would never share their name. He got to know them as more than the neighborhood. I didn’t know what work I was covered protesters. They are daughters, sons and students. going to make, and I went in with an open mind,” “These kids are law majors, biology majors, studying medicine and literahe said. “It was a family ordeal for me at first, and ture,” he said. “They’re not dumb and being radical for the sake of being I wanted to figure out if I’m going to make work. radical. Sometimes, you need to go above and beyond to provoke change.”

It really hit me when I started talking to people While in the middle of a long protest, Pulgarin asked those and walking around and looking at graffiti art.” around him if they ever imagined leaving Colombia.

Pulgarin said the graffiti in Colombia is “very “They had no interest in that,” he said. “They are really invested in making New York,” and filled with political statement. a better Colombia for themselves and their families. Rough it out and see this “They gave me hints, each one was to the end and see hopefully at the end, a better, more peaceful Colombia.” a hint to a revolution that was brewing What’s next and stirring in the wind,” he said.

With renewed vigor from the completion of Calle, Returning to Colombia was not only a caPulgarin is delving into new ventures. thartic and healing process for Pulgarin; it “When I graduated (from college), I picked up curating and cueventually became a way for him to express rating a lot of exhibitions and didn’t pick up the camera for a the frustrations of the country’s strife and little bit,” he said. “Curating was a different medium.” break some of his own preconceptions.

It’s important for him, he said, to be seen as more than just one thing.

“Colombia is preconceived as the land of “It’s using other artists’ work and making a final product and how everything cocaine and coffee,” he said. “It was pretty rad gets laid out,” he said. “It’s my vision and what I wanted to say at the time.” going over there and realizing that Colombian Now that he’s part of an art house with a community of kids are listening to rock and roll and Ameridifferent artists, Pulgarin has planned his next venture to can bands. Kids wearing Zeppelin and Guns Colombia and looks forward to “making work.”

‘N’ Roses shirts. ‘Americanized Latino.’”

“I’m really proud to be Latino and be a part of this contemporary That’s when he started taking pictures. movement,” he said. “You don’t see that ‘Latino’ in contemporary art “Photographing these different faces, indicaor artists of color. I want to represent the Latino movement and our tive and representative of this idea that Colombia work. We can be authors of our own narrative, and that’s OK.” can’t be boxed into one niche,” Pulgarin said. “It 32 • December 2014 / January 2015

Buen Provecho Natalie Holtz Photos by Kevin Greenlees Story by

Celebrity chef Marcela Valladolid infuses her love of cooking and culture to bring new taste to Mexican classics.

W

hen chef and TV personality, Marcela Valladolid, visited the White House for the first time, the First Lady told her that Mexican food was her favorite kind of food.

“I’ve been to the White House twice,” Valladolid explained. “And the first time, I cried when I walked in.

It has nothing to do with politics; I just have a huge respect for the man [President Obama].

“It was the Easter Egg Roll, and I did a cooking demo. My family and I, the president, the First Lady, Sasha, Malia and Bo, the dog – we all got a picture, and in that moment, I remember thinking, ‘Cooking got me here.’ My son shook the president’s hand. He is going to remember that moment for the rest of his life.

It was just one of those moments that made all of the sacrifice worth it.” Long before she was preparing cooking demos for President Obama, adding peanut butter to food processors as she assembled on-camera recipes as a co-host on Food Network’s “The Kitchen,” and partnering with Safeway to put out a line of easy-to-prepare traditional Mexican foods with her name stamped across the labels, Valladolid was a little girl growing up in Tijuana. Her father, a lawyer by trade, ran the family business: a very large farm in San Quintín, which exported produce to the U.S. and Canada. Meanwhile, her mother stayed home with Marcela and her two siblings and was “like the Mexican Martha Stewart.”

“My mom would do some of her shopping in the mercados - these awesome, awesome open-air markets in Tijuana,” Valladolid says. “Then, she would cross the 34 • December 2014 / January 2015

border, and she would do some shopping in San Diego. She would get pasta from San Diego. She would get milk from San Diego because it was a different flavor, and we liked the milk from San Diego better.

“In my upbringing, it was literally half and half in terms of the food, the culture, the language, the whole thing. I fully understand and live and breathe both countries and both cultures and both cuisines. And I’ve been using both along the way to get me to where I am.”

Adding to the mix, Valladolid’s foodie grandfather, an honorary consul of Belgium, cooked a lot of French recipes during her childhood. ”From my parents, I got a lot of the traditional cuisine, like the moles – all that stuff made from scratch. But then, we would visit my grandfather, who also lived in Tijuana, and it was all about traditional French technique, the difficult stuff – pâtés, foie gras. … He was just an amazing, amazing chef. He had collected every single issue of Bon Appétit Magazine starting from the sixties, back when it was just a booklet. He cooked every single recipe in there.”

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“…in that moment, I remember thinking, ‘Cooking got me here.’ My son shook the president’s hand.

He is going to remember that moment for the rest of his life. It was just one of those moments that made all of the sacrifice worth it.”

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Valladolid in her home garden.

Despite her grandfather’s love for food, Marcela’s culinary career really began in her late teens when she started working at her aunt’s cooking school in Tijuana.

“I was studying architecture at the time, and I just sort of fell in love with the career. So I dropped out of architecture, and I went to L.A. to study cooking.”

After she graduated from the Los Angeles Culinary Institute, Valladolid moved to Paris, where she graduated as a classically trained pastry chef from the Ritz Escoffier Cooking School. Shortly after, Valladolid got her first big break and one her grandfather would certainly appreciate: She landed a job as a food editor at Bon Appétit Magazine.

“I was this 19-year-old girl who couldn’t even go to the grocery store to buy the wine for the sauces. … There were only five ladies in the food department, women who had been with Bon Appétit for like twenty-plus years, and they’d say, ‘Oh, we need wine, but Marcela can’t go get it.’ It was like these walking, talking food-lover encyclopedias, and me.”

In her four years at Bon Appétit, Marcela’s job was to test cook recipes sent in, by everyone from at-home readers to professional chefs, at all different levels of cooking, and to write the recipes in such a way that made them accessible.

“The way you name the ingredient, how you break down the procedure, what steps to leave in, what steps to leave out. … There’s a very specific language for Bon Appétit. That’s pretty much what I did.”

From her dream job at Bon Appétit, Valladolid was able to transition into television.

“The TV shows would contribute to the magazine, and I would talk to them. I jumped into the classical French stuff, and we would have to ask them questions.”

Valladolid’s first cooking show was “Relatos Con Sabor,” which aired on Discovery en Español in the U.S. and Latin America. Her second cooking show, “Mexican Made Easy” debuted on the Food Network in 2010, and now, she cohosts “The Kitchen,” which also airs on the Food Network. She has also published several cookbooks including “Fresh Mexico: 100 Simple Recipes for True Mexican Flavor” and “Mexican Made Easy: Everyday Ingredients, Extraordinary Flavor.”

Valladolid says tortillas are an absolute must in her kitchen and yoga 36 • December 2014 / January 2015

“In my upbringing, it was literally half and half in terms of the food, the culture, the language, the whole thing. I fully understand and live and breathe both countries and both cultures and both cuisines.” keeps her sane, and she believes each of us are born with potential, and this is what has driven her to accomplish everything she has in her life.

“I’m a person of faith. I believe in God, and I believe that we’re all given potential, potential as a human beings,” Valladolid said.

“Every morning, I think, ‘How am I going to do this the best way that Marcela can do it?’ Because there are people that are way better chefs than I am, that are way better TV hosts than I am. There are people in every single category that are way better than I am, but my goal is: ‘What is the best version of me that I can be?’ I think that’s what’s driven me.”

By Marcela Valladolid*

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Guajillo Cheese Enchiladas

“There are people in every single category that are way better than I am, but my goal is: ‘What is the best version of me that I can be?’ I think that’s what’s driven me.”

Makes 12 12 corn tortillas

For the sauce:

4 large garlic cloves, unpeeled 4 medium dried chiles guajillos, stemmed, seeded, and deveined 1 roma tomato, cored 1/4 teaspoon black peppercorns 2 cups chicken broth, plus a little more if needed Salt to taste

For the filling:

6 cups shredded Oaxaca cheese 3 cups shredded Monterey Jack cheese 1 cup cooked baby Yukon gold potatoes cut into 1/2 -inch cubes (optional) 1 tablespoon oregano

For the garnishes:

1/2 small head of cabbage, shredded 3 tablespoon red wine vinegar 2 tablespoons olive oil 1/2 cup crumbles queso fresco Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

For the sauce:

Heat a heavy skillet over medium heat then lay garlic on one side to roast.

Tear the chile into flat pieces, a few at a time, and press them against the hot surface with a metal spatula, flip them over, press again. Remove to a bowl and cover with boiling water, add roma tomato and soak with chiles for about 1 hour or until chiles are soft.

Turn the garlic frequently, until blackened a little, for about 15 minutes.

Remove from heat, cool, peel and place in a blender.

Drain the chiles and add to blender with garlic. Seed and peel the tomato and add to blender. Add peppercorns to blender. Add about 1 1/2 cups of chicken broth to blender. Process until smooth, about 3 minutes. Strain into a large bowl through a medium mesh sieve. Season to taste with salt. Add more chicken broth if needed to thin to a consistency of a light tomato sauce.

For the filling:

In a small bowl, mix together Oaxaca and Monterey Jack cheese. Add potatoes oregano and mix until all ingredients are incorporated. Reserve.

Heat 3 tablespoons of vegetable oil in a large skillet over medium heat.

When hot, dip both sides of the tortilla into the oil; do the same with as many tortillas that fit in the pan. After about 20 seconds, flip the tortillas to fry on the other side. Remove from oil and submerge completely in the tomato sauce. Reserve on a baking sheet. Fry the remaining tortillas, adding more oil if necessary.

Divide cheese mixture evenly amongst 12 fried tortillas. Roll like a taco and place on baking sheet. Cover with remainder of tomato sauce. Bake for about 8 minutes or until cheese is melted. Top with cabbage and drizzle vinegar and oil. Crumble queso fresco and serve immediately. *Valladolid shared this never-before printed recipe as part of her exclusive interview with Latino Leaders Magazine.

latinoleaders.com

The man behind the strategy If he had not grown up on the northern border of Mexico, between Tijuana and San Diego, Hector Vilchis most likely would have chosen a different career path. Witnessing the cultural exchange between the neighboring countries sparked his interest of working with Latino communities in the U.S., and now Vilchis is the vice president for New York Life Story by

Guadalupe Flores

V

Photos by

ilchis studied international trade with a concentration in Latin America at San Diego State University, and after college, he began searching employment opportunities in related projects, which is how he found himself in New York City.

“I started researching and found that New York Life was launching a expansion program for the Latino market. Then, I stayed with them, I talked with managers about the initiative, and they hired me to help with the launch of the program,” he says.

This expansion project started by recruiting and training bilingual consultants from diverse Latin American backgrounds to serve Latinos who were either unaware of the products, held a cultural mistrust because of communication barriers or were uninterested in New York Life services.

During the early years of the program, between 2000-06, Hector and his team had to work their way up from the bottom.

38 • December 2014 / January 2015

Gret Velasco

“At that time, we were just developing materials and brochures in Spanish for advertisers, campaigns in Spanish and holding small conferences. We were a small group, and my job was to organize all that. Back in 2006, the president of the company asked us to dominate the Latin market in the United States. That began working with people in strategy, with people in analysis to see what the long-term potential was,” he explains.

Currently, leading the Latin American market is one of four initiatives key to the future growth of New York Life. A year ago, Vilchis was responsible for leading the strategy throughout the United States.

“When I started, I had 400 bilingual counselors, and now we have 500 thousand.

We ended the year with over $73 million spent in premiums generated by these Latino advisers, and that number is more than twice than what we had when we started the program. We’ve had significant growth during this time, but we see it as first steps.

Just the beginning,” Vilchis concludes.

Shattering expectations Esther Perez with additional reporting by Carlos Anchondo Photos by Spencer Selvidge

Story by

Two-time Olympian and dark horse Leonel Manzano aims for Rio.

40 • December 2014 / January 2015

A

s Christmas approached in 2012, Leonel Manzano was faced with a difficult decision. After earning a silver medal in the London Olympics, his sponsor, Nike, decided that it would not renegotiate his contract, and the middle-distance runner was faced with one of the hardest points in his life.

“It was one of the toughest experiences I’ve ever been through, but it was also one of the best learning experiences I could have possibly had.”

Without a contract, a coach or an agent, Manzano was faced with a decision that would define who he was as a businessman, as a competitor and as an individual.

He knew that no matter what came next, he had to keep running.

Leonel Manzano was born to run.

Raised in an agricultural family who tended sheep in Mojoneras, a small village outside Dolores Hidalgo, Guanajuato, Mexico, Manzano has been running for as long as he can remember.

“My first running memory was running against my grandfather – well, first running with him and then later running against him. But between the ages of 2 and 4, we used to herd sheep…I would race against my grandfather, and I beat him once but only because he because he broke his leg.”

In 1987, his father filed for residency and applied to come to the U.S. legally under President Reagan’s administration. Once accepted, Manzano’s family immigrated to the U.S. when he was 4 years old and settled in Marble Falls, Texas, where his uncle was living. It was in that small town, deep in the heart of Texas, he grew up, but it was not until after he started seventh grade that Manzano’s interest in running developed even further.

In middle school, he decided that he was going to try out for the cross-country team despite being underprepared.

“At my first practice, I showed up wearing hiking boots, jeans and a t-shirt,” Manzano said. “My parents didn’t really understand what running was, and we couldn’t afford to buy apparel. When I first started running, I had to convince my father to let me run cross-country.”

Despite a lack of understanding, Manzano’s father saw the passion his son had and agreed to a deal that if he allowed Manzano to continue running on the cross-country team throughout the school year, his son would have to work during the summer.

But his dedication paid off. As he continued to run, Manzano’s success was realized as he won nine Texas 4A state championships, which lead him to opportunities of an education at the University of Texas at Austin.

42 • December 2014 / January 2015

“It was one of the toughest experiences I’ve ever been through, but it was also one of the best learning experiences I could have possibly had.”

As the first person in his family to graduate high school and college, Manzano also made the choice to become a U.S. citizen, upon turning 18. With his father’s help in paying the expense for citizenship, Manzano started a new chapter in his life and began adapting to the culture of Austin, the independence of leaving home and the lifestyle of a college student.

Still, one of the biggest challenges was the transition from high school to becoming a collegiate athlete.

During those first few months, the high volume of training, along with the grueling intensity of the pace, left Manzano at the end of the pack. Several times, he was so worn that he was not even able to finish the workouts prepared for the team. But that’s when he knew he had to make changes.

During the winter break, instead of leaving Austin to join his family in Mexico for Christmas, Manzano stayed on campus and trained for the upcoming season.

It was that dedication of mind and body that led to results, and in 2005, Manzano broke the four-minute barrier for the mile, winning the first of his two NCAA indoor mile championships.

“The point was that he never viewed quitting. He obviously evolved past that really quick. And that’s one of my stories to kids. … You’ve got to realize that where you are today doesn’t determine where you will be tomorrow,” says Trey Zepeda, University of Texas strength and conditioning coach. latinoleaders.com

“When Leo looks at something and he knows he can do it, whatever work has to be done in between him not being able to do it at that point to becoming capable of doing something – it’s just part of the process. He doesn’t balk at the process and whatever it may take to achieve – whatever it is he feels he should be doing.”

With his collegiate success, becoming two-time outdoor 1,500 meter champion and the first longhorn to make the U.S. Olympic squad in the 1,500 meter distance, Manzano looked to a future and becoming a post-collegiate athlete.

“Each step of the way comes with it’s own challenges,” Manzano said, acknowledging the hard work and business sense that goes into his sport, which does not have the support system or market in place for the professional athlete that other sports, such as baseball or football, would. Not only has his business savvy been challenged, but his body as well, undergoing practices that span from 3 to 5 hours, at times climbing to 6.

No matter the challenge, Manzano fights through it. Despite sustaining an injury in 2011, Manzano was able to qualify for the London Olympics, where he made his mark on an international level.

“In 2012, I was going into that Olympics with more of a goal to medal. With my stature or my appearance, I’m usually not favored to do a lot, which has kind of been the case my entire life, but I did not let that deter me. I just gave it my best.”

“With 400 meters left in that race, I was in last place.

And each step of the way, it was like I wanted to give up.

44 • December 2014 / January 2015

But it went back to my family and friends and all the support.

You think about that each second, and it motivates you to start pushing. So I started to pass athletes with 300 meters to go.

As I passed athletes, I would gain momentum and pass more athletes. With 100 meters to go, I was in about fifth or sixth place, and that’s when I knew that if I pushed it, there was a chance that I could medal.

I gave it one last push, passed a few [more], and I crossed the finish line. I knew I had medaled. I threw myself on the ground. I started crying. It was pretty emotional.”

With his brother and cousin in the stands and the entire world looking on, Manzano accomplished what had been impossible for any other U.S. athlete since the Mexico City Olympics in 1968, when Jim Ryun brought home silver in the 1,500 meters.

The time, effort and training turned a dream into reality, but as rewarding as that achievement was, Manzano was not allowed to rest on his laurels for long.

“One of the specific challenges was after [London] I couldn’t renegotiate my contract with Nike after 2012. That was really, really difficult because when I was running previously, that was all I knew,” Manzano said.

From December 2012, Manzano spent all of 2013 without a sponsor, which lead to an inability to continue working with a coach and, for a time, learning how to sustain himself without support.

“It felt like a lot of doors were closing… That really taught me that even though it was good, some things are not forever. You can’t really take things for granted.

“You’re trying to compete to be one of the best in the world, and unfortunately, when you don’t have that support, it’s very, very difficult.”

Against those odds, Manzano kept running, and in July 2013, he set another personal record, running the 1500 meter in 3 minutes, 30.9 seconds, shaving more than a second off his previous time and placing him as fifth all-time male in the U.S. “People wrote him off again, even after he was a silver medalist, as a guy who doesn’t even have a main sponsor. Yet his drive was probably more clear and more defined that it ever had been,” Zepeda said.

“One of my goals is to break 3:30 in the 1500 and 3:50 in the MILE. I’m happy, but I’m never satisfied.”

It wasn’t until April 2014, that Hoka One One, a company that specializes in well-cushioned, stable shoes, “rescued” Manzano, sponsoring him and his dream of another Olympics in 2016.

With Rio in his sights, Manzano has developed new goals with Coach John Hayes; Merhawi Keflezighi, his agent; and Timex as his newest sponsor.

“One of my goals is to break 3:30 in the 1500 and 3:50 in the mile,” Manzano says. “I’m happy, but I’m never satisfied.”

“He’s a fighter. When his head is totally in the games he is never out of a race.

His kick has been tremendous and is something that has won him many races over the years. You know, who in the United States has been on top of the 1,500 game for as long as Leo has? He’s an absolute competitor,” says Hayes, former University of Texas distance coach.

“Running for me is my everything. It’s allowed me to do so many things. It’s given me the opportunity to see the world, get a good education, go to the Olympics, but it’s also given me the opportunity to motivate people, especially kids,” Manzano says. “For me, it’s been a blessing to be able to do that through my running.”

As an ambassador for Marathon Kids, Mazano has teamed up with the organization to motivate, educate and provide children with tools to lead a healthy, active lifestyle. With programs that are provided directly through schools, a new generation is able to be active regularly, with each child working to run a total of 26.2 miles over the course of 6 months.

That desire to motivate others, specifically Spanish speakers, is also evident in Manzano’s collaboration with the New Mexico Department of Health. Finding that key elements get lost in translation, their goal is to use a campaign that was scripted and executed in Spanish, focusing on smoke cessation within the Latino community. Taking Manzano’s story of perseverance, in which there have been many races that he either has not finished or has not won, there is encouragement to say that one failure does not have to define a person.

“Running – I always feel – is a lot like life.

Sometimes, we’ll hit a hill or a mountain, and you have to traverse to get through. You have to have faith and believe that you’re going to get through.

“One thing that running’s taught me is that pain is not forever. Eventually, you’re going to get to the victory line.” latinoleaders.com

Story by Johnathan

Silver Contributed photos

Front lines of reform

Illinois Representative Luis Gutiérrez fights for change in immigration policies

O

ne mother in the United States does three things every day.

She wakes up. She goes to work. She goes to church.

“Apart from that, she doesn’t dare leave the house,” said Rep. Luis Gutierrez, D-Illinois.

“That’s a sad existence.”

This mother, this woman is undocumented.

Such a state of living plagues millions of people in America who live in the shadows and fear that at any moment they can be uprooted from their lives, detained and expelled from the country they call home.

46 • December 2014 / January 2015

Gutiérrez wants you to know her story. He doesn’t want you to judge her, and he doesn’t want you to write her off. He wants her story and millions of others like it to illustrate that immigration reform isn’t just about policy and politics. It’s about people.

Gutiérrez’s parents moved to the continental United States from Puerto Rico in 1952.

They weren’t newcomers to the country, but that didn’t stop the prejudice and bigotry they endured.

“It wasn’t like there were welcome signs,” the congressman from Illinois said. “That’s not how they were received.”

Instead, they, like many Latinos and others, who are immigrants, became part of a group of people treated differently because of their origins.

Gutiérrez (second from left) with colleagues outside of the Capitol.

Whether it was to take jobs, engage in criminal activity or create a raucous in the country, all descriptions were used to characterize newcomers to the community, Gutiérrez, 61, said he remembered seeing on a normal basis as he grew up. It made for newspaper fodder as well, he added.

He’s seen that the animosity toward the immigrant population hasn’t changed much.

“I look at the experience of immigrants today,” Gutiérrez said. “They’re treated with the same suspicion and are criminalized in the eyes of the American people.”

Such experiences play a direct role in shaping what Gutiérrez is all about.

“I said to myself, ‘someone should stand up for people like my mom and dad.’”

Gutiérrez worked as a cab driver, teacher, social worker, community activist and member of Chicago’s city council before being elected in 1992 to his first term as the representative of Illinois’ fourth congressional district. In his 20-plus years on Capitol Hill, the congressman has transformed into the nation’s leading lawmaker on Latino and immigration issues.

Priority No. 1 for him: comprehensive immigration reform. And he and his colleagues are getting close.

In November, President Barack Obama used executive authority to shield millions of undocumented people living in the U.S. from deportation. His executive action protects a fraction of undocumented people in the country by providing deportation relief and work authorization.

Under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, undocumented individuals born before June 5, 1981, who’ve lived in the U.S. continuously since Jan. 1, 2010 may be eligible to avoid deportation and work authorization. The program is an update to the 2012 executive action of the same name that Obama introduced. Before, undocumented individuals under the program had to prove continuous residence in the country since June 15, 2007. U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, an agency within the Department of Homeland Security, will begin accepting applications for the program 90 days after the president’s Nov. 20 announcement.

Under the Deferred Action for Parents of Americans and Lawful Permanent Residents program, undocumented individuals who’ve lived in the country since Jan. 1, 2010, and have children who are American citizens or legal permanent residents born before Nov. 20, 2014, may be eligible for deportation relief and work authorization. U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services will begin accepting applications for the program 180 after the president’s announcement.

Gutiérrez is working with other immigration advocates, encouraging undocumented people to gather the paperwork and information they need to be considered for approval for the programs.

“Let’s get ready during the next 6 months. South Carolina, Georgia, Mississippi,” he began listing.

“I said to myself, ‘someone should stand up for people like my mom and dad.’”

Gutiérrez applied pressure to the president in the media before the grand move, saying Obama needed to act and quickly on this issue, which affects at least 11 million people in the country. He stood with Obama in Nevada, when the president signed the most recent immigration action in November. The executive action, if it withstands lawsuits, is only policy as long as Obama is president. A successor, if a law is not passed or signed into law, could end the policy.

Congress must act to make such changes permanent, Gutiérrez said.

“All the president did was give 5 million people the opportunity,” the congressman said.

The ball now is in Congress’ court, specifically the House of Representatives’, Gutiérrez said, referencing an immigration reform bill already passed by the Senate.

“It’s a direct challenge to the Congress of the United States to do its job. It challenges Republicans.”

Republicans in the House, he added, must not submit to the Far Right lawmakers and anti-immigration individuals who support deportation.

“That’s 55,000 airplanes,” Gutiérrez described the logistics. “Poland. England. Ireland. Africa. You’ve got to send them to every part of the world.

“That’s insanity.”

The problem with Congressional action: Anti-Obama sentiment among Republicans, Gutiérrez said.

“That’s what unites them,” Gutiérrez said. “Being against Barack Obama and being against immigration.”

Republicans should stand for something, he added.

“Why don’t they offer an alternative?”

The Far Right, Gutiérrez said, is standing on the wrong side of history and against what most Americans want to see, comprehensive immigration reform.

“All agree. All men and women of faith have come to the same conclusion,” he added.

The Republican Party’s future hinges on immigration reform, Gutiérrez said.

“If they want to continue as a national party,” he said, “it is good for them to deal with the issue.”

Immigration reform only can be done by Republicans and Democrats working together, Gutierrez said, adding that the parties agree on most of the terms of the legislation.

“The problem: They keep being controlled by a small minority,” he described Republicans.

Regardless of what happens, that woman, who only does three things every day – her entire life is affected by what happens next. “’I’m one broken tail light away,’” Gutiérrez relayed her deepest fear, “’one wrong turn.’”

Children need their parents to have “the fullest, most meaningful” presence they can in their community, he said.

“They need their moms and dads to take them to soccer.

They need their moms and dads to pick up their report cards.”

Everyone has a responsibility in the fight, the congressman said.

“We should train tens of thousands of defenders,” he said.

48 • December 2014 / January 2015

events Tulsa, Oklahoma

Latino Thought Panels

CTCA SOUTHWESTERN Regional Medical Center

Lung Cancer and Hispanics: Risk and survival

Patients who walk into the Cancer Treatment Center of America in Tulsa, Oklahoma, not only find a plan of action when facing the threat of cancer, but they also find hope within the walls of the facility. That hope is materialized in the form of hundreds of golden, green and rose-colored metallic leaves that shimmer in the lobby entrance. Each leaf is a representation of the many cancer survivors and their stories of endurance and strength after receiving treatment at the CTCA Southwest Regional Medical Center.

50 • December 2014 / January 2015

Latino Leaders Staff Report

A

s the panelists gathered to discuss diagnosis, treatment and prevention of lung cancer, they express the standard of holistic treatment of individuals -- nutrition, mind and body therapy, medical procedures and social environments that promote healthy lifestyles and an outlook of hope despite cancer diagnosis.

The team at CTCA says the first battlefield of lung cancer is the dedication to smoke cessation. Only 20 percent of all patients diagnosed with lung cancer are non-smokers, which is why the program focuses so much on fighting the desire to smoke. “It is our one targeted enemy,” says Daniel Nader, DO, FCCP, the national clinical director, pulmonary/critical care chief of staff.

Once individuals quit smoking, they not only become less at-risk for cancer, but they also receive the health benefits of a lowered heart rate and blood pressure, reduced level of carbon monoxide in the blood and improvement of circulation and lung functions.

CTCA works to combat those urges with its mind/ body medicine program to fight not only through nicotine replacement therapy but also through social support and acupuncture to help patients become more successful.

But even tackling the face of the ever-present enemy of tobacco, many others are diagnosed yearly with the silent disease.

“Every year, 24,000 Americans die of lung cancer even though they’ve never smoked. … If lung cancer for non-smokers were separate from lung cancer of smokers, it would rate in the top 10 fatal cancers in the United States,” Nader says.

The largest contributing factors for those who have

| Photos by: Ace Cuervo

never smoked to receive lung cancer are view airways through a scope rather than genetics, environment and hormones, placing a needle through the chest cavity, and those can become which gives physicians a evident with several better view of the mass different symptoms that with a minimally invasive, individuals may experisafe method.

“The interesting ence such as a shortness “We develop a virtual thing about this is of breath, back or shoulimage of those airways der pain, chest pain that and using that virtual imthat is associated with deep there’s not one size age we plan how to drive breathing, coughing up to that target,” Nader says. that fits all.” blood or wheezing and After diagnosis, teams infections that do not of staff at CTCA gather heal with appropriate with each patient to determedication. mine the best steps of diUpon receiving patients with concerns agnosis, whether that be chemotherapy, about their symptoms, doctors at CTCA radiation therapy, surgery. first set up a CT scan and PET scan, which “The interesting thing about this is that allow physicians to see the extent of there’s not one size that fits all. We can the mass in the lungs, while they follow say that your cancer needs this type of up with the patient, uncovering other radiation therapy that we have, and that’s indications or habits to help the doctors what you’re going to get because it’s the diagnose the individual correctly. best for you.”

But as understanding of lung cancer As diagnosis evolves, treatment has develops, procedures such as navigation equally made strides, specifically as Nader bronchoscopy, which allows doctors to pointed out, the progress of surgery.

xxxxxxx

Latino Thought Panels

CTCA SOUTHWESTERN Regional Medical Center

Rather than making large incisions in the chest cavity, surgeons at CTCA are now able to use a robot, which only makes three holes -- one for a camera and the other two for instruments needed to extract the tumor.

“What does that mean for the patient?

If you have that big surgery, you’re going to be in the hospital for a week, and you won’t be back at work for 3 months, but if you have robotic surgery, you’ll leave the hospital the next day and go back to working in three weeks,” Nader says.

Another aspect of care that CTCA addresses is the recovery process once in remission.

“One of the resources we use here is the pulmonary rehab program to help people build up their stamina and gain some of that independence to regain ability to perform activities they would like to do throughout the day. Shortness of breath can be very limiting for people.

We try to help them through that and help them use new muscles in their body to help with side effects of treatment.

Ideally, we would like to get someone as close to their baseline as we possibly can,” says Kendal Hervert, DO, pulmonologist at CTCA. Aiding in the transition to wellness, respiratory therapists help the patients with different techniques to minimize physical

distress such as difficulty breathing in exercise and mobility.

Additionally, the team at CTCA not only addresses the physical needs but also the social needs of an individual at facility, talking to patients and their families in their native language and working to make them comfortable, even going to such lengths as finding recipes that are a healthy take on a traditional meal.

“We had an experience very recently with one patient who was doing a procedure. We were in the room with the family, and her daughter said, ‘I never thought I was going to feel like this. I feel like I’m at home as I’m understanding everything you are saying,’” says Patient Care Technician Themla Carpio who has translated more than 25,000 documents into Spanish during her time at CTCA. As CTCA aims to shorten the gap between a disconnect between doctor and patient, its standard of care continues to address social, cultural and physical needs of those who walk through their doors from diagnosis to treatment to survivorship, and each success helps sparks new hope.

“The psychosocial support aspects really important in survivorship. Our program for that here is Cancer Fighters. It’s designed for the patients by the patients,” says Jessica Weeks, community relations coordinator. “For a lot of our patients, that can be so healing for them, and it’s a huge part of getting back to that quality of life and sometimes even a better quality of life with a feeling of purpose because now they feel like they have something to contribute to.

They are changing lives.”

For more of the discussion, visit: 52 • December 2014 / January 2015

www.latinoleaders.com

Hardwired

for greatness

Story by

Judi Jordan

Photos contributed

Luz Rivas speaks at a recent fundraiser.

How Engineer Luz Rivas designed a nonprofit to help young Latinas discover their ‘tech’ genius.

54 • December 2014 / January 2015

W

hen Luz Rivas told her mother she wanted to be an electrical engineer, it didn’t go over well.

“She thought it was dangerous – that I’d be climbing poles in a hardhat,” recalls Rivas with a chuckle.

Even after that notion was dispelled, there was still some disappointment that Rivas was going to attend school on the east coast, rather than staying in Los Angeles. But what engineering hopeful can say no to an MIT scholarship?

A first-generation American and first to attend college from a workingclass, all-female household, Rivas had more explaining to do when she decided to continue school, directly pursuing her post-grad work.

“My family thought, ‘Do you just not want to work?’” Rivas pauses, remembering the gulf between her dreams and her family’s expectations that she contribute. “They didn’t understand.”

Rivas didn’t hesitate to chase her dream all the way to Harvard where she earned a master’s in Technology in Education. She balanced scholarships, financial aid loans and work-study programs.

Out of Harvard, Rivas quickly found her passion in designing hardware and worked at Motorola years before moving into education of science, technology, engineering and mathematics, or STEM, and teaching at Caltech, Center for Children and Technology and Iridescent, designing programs to attract more diversity candidates and women to the field.

In 2011, she became inspired to give back and begin grooming the next generation of girls for careers in tech and engineering, which is how her nonprofit, DIY, was born. It began with fifth-grade girls because Rivas recalled her first inkling of interest began at that age. They reached out to girls in the community to attend seminars, and workshops after school, and as young girls clamored for the knowledge of fixing, welding, building and making, great things emerged.

Bonding with dads, for example, was an unanticipated plus.

“When dads would come to pick up their daughters after school and they’d see them soldering something, they were so surprised,” Rivas laughs in delight. “This led to fathers and daughters sharing at-home projects and repairs, something most had only done with their boys.”

Clearly, the interest was there. Young girls wanted to build and make and design. Rivas’ idea was working. DIY needed to expand, and Rivas had to go on “the stump” for money, traveling to different locations to spread awareness of the nonprofit.

This, of course, was not easy. It required a shift in thinking and a reassessment of her own leadership tool kit. Innately logical, Rivas dispassionately checked in with herself and noticed a missing element: stage presence.

“As an engineer, I wasn’t used to speaking to large groups. I realized that I needed to improve my public speaking skills. I wasn’t entirely comfortable on stage – making presentations – or asking for money, and as the CEO that’s kind of a big part of what I do,” Rivas said.

Again, with the logic that is her trademark, Rivas conquered that obstacle and began to think strategically about her network of colleagues and contacts. One thing led to another, and as she gave and received help, word got out to potential sponsors who recognized the synergy of DIY with their own objectives.

Today, for example, Rivas had a stroke of funding luck. DIY just landed

a $25,000 donation from General Motors. It takes time to attract partners, and the nonprofit must be fiscally solid, asserts Rivas.

“The business side has to be in place, too.

People want to know where their money is going, if it’s ten dollars or ten thousand dollars.”

Among their other investors, DIY counts Cognizant, RGK Foundation, the United Latino Fund, the L.A. Lakers Youth Foundation, Raytheon and in-kind from Microsoft, 3D Systems, Verizon, CAA, Latham Watkins, Kid Wind Project, Acrobotic Industries, and Groovy Lab in a Box. Conspicuously missing are Apple and Google.

Rivas acknowledged this. “I’ve been rejected by Google. Sometimes, it’s about how big your organization is. It’s a business, and that’s how they look at it. You learn to take ‘no’ for an answer and not hold a grudge. Next year could be different. It’s not just how many kids you serve; it’s about who else is on board. Who else is investing? They examine every request for what they have to gain as well.”

Hopefully, it may happen down the road. At a time when Silicon Valley and the tech world in general is being revealed as misogynistic, this would have been a good time for those giants to show the love and cut little DIY a check, but Rivas is ever calm and realistic about donors.

“You have to know it’s often about timing. Sometimes, they come back when you’re not expecting it!”

To stay inspired, the organization and the girls take field trips to tech companies.

“Our goal is to continue to service girls from fifth grade until they graduate from high school. … Girls make coding and many want to develop their own apps. We also have a 3-D printer that was donated by 3-D systems.”

To see who is really interested, DIY has outreach in schools.

“We offer a 1 hour workshop so girls can see if they like DIY. … We don’t select them. It’s first come, first served. DIY is currently working with 4 schools, serving 320 girls every week. … if it’s right after school, it’s easy for them to attend, and we are adding more schools in January.”

When the organization opened up new spots for registration, they were quickly filled. Beyond that, Rivas has it all figured out. It just comes down to funding.

“I’m meeting with people all the time; and it’s not just about what they can give us, but how we can serve their needs as well.”

Luz Rivas has it covered, and she did it herself.

latinoleaders.com

Business is about the people Enid Marin Cangialosi Jesus Lopez-Gomez Photos Contributed

Story by

Ask Enid Marin Cangialosi to describe herself, and “self-motivated,” “gogetter” and “grandmother” are sure to come to the forefront. The newly named Pacific Desert Zone Leader for 7-Eleven stores, overseeing operations in San Diego, Las Vegas and Arizona, is a wonderful example, not only because she has in the ranks of 7-Eleven but also because she values those she works with and loves. She hopes to continue her success at 7-Eleven while arranging play dates with her four grandkids in her spare time.

O

ne of Cangialosi’s first actions as the new leader of more than 500 7-Eleven stores in the southwestern U.S. was calling a meeting to break the ice with her market managers.

That gathering was not only for Cangialosi to get to know her 76-member team better but also to confer with each of her new colleagues in what she called a, “meet-the-boss meeting, where they get to ask about me and my experiences. I get to talk about my years with the company, my pet peeves, so on.”

Cangialosi will soon celebrate her 28th anniversary of an extensive career in which she has spent time at each level of leadership she’ll oversee as newly named 7-Eleven Zone Leader.

But, beyond her first-hand knowledge of the responsibilities of her team, one of Cangialosi’s best assets is her pronounced interest in knowing her people. Her relationships with her staff are as important as the company operations themselves, which is why she makes sure to take time for them, despite a heavy schedule.

“For example, we have a meeting every Monday, and sometimes, we’re so rushed in materials. I ask everybody to pause and share how their weekend was how their weekend was,” she said. “Take a few minutes to do that. That’s what makes the connection.”

56 • December 2014 / January 2015

“I’ve always been fascinated with people , how people think, how people react to things” After meeting with her market managers, Cangialosi found herself sharing a flight with one of the team members and took the opportunity to get better acquainted.

She said the conversation covered not only the colleague’s goals at 7-Eleven but also touched on personal dimension, as the manager opened up about his wife and grandmother. At one point, they found themselves talking about the manager’s childhood.

“After all that, he said, ‘You know, Enid, it’s been a long time since I’ve had this conversation with anyone,’” she said. “It gave me that opportunity to be just with him and learn more about his life.”

“We have terrific leaders in this company that understand how to make this company healthy and how to partner with our franchises” “Our culture encourages us to work as a team, do our best and be accountable to each other,” she said. “We call it servant leadership. It’s leading by example with an emphasis on being that example.”

A native of Puerto Rico, Cangialosi came to the U.S. with business training, but she but decided to take her education in another direction when she arrived here. She went into the humanities, studying psychology at Harper College in Chicago, which fostered a lasting interest in her social surroundings.

“I’ve always been fascinated with people, how people think, how people react to things,” she said.

As that interest developed into understanding, Cangialosi was able to utilize her knowledge of human nature and the Hispanic culture to recruit 7-Eleven’s franchisees and connect them with others.

Hispanic leadership has been a priority at 7-Eleven since the start of the ’90s, Cangialosi said, and she has been key to that goal since the start of her involvement with the company. As a Latina, Cangialosi sees the growing need for Hispanics have a larger and leading role in the brand and to answer the company’s internal calls for Latino franchisees to serve the country’s ever-growing Hispanic communities.

Currently, 7-Eleven is running a contest to waive franchise fees for one aspiring veteran franchisee to win up to a $190,000.

“We need to give back to the people who fight for us,” Cangialosi said.

Cangialosi said 7-Eleven’s talented executive teams are responsible for the company’s ascent to world’s largest owner, operator and franchiser of convenience stores – with more than 50,000 globally.

“We have terrific leaders in this company that understand how to make this company healthy and how to partner with our franchises,” she said. “I don’t want to take any credit for that. I do my part passionately when franchising our stores, and that’s what servant leadership at 7-Eleven is all about.”

Teaching a generation Story by

Laura Reagan-Porras Photos contributed

Lily Eskelsen Garcia is the first Latina

president of the National Education Association, the largest labor union in the nation. As one of the country’s most influential Hispanic educators, her story aligns with the issues of her organization. She speaks with a strong, passionate, practical voice that developed from living the reality of marginalized, minority families. Her road to leadership is an unlikely one. She rose to head the nation’s largest educational advocacy organization in part because her personal narrative has been shaped by many of the issues for which she now advocates. Her effective and compassionate leadership culminates in a call to action which is contagious to others.

58 • December 2014 / January 2015

latinoleaders.com

L

ily was born to a Panamanian mother and an American military father from Mississippi. Her father did not attend high school before going into the military. When Lily graduated high school it was considered a major step. No one in her family had graduated successfully from high school and no one even spoke of college. But, Lily knew she wanted to work with children. She applied to several daycares in the area. With only a high school diploma she landed her first job in the Head Start Cafeteria. Speaking of those days, she proudly calls herself the “Lunch Lady.” Her rapport with children was quickly seen and she was promoted to the position of teacher’s assistant. She loved working directly with children, and it showed.

The teacher she was working under told her that she should consider being a teacher which meant she should go to college. It was the first time anyone in her life had mentioned college, much less encouraged her to attend.

On College Preparedness I was 20 years old before someone spoke to me about college. We cannot assume that someone else is talking with our children about college. We cannot assume that families are speaking to kids about their futures or that underfunded, overworked school counselors can sufficiently prepare students to navigate the road to college with advanced classes. Someone in a student’s life must tell them about the importance of taking Algebra II. All adult mentors must discuss college and future plans with children.

On College Cost When I was a young college student, I took out a Direct Student Loan with 3 percent interest to finance my college education. Even on a beginning teacher’s salary, I was able to pay off my student loan over 10 years. Today, not even middle class families are equipped to pay off student loans which can total $40,000 or more. The National Education Agency supports Senator Warren’s bill which will allow students to refinance their student loans as they would refinance a mortgage or vehicle. If we want a collegeeducated workforce, we simply have to create ways for students and families to address the cost of education and the price of student loan debt.

60 • December 2014 / January 2015

On Mental Health Needs in Schools After 35 years of marriage, my husband with mental illness, committed suicide.

I know first-hand the devastating effect mental illness can have on families. Across the nation, school psychologists and social workers have been cut from school budgets.

Students face depression, severe stressors, bullying and sometimes violence. Often schools are not equipped to provide the assistance needed. Proper assistance or the lack of it affects educational outcomes. The National Education Agency supports a full array of mental health services in schools.

On Immigration I recently re-married. My husband lives in Juárez, Mexico. We are in the process of working our way through the legal immigration process. If I did not have the means to pay for assistance with the paperwork, I cannot imagine navigating the bureaucracy for legal immigration. Therefore, I have a lot of compassion for the “Dreamers” who must navigate the weighty bureaucracy of immigration. Some of our students, even American students, live in fear that a family member will be deported.

This fear interferes with their educational performance. The National Education Association is involved with immigration in order to advocate for the unification of families because it affects educational performance and therefore the development of our nation.

“Parents are a child’s first teachers. Our o parents, Latin a parents have deep cultural respect for teachers and the education system.”

On Parents as Education Advocates Parents are a child’s first teachers. Our parents, Latino parents, have a deep cultural respect for teachers and the education system. Most recently, we have been speaking with Latino parents about the idea that respect for teachers and schools also means asking questions. Questions like, “is my child taking the right courses for college” and “why is my child in a class of 42 students?” Stating that you, as a parent want your child to have one on one time with their teacher (personalized education) is a very powerful statement that can lead to change. Sometimes, asking questions is the most important thing parents can do. A parent partnered with educators stating that they want success for their child is one of the most powerful duos. Education needs vocal, involved and engaged parents.

On the Role of Business in Education Education is the economic development program. Business leaders know it.

Latino business leaders live it. Many who speak about business and education partnerships tout the need for students to be competitive in the global economy. Business owners know that students must be given the opportunities necessary to excel in the ways that suit individual students. Business owners know that diverse countries like Finland, Singapore and Canada are achieving great things because they are addressing equity issues whether it be full-time staff, counselors, medical personnel in schools or technology.

Business can also help build bridges or sponsor the building of bridges between the community and education. By so doing, business is beginning to help address the equity issues in our public schools.

On Leadership At every transition of my career, I have been asked if I was afraid of the steps I was taking. I must have been born without the fear gene. When I was Teacher of the Year in Utah, I was asked to speak on the steps of the statehouse and speak against the lack of funding for public education. I called the Utah Congress and Governor shortsighted in their lack of public education funding. I boldly shared how their actions would affect the generations to come. After my speech I was asked if I was afraid for my job. I didn’t under-

stand the question. Shouldn’t the Teacher of the Year talk about school funding? Shouldn’t the Teacher of the Year stand for something?

Today, Lily is a sought-after speaker and has keynoted hundreds of education events across the country, earning her recognition by Education World in their “Best Conference Speakers” edition. She also blogs at “Lily’s Blackboard” bringing a teacher’s voice to topical education issues. Her advice has been published in Parenting magazine and she has been featured on MSNBC, CNN en Español and as the noble opposition on Fox & Friends.

A fearless, practical idealism has colored Lily Eskelsen Garcia’s life. Bold, principle-driven, pragmatic leadership describes Lily Eskelsen Garcia’s guidance of the National Education Association. latinoleaders.com

events

THE 1O1

most influential latino leaders

1O1

October 29, 2014 The Willard InterContinental - Washington, D.C.

2014 LATINO LEADERS

MOST INFLUENTIAL LATINOS

lUNCHEON AND DISCUSSION

Javier Palomarez, Nina Vaca and DeVere Kutscher of the United States Hispanic Chamber of Commerce.

64 • December 2014 / January 2015

Story by: Eric

Christensen | Photos by: Kris Connor

lthough 2014 was the seventh Latino Leaders Magazine’s edition to publish a list of the 101 Most Influential Latinos, it was the first time the magazine hosted members of “The 101” and other impressive guests for a luncheon and discussion. Publisher Jorge Ferraez began the event by saying that he hoped it would be an opportunity to honor The 101 and to provoke and stimulate ideas that would advance the Latino community.

Richard Blanco is the author of the Prince of Los Cucuyos

Ferraez introduced Richard Blanco, who is the first of the five poets to present their work at a presidential inauguration to be an immigrant and to be Latino. Blanco delivered a reading of his inaugural poem, “One Day,” before speaking briefly about the meaning of leadership, which, as Blanco describes, requires exploration, the development of ideas and the drive to write a story that will inspire future generations.

Sol Trujillo, Chairman of Trujillo Group Investments, spoke next about leadership positioning. Trujillo said that successful business leaders focus on their brand. If Latinos are going to improve their brand image, they must speak positively and demonstrate how they can help others. For example, Trujillo noted that the U.S. Latino community’s buying power is now approximately the size of Brazil’s, and the American Hispanic community’s economic growth rate exceeds that of the Brazil, Russia, India and China.

Trujillo describes Latinos as the “new rich” and the “future workforce.” Trujillo concluded by saying that reframing and repositioning the Latino brand will prime Latinos for leadership positions in business and beyond.

latinoleaders.com

Maestro

Los Angeles

Richard Blancho (left) shakes hands with Sol Trujillo.

Richard Blancho gestures during an interview with LL Publisher Jorge Ferraez.

Javier Palomarez, president and CEO of the U.S. Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, next commanded the attention of the room as he spoke on creating leaders. From humble beginnings, Palomarez now runs the largest Hispanic business association in the country. He attributed the success he has maintained at his position to another 101 honoree, Nina Vaca, who is the chairwoman and CEO of Pinnacle Technical Resources. When Palomarez took over, it was Vaca who motivated him to be better.

Palomarez concluded by saying mentors create leaders by encouraging, cajoling, threatening and pushing others to excellence, just as Vaca did with him.

Katherine Archuleta, the tenth director of the U.S. Office of Personnel Management, approached the subject of image perception to overcome obstacles and stereotypes placed on Latinos. Archuleta noted that although there are few notable Latino leaders in business, that is not the case in the government, where Latinos have more influence. Latinos lead the Department of Labor, Department of Housing and Urban Development, the Small Business Administration, and the Office of Personnel Management.

Therefore, image perception of Latinos can be changed, Archuleta argued, by examples that defy stereotypes. And to continue this effort, she stressed mentorship. “If you’re

66 • December 2014 / January 2015

Phil Burgess, Nina Vaca, and Sol Trujillo

101 attendees mingle and network.

Nina Vaca, Javier Palomarez, and guest not holding onto someone and taking them with us, we are missing out on an opportunity and a responsibility to break down barriers,� Archuleta said.

Finally, Luis Maizel, co-founder and senior managing director of the LM Capital Group, closed the discussion with a focus on wealth creation in the Latino community.

Maizel began by noting that only 40 percent of Latinos are homeowners and that the value of the average 401(k) Javier Palomarez and Linda Alvarado held by Hispanics is less than half of the American avershare a laugh before the luncheon. age, yet there is wealth within the Latino community: U.S. Hispanics have more buying power than all of Mexico, for example. Because of the many who have entered the country illegally and a reliance on moneychangers, that wealth is not used to its best advantage. However, by providing basic financial education and generating awareness that saving and home buying are positive actions, Maizel says he believes that the lives of Latinos, their families, and that of future generations can be changed dramatically.

Jorge Ferraez concluded the luncheon by saying that he hoped each of the guests could take something they had heard and continue it beyond the day and embody the magazine’s motto of connecting leaders and inspiring the future.

Sol Trujillo speaks to the room.

latinoleaders.com

events

Waldorf Astoria

New York, NY

Met Life Wealth Creation Presented by:

with the support from:

On November 19, 2014, a group of New York’s most esteemed and successful business leaders convened to lunch at the Waldorf Astoria to network and continue the conversation on Wealth Creation. Hosted by Latino Leaders and Met Life, and supported

by Interjet airlines, the dialogue centered on education, and the need for more leaders to become involved through mentorship programs. Leaders from counties as varied as the Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Mexico, Puerto Rico, Haiti, Argentina and Venezuela all agreed: we must work together to affect change.

S

andra Fuentes-Berain, Consul of Mexico in New

York, who participated in the dialogue pointed out the need of programs like Consulate on Wheels witch brings services previously only available in Manhattan to Mexicans all over the state, and educates on issues ranging from finances to health. “Our consulate’s partnership with institutions like Citibank to offer advice to the most vulnerable is extremely important” she commented, as she called for Latinos become involved in their communities. Sharing the story of business leader Jaime Lucero, owner of Gold & Silver, a New Jersey-based business that imports women’s clothing and a very active supporter of the Mexican community by funding programs like Casa Puebla New York, she set the perfect example of the difference a leader with a vision can make.

Met Life’s Jose Torres suggested that Latinos need to combine their efforts and diverse talents to generate wealth. “We need to sophisticate the level of our businesses” he continued “and understand how to go from a family run shop to a complete operation and eventually a public company.”

Architect Victoria Benatar continued, “That is why we need business leaders, because it is through them that we can empower the community. We also have the responsibility to mentor the younger generations and lead them to positions of power.”

“Mentoring is fundamental,” shared Laura GiadorouKoch, CEO Dolium Vineyards, “and that is why it is key to continue to create Latino networks like this one, where you have leaders engaging.”

Anthony Lolli, Rapid Realty CEO contributed “We also need to identify the different types of help that is needed in each segment- There are people who are economically successful despite a lack of education – and they need the tools to get to the next level. And then there are those who need For more of the discussion, visit:

68 • December 2014 / January 2015

www.latinoleaders.com

Story by: Mariana

a more basic financial education, and we need to be able to serve all the different needs – and offer access to information and opportunities across all scenarios.”

Jorge Ferraez, Latino Leaders publisher, reflected, “In my experience interviewing leaders I have found that for most of them wealth comes as an added benefit to doing what they love - most of the individuals we interview are passionate about their projects and the money come as a bonus. So offering educational opportunities to our young leaders and show them the possibilities is key.”

Angel Ramirez of Captree Putetech Solutions agreed. “Education is the solution, especially in the business world. We need to organize and use our leverage to mentor and educate. In the banking industry for example we have Latino VP’s who could teach our community how to have access to capital – and as bankers we have the obligation to go out and share this knowledge – about tax returns, cash flow and how to do business.”

“We as Latinos don’t focus on the community, we focus on survival – not on philanthropy” interjected Benny Lorenzo, Aspira Capital Management Chairman and CEO “but we are getting to the point where we are developing a consciousness to give back. I recently became a member of the Dominican Studies Institute and am exited to contribute to their programs and become as involved as possible, because these non profits are looking for people like us to give back – and it is not always about the

money, but about sharing our time and experience. That is why admire leaders like Jaime Lucero, who have made giving back and becoming a force of change a priority in his life.”

“Our community has a very basic problem,” continued Paul Fernandez, Union Market co-owner and executive board member of the National Supermarket Association “we have not graduated to regularizing our monetary situation because of the illegal nature of some of our revenue. We are going through the transition to make some of these businesses and income legal, but we need to address this and search for the best processes and solutions. For Latinos paying taxes is an opportunity to grow, and hopefully more and more of us will be integrated into the system so we can leverage the economic power we represent. We also need a data base of emerging companies, and of those institutions willing to give them access to capital.”

Fritz Jean, Mount Hope Housing Executive Director continued, “I constantly see Latinos in communities like the Bronx who have managed to open a small shop for example – but they don’t have the tools to take their business to the next level – most of the time they don’t understand the value of what they have. Because you can have an empty bank account, but a successful concept and a customer base, and you have to understand the value of that. So I try to explain the importance of a growth plan, insurance or a credit score. And this is the

Gutierrez | Photos by: OKStudio NYC

work that we should all be doing” Attorney Dan Guadalupe addressed a different issue. “I think part of the problem is the isolation in the wealthiest segments of our community, where the value of Latino licensed professionals is ignored or underestimated – you don’t have to select your team because they are Hispanic, but sometimes Latinos prefer to hire non Hispanics, and that affects us in many levels. I am the only Latino made partner in my firm, and not giving Hispanic professionals the opportunity to grow robs us all of leverage - we would be a force to be reckoned with if we supported each other in this aspect as well. If we want to create wealth we need to start by supporting our own with hires if they are competent.”

Jose Torrez continued, “ It all goes back to education, the more opportunities we secure for our young Latinos to have a college education, the better the talent pool and the growth opportunities for all.”

“FOX news was producing segments on Latinos that give back “- shared Laura Giadorou “but they halted the project for lack of funding, and that is also the type of effort we need to advocate for, because it is important to inspire the community” Ron Liffman, Texron Sales President concluded. “Latinos are very fortunate to have leaders like the ones seating at this table who want to inspire the younger generations. It is key to have young people motivated to create wealth and reach out to those are hungry for success.”

Club LEADERS of the Future As a city that is long recognize for its business savvy, summer humidity and hours of traffic, Houston welcomed a collective group of young entrepreneurs, attorneys, politicians and engineers businessmen and women gathered to form the newest group of Houston Club Leaders of the future.

The 2014 group took on a holistic view of Houston leaders who discussed overcoming obstacles, reaching out to a new generation, pursuing success in their fields and a growing Latino culture and influence within the Houston city limits.

At the dinner, Antonio Favela described passing the bar and received a round of applause from the group.

Story BY Latino Leaders Staff Reports photos by Rattu Photography

these sponsors have made this night possible:

70 • December 2014 / January 2015

Both club members and alumni gather at Houston’s Eleven:Eleven restaurant.

Miguel Adame Attorney and Managing Partner Adame & Garza

Born in McAllen, Adame has worked as an attorney in Houston for 30 years in a shared practice at the Adame & Garza law firm.

“We help people that can’t help themselves,” he says about his firm that has a passion for helping those who have suffered injuries while on the job or victims of car accidents. As a graduate of the University of Houston with a Bachelor of Science in political science, Garza later earned a J.D. from South Texas College of Law.

Jo Anna Castilleja Shell Oil Company Latin America Macro Distributors Finance Manager

With a bachelor’s from University of St. Thomas, Castilleja supports a growing Shell Lubricants Latin America Macro Distributor (MD) portfolio across 32 countries assessing MD performance and assessing new MD selection and implementation. She delivers performance management tools that support sales, technical and marketing teams. Castilleja has actively supported Shell US Diversity networks since beginning her career at Shell in 2006. She enjoys time with her family and community involvement, specifically providing income tax assistance with her alma mater, mentoring young women through the National Council of La Raza and supporting nonprofits for health and education, which was key to her mother.

“Our family was very passionate about education,” she said.

Juan (Tony) Castilleja Jr.

Jose “Tommy” Calzadias

Systems engineer in Business Development Boeing’s Space Exploration

Assistant Vice President/ Banking Center Manager Comerica BankHeights Office

With a master’s and bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering from Rice University in Houston, Castilleja currently helps define, develop and market next-generation spacecraft enabling safe, innovative and transformational transportation systems beyond Earth’s gravity.

Castilleja was a stress engineer on the P8A Navy Program, and in the Space Shuttle Program for 16 missions as a Propulsion Engineer from 2009-11.

A native of South Texas, Calzadias has worked with Comerica Bank for the last four years and has 10 years of combined banking experience in the financial services industry where he has held different positions in retail banking. With a Bachelor of Arts in public service leadership from the University of Houston-Clear Lake and completed and is also a graduate of South Texas College.

Outside of banking, Calzadias is an active member of his church and serves as the program director for Open Gate Homeless Ministries at Bering Memorial United Methodist in Houston.

Club LEADERS of the Future Veronica Chapa Deputy Director City of Houston Housing and Community Development Department

Born in the Rio Grande Valley, Chapa oversees Grants Management and Compliance for Houston’s housing department and was recruited by Mayor Annise Parker for the position after serving on the mayor’s transition team in early 2010. Chapa is a key member of the executive team that is planning for deployment of $151 million dollars in place-based investment strategies to help revitalization efforts in the Houston community. She is credited with the successful implementation of a new independent Compliance and Monitoring Division.

Maria Duran Senior Manager Houston Dynamo Charities

Born in El Salvador, Duran and her family immigrated to Houston when she was 5 years old. Growing up in the city among other Latinos, she said that not only is it important for Latinos to continue striving for success but part of that success should also be measured in your involvement in the community.

“It is about empowering ourselves and empowering those around us.” After graduating from the University of Houston, she is proud to do just that as senior manager for Houston Dynamo Charities.

Juan Gallardo Teruel Author and Teacher

Juan Gallardo was born in Almería, Spain in 1973.

Before arriving in Houston he was a musician, translator and English teacher. Juan has devoted the last 13 years of his life to teach all levels of Spanish in the Houston Independent School District, achieving great success with the AP scores of his current school, Chávez High School.

“Only in Chavez have I been able to fully develop my potential as an educator,” Gallardo says. An aspiring assistant principal, Gallardo recently completed his master’s degree in school administration.

Christine Poleski Gaona Managing Partner Oakstone Human Capital LLC Raul Ferraez, publisher of Lideres magazine in Mexico City, attended the event of sister publication Latino Leaders Magazine.

72 • December 2014 / January 2015

As managing partner of OakStone Human Capital, Gaona is an attorney and a legal recruiter. At OakStone Human Capital, she places candidates into positions at corporations, educational institutions, governments, and law firms. Christine received her J.D. in law from the University of Wisconsin Law School and Bachelor of Arts in International Relations from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

Gaona’s national experience in the fields of law and higher education adds great value and is an asset to her clients and colleagues.

Danita Gallegos Social Work Interventionist Goose Creek Consolidated Independent School District

Danita Gallegos holds a Bachelors of Science from Texas A&M University in Sports Management. She also earned a Masters in Social Work degree from the University of Houston and is licensed by the state of Texas to practice this profession. In both the school and psychiatric settings simultaneously, Gallegos is able to assist a wide range of people in crisis. She has specialized experience working with the populations that include geriatric, psychiatric, pediatric, hospice, oncology and child physical and sexual abuse as a social worker. In addition, Danita has longstanding passion for serving the community in various ways. She currently serves as the 2014 NHPO Leadership Institute Alumni Association chairwoman.

Juan Garza

Nelsy Gomez

Alex Gonzalez

Consultant Capgemini

Attorney Labor & Employment and Immigration Practice Groups

Attorney Lorance & Thompson, P.C.

Garza, a native of Mexico, graduated with an engineering degree from Southern Methodist University in 2012. After graduation, he started working at Capgemini two years ago focusing on IT consulting for oil and gas companies in the Upstream Sector. Garza is also involved in the Asociacion de Empresarios Mexicanos Jovenes aiming to help bring together young entrepreneurs together to enable them to become successful in the U.S.

Born and raised in Salem, Massachusetts, the Dominican-American graduated from Tufts University with a Bachelor of Arts in economics. After attending University of Miami School of Law, where she served as Student Body Association Supreme Court Chief Justice, she began legal practice right after law school in a boutique immigration law firm, handling both family and business immigration matters. Nelsy is a member of the Houston Bar Association, the National Hispanic Bar Association, and is the immediate past president of the Hispanic Bar Association of Houston.

Gonzalez, who joined Lorance & Thompson in 2014, focuses his practice on the Transportation and Hospitality Industries where his docket includes premises liability cases, wrongful death claims, catastrophic injury cases, and other complex civil litigation matters. Prior to joining the firm, Gonzalez worked at a civil defense firm where he focused on insurance defense cases involving automobile accidents. He has also previously worked at the Harris County District Attorney’s Office, as well as the Supreme Court of Texas under the Honorable Eva Guzman.

L at ino Le a de r s

Club LEADERS of the Future Claudia E. Ortega-Hogue Texas Director of Civic Engagement National Association of Latino Elected & Appointed Officials (NALEO) Educational Fund

Claudia Ortega-Hogue is the Texas Director of Civic Engagement for the NALEO Educational Fund and is responsible for the development and implementation of its naturalization and voter engagement mobilization programs across the region. In this capacity, Ortega-Hogue has organized dozens of citizenship and immigration forums, naturalization workshops, voter education forums, non-partisan GOTV campaigns, and voter registration drives in the State of Texas, in addition to efforts in Arizona and New Mexico. OrtegaHogue has presented to diverse audiences at numerous trainings and briefings across the country and in Mexico, on issues ranging from the U.S. citizenship to the political implications of the Latino vote.

Carlos Paz Jr. Community Development Strategist Neighborhood Centers Inc.

Carlos is passionate about making a meaningful impact around the world. He works for Neighborhood Centers Inc., the Gulf Coast’s largest community development organization and the go-to resource for impact and innovation. His role is to work cross functionally on social entrepreneurial initiatives across the agency; prior to this he served as the chief of staff to the organization’s President and CEO. He also serves as a chief storyteller and global ambassador for Operation Change, a documentary series that takes viewers around the globe to examine some of the world’s most challenging issues.

Mitch Gonzalez

Isabel Longoria

Founder and Principal A Creative Bunch

Policy Analist Office of Senator Sylvia Garza

As founder and principal of A Creative Bunch, a business strategy design firm that assists companies which provide products and services to the ultra-affluent, Gonzalez joins the fastest-growing entrepreneurial sector in the country, the Hispanicowned business. Mitch’s ambition to become an entrepreneur is rooted in Miami, where he assisted his family in running cigar and craft beer businesses. In 2013, Gonzalez’s dream of owning his own business and running his company by his own standard of excellence became a reality.

Originally interested in studying medicine, Longoria graduated from Trinity University with a Bachelor of Arts in sociology and minor in history. She went on to receive a master’s in public affairs from the University of Texas LBJ School of Public Affairs. Since then, she has launched a successful career in government and politics. A path that feels natural to someone interested in the ability of human beings to come together in groups to enact change. She is currently working on several projects aimed to get Hispanics more involved in politics, and more civically engaged.

Carlos Nolasco Financial Representative Northwestern Mutual

Born in New York City to Honduran parents, Nolasco and his family returned to Honduras where he attended La Universidad Nacional de Honduras for two 2 years before returning to the U.S. With professional experience at The Federal Reserve Bank of Boston, Fidelity Investments, he began ElFinancista.com, a website dedicated to serving the financial services needs of Spanishspeaking customers, in 2000 while working at Citicorp Investment Services. As of July 2014, Nolasco joined Northwestern Mutual in the Woodlands Texas, where he plans to be for many years, serving families and businesses, helping them protect their financial future.

Ivan Sanchez

Ivan Torres

Immigration Liaison and Field Representative Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee

MRO Projects Manager Lockwood International

Born in Colombia, Sanchez graduated from the University of Houston-Downtown with a Bachelor of Political Science.

Sanchez has received United States Congressional recognition, in addition to being showcased by the Texas Legislature and the City of Houston. After his mother died from cancer, Sanchez resolved to follow in his mother’s footsteps, which includes the pursuit of law school. As an immigrant himself, assisting other immigrants on deportation cases, work permits and visas on behalf of the United States Congress is his dream come true.

Torres’ story is like that of many other immigrants to the United States. Born in Matamoros, Tamaulipas, Mexico, Torres immigrated to the U.S. when he was 6 years old. His parents immediately enrolled him in Gardens Elementary in Pasadena, Texas, and he’s lived in and around the area for more than 35 years. He says his ethos is to live well, and make people laugh.

He says he values his character and understand that supporting our own is important, however I also am well aware of the overall health and growth of society depends on the community at large not just our Latino brethren.

Holly Maria Flynn Vilaseca Senior implementation officer K12

After attaining a dual degree – a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Michigan with a focus on Latin American and Carribean studies and a Bachelor of Arts in sports management and communications – her goal is to help others excel in education. Flynn Vilaseca said her Colombian mother always worked hard to ensure she had really good opportunities in America, and it has been very important to pursue those opportunities that are available to her.

events

Maestro

dallas

November 12, 2014 Dallas Museum of Art

Leadership: Javier Palomarez Entrepreneurship: Hector Ruiz, PhD Medical and Scientific Excellence: Luis F. Paradate Community Service: Michelle Hollaender Maestro of Professional Achievement: Victor Arias Jr.

On the evening of November 12, 2014, Latino Leaders Magazine hosted the eighth annual Maestro Awards in Dallas.

Presented with the support from:

Maestro

DALLAS 76 • December 2014 / January 2015

By Emilia Gaston Photos by Andrew Buckle

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From left to right, Javier Palomarez, Hector Ruiz, Luis F. Parada, Michelle Hollaender and Victor Arias Jr.

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Maestro

chicago The sudden cold front did not stop Dallas’ elite from pouring in to the Dallas Museum of Art to witness the eighth annual Maestro Awards by Latino Leaders Magazine on November 12, 2014. As the blue-hued room filled with familiar faces and new attendees alike, those who stood out were this year’s awardees, Javier Palomarez, Hector Ruiz, Luis F. Parada, Michelle Hollaender and Victor Arias Jr. In his opening remarks, Publisher Jorge Ferraez described the occasion as “a gathering to celebrate these outstanding leaders, people we personally admire.”

The leaders awarded in Dallas exemplified excellence and are setting the standards and opening doors for those to come.

Javier Palomarez

Hector Ruiz Hector Ruiz, PhD

Maestro of Entrepreneurship While working on cars as a teenager in Mexico, a Methodist missionary encouraged Hector Ruiz to go to high school, a move that set the tone for the rest of his life. Constantly building things and putting machines together, Ruiz’s curiosity helped him to become the chairman of Advanced Nanotechnology Solutions, the position he currently holds. “I was always very curious and always admired people who were able to combine the arts and sciences,” Ruiz explained. After a David and Goliath-style battle with Intel, Ruiz wrote his widely popular book “Slingshot,” detailing the ordeal. To future leaders, Ruiz kindly advises that “as a leader, you have the responsibility to display the culture of that company ... and that’s the biggest joy and the biggest burden.”

Javier Palomarez

Maestro of Leadership As the youngest of 10 siblings, Javier Palomarez never dreamed that he would grow up to become president and CEO of the United States Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, a title that he has held for several years while earning numerous awards. Being a migrant worker from South Texas, Palomarez realized early on the importance of immigrant contributions to the success of the United States. In his current role, he urges the growth of Hispanic small business and prides himself on being able to “have the privilege to tell the Hispanic story the best that I can.”

78 • June 2013 78 • December 2014 / January 2015

Our awardees with Jorge Ferraez (right)

Michelle Hollaender

Maestro of Community Service As the Chief Development Officer for HELPS International for over 10 years, Michelle Hollaender’s career embodies the selflessness of a community servant. With the company, she leads missions of medical volunteers to bring resources to Guatemala and works with a recent initiative to provide biomass-fueled stoves to help families in need of cooked food. Hollaender best describes the joy in her work as “seeing a child with a hernia and you help them and see their smile; that smile cannot be undone.”

Michelle Hollaender

Victor Arias Jr.

Victor Arias Jr.

Maestro of Professional Achievement A native of El Paso, Texas Victor Arias Jr.’s career has taken him all over the country. From being the vice president of Jones, Lang and LaSalle in Chicago to his current position as the CEO of Corn Ferry International, his achievement is in his character. In his time serving on corporate boards and assisting in higher education initiatives, Arias credits the hard work of his parents for helping him to stay determined and has found a perfect balance between professional and personal objectives. However, his leadership success is put simply, “if you have humility, you understand the plight of the less fortunate, and you have to be able to take other people further.”

Luis F. Parada

Luis F. Parada

Maestro of Medical and Scientific Excellence Luis F. Parada’s career is the pinnacle of scientific excellence and shows no sign of slowing down. As the Chair of Molecular Developmental Biology at UT Southwestern Medical School, he leads in teaching future doctors and diligently produces research in several medical and scientific areas. His current research is studying how stem cells can function in the brain to repair genetics that cause tumors. As is paralleled with science, Parada sites that he became intrigued with the science’s investigatory aspects and learning something that he never knew existed as a child. When asked of his proudest contributions to society, he happily stated “my legacy is present in all the young PhD students who I’ve trained; I owe it to them.”

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What Jorge Ferraez

is Drinking @JFerraez_Latino

Holiday report and celebrating a new year of Latino wines

O

n December 5, in San Francisco, California, Latino Leaders Magazine presented an event to showcase some of the most relevant wines made

by Latino wine makers for 2015. I was totally impressed, I must confess! First, I drink California wine only occasionally, mostly in restaurants. It is only 20 percent of my cellar. The reason: I have been disappointed many times by California wine, but at that event, the wines that I tasted changed my perception and enjoyment of those wines completely. Maybe it has to do with how they grow their fruit, the artisanal processes of wine making or just the passion they put in every step of the process, given the fact that the label is bearing their family name, but the cold fact is that they are producing really good wine. Wineries like Maldonado, Delgadillo, Marita’s Vineyard, Mario Bazan Cellars, Alex Sotelo Cellars, Ceja, Keller Estate, Honrama and Frias Family Vineyards are hard to beat.

Many of them have reached 94 points and above in the usual rating systems.

A complete coverage of this event with my notes on my favorite wines and a great conversation I had with all of them on their industry’s challenges and their own secret recipies for their good quality will be published in our upcoming February/March 2015 edition.

Here are some wines that I definitely recommend for the holidays:

80 • December 2014 / January 2015

Casanova di Neri “Rosso de Casanova di Neri” 2012 (Bought at Total Wine & More) Region: Tuscany Varietal: Sangiovese Price: $23 Aromas: Fruity, woody and ripe plum Flavors: Raspberry, violets, red fruit compote Impression: Ample and very aromatic Structure: Complex and round Drink with: Pasta with meat sauce Why I loved this wine? Elegant and well done My Rating: 91 pts.

Joseph Drouhin Beaune “Clos des Mouches” 2010 (Bought at COSTCO) Region: Burgundy Varietal: Pinot Noir Price: $84 Aromas: Cherry, rose petals, red fruit Flavors: Spice, floral, citric notes Impression: Wow! Structure: Incredibly silky and ample in flavors Drink with: Christmas roasted turkey Why I loved this wine? Explosive in aromas, great structure My Rating: 97 pts.

Memento Mori 2011 (Sent by winemaker Adriel Lares for its review) Region: Napa Valley, California Varietal: Cabernet Sauvignon Price: $135 Aromas: Dark fruit, chocolate Flavors: Plum, spicy, mocha Impression: Elegant and layered; complex Structure: Round and powerful Drink with: Roast beef or a Turducken Why I loved this wine? It is both intense and subtle.

My Rating: 93 pts.