Team

Social entrepreneur and nonprofit professional with over 20 years of experience in the areas of general management, strategy, operations, marketing and fund development in both for-profit and nonprofit spaces. She is the recipient of the 2018 NFL Hispanic Heritage Leadership Award, the 2018 Women of Inspiration of the Atlanta Dream, named one of the 50 Most Influential Latinos in Georgia and a 2017 Hispanics in Philanthropy Fellow among other distinctions. She was raised in Lima, Peru.

Jean-Luc has an extensive nonprofit and political background including the Atlanta BeltLine and Senator Warnock. He received the 30 Under 30 Young Nonprofit Professionals Network award in 2020 and has continued to make his impact on the nonprofit sector in Georgia since. He is a proud graduate of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and can be found cheering his heart out while watching every game during basketball season. Jean-Luc’s family is originally from Coamo, Puerto Rico

Monica has 15 years of experience in promotion of community activities and public health. She has a passion for data quality and process improvement. She was recognized for the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) in 2002 for her job in the work-group of the Colombian Ministry of Health to develop a surveillance system protocol for domestic violence & sexual offences, Monica is a dedicated mom and is originally from Colombia.

Pedro received a BA from Emory University with a double major in Political Science and French Studies and is experienced in research and data analysis, healthcare management customer service, and is fully tri-lingual (Spanish, English, French). He founded and ran an NGO dedicated to providing meals to unprivileged children in Maracaibo, Venezuela.

Sergio Mendez is a first-generation college graduate of immigrant parents. He has a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from Augusta University. He is a six-year veteran of the US Army. He has previously worked with organizations dedicated to helping fellow students and service members.

Andy Santamaria began canvassing for LCF Georgia in 2020 as part of the Census Campaign. He graduated from Georgia State University with a Bachelor of Science and earned a Certificate in Nonprofit Program Management from the Georgia Center for Nonprofits. Andy is an AmeriCorps VISTA alumnus, having served two years in Atlanta and Los Angeles on the “Solving Poverty Through Technology” campaign. In his free time, he volunteers with the Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) program and is an avid runner and hiker along with his 3 dogs. 

Dianne Roman-Gonzalez is from Manati, Puerto Rico raised by a mother with an arduous work ethic encouraging the development of her leadership skills and fostering volunteerism and community engagement. She has an undergrad degree in Biology and a Masters in Public Health from the University of Puerto Rico.

Aurora is a community-oriented first-generation Atlanta native with family from Mexico. They received a B.S. in public health at Georgia State University and has previously worked with organizations dedicated to serving Latin families where she led outreach for COVID-19 as well as the youth programs. She is now working to expand and deepen outreach and community engagement at LCF.

Ulyssa has been liaising and supporting hundreds of families in South Georgia since 2020 with Know Your Rights information, navigating the health system, civic mobilization, and financial assistance. She leads our Tifton team

Cristian is a first generation college student graduated from Georgia Southern University with a BIS in Interdisciplinary Studies. He leads our work informing primarily essential workers including farm workers in South Georgia of their rights, facilitates community vaccination events and designs and leads outreach to accellerate positive change in his community

Joanna has experience working with NC Legal Aid, Student Action with Farmworkers and is high-achieving, goal-oriented and community-centered. She is based in Valdosta where she is completing her undergraduate degree.

Daniela has a Master in Nonprofit Management and Leadership and is an experienced professional in nonprofit and environmental communication with experience in Ecuador and Georgia. She ensures our outreach is centered on simple, relevant, actionable and accurate content.

Irwin is an experienced civic engagement professional in both the Metro Atlanta region and Austin, TX. Before joining LCF Georgia, he taught English classes for adults, supported mutual aid work and emergency / disaster relief organizations. He likes to cycle every week and enjoys local music shows.

Senior Vice President, Managing Director, Head of Strategy and Solutions for Fifth Third Bank. She has 20 years of C-Suite experience in the US and abroad. She is past Board member of Dress for Success – Atlanta, the United Way Women Leadership Council – Cincinnati, the GA Hispanic Chamber of Commerce and Cool Girls

Chief Executive Officer for Framework Homeownership with 15 years of executive and banking experience. Member of the Georgia Bankers Association Board of Directors and the Community Bankers Association of Georgia’s Associate Member Advisory Council. LEAD Atlanta graduate, Chairman of the Board of Directors of HouseProud Atlanta and board member of a number of nonprofit organizations.

Vice President of Governance and Compliance for Cox Enterprises, Luis has broad-based transactional, corporate governance, securities, and M&A expertise. Mr. Avila has been recognized by numerous organizations, including being named Business Leader of Color by Chicago United, Business Leader of the Year by the Chicago Latino Network, Out & Proud Corporate Counsel by the National LGBT Bar, and Top Lawyer Under 40 by the Hispanic National Bar Association.

Lauren is an independent public policy consultant based in Atlanta with over 25 years’ experience in legislative, administrative and grassroots advocacy, working at a range of social justice and anti-poverty organizations. She served as the Director of Government Affairs at the Atlanta Community Food Bank from 2016 to 2020, and the Policy Director of Voices for Georgia’s Children from 2005 to 2009. Ms. Waits currently serves as Treasurer of the Board at Project Community Connections Inc. (PCCI), a rapid rehousing organization that supports people experiencing homelessness.

Principal at El Dorado Consulting. Lillian has served as Vice President at CCI, VP of Sustainability and Stakeholder Relations at The Coca-Cola Company and previously was the President of the Hispanic Federation of New York. Lilian also serves as board member for the Friends of the National Museum of the American Latino, MALDEF, LaAmistad, and the Hispanic Advisory Council of the Nielsen Corporation.

CEO and Founder of CulturaLink. Successful entrepreneur in the technology and health care space, born in the Dominican Republic and served as an interpreter and cultural navigator for her family. She is a member of the Joint Commission’s Long Term Care Advisory Council, American Hospital Association’s Institute for Diversity in Health Management, member of the National Forum for Latino Healthcare Executives and National Association of Healthcare Service Executives (NAHSE), among others.

Assistant Professor in the Department of Community Health and Preventive Medicine and Interim Director of the Center for Maternal Health Equity at Morehouse School of Medicine. She has a broad background and over 15 years of experience in community-based participatory research, women’s health disparities, health policy, and social determinants of health. Prior to her doctoral studies, Dr. Hernandez worked as a Program Manager for UnidosUS leading all their national maternal health projects.

Community Engagement Director for Georgia Power. Lea Clanton leads a team responsible for Georgia Power’s employee volunteer programs and community relations fostering the company’s relationships with people of color, women and LGTBQ+ communities. She is graduate of Clemson University and is active in the community in various roles and committees

Pamela is the Director of Global Contracts for UPS, leveraging wide-ranging experience gained over 30 years across the global transportation and logistics industry in the healthcare, retail, and industrial sectors. She drives company-wide best practices in contract development and negotiation globally.

Mariángela Corales is the General Counsel, Vice President of Legal and Compliance, and
Corporate Secretary for Goodwill of North Georgia.  Mariángela also serves as a guest lecturer at the Georgia Institute of Technology and a Court Appointed Special Advocate (CASA). She is a first generation Cuban-American, born and raised in South Florida. She earned her Bachelor of Arts from Florida International University and her Juris Doctor from the University of Miami.

Aida no longer sits on our board but she was our Founding Chair and the impetus behind the first fund LCF Georgia created to respond to disasters (Hurricane Maria in 2017). She is the founder and partner of Aida & Co, Aida is also director of the International Women’s Forum (IWF), a key Latino leader and instrumental in the development of many local anchor organizations including the Latin American Association, The Georgia Hispanic Chamber of Commerce and others. Aida is a patron of the arts and a courageous advocate for the Latino/Hispanic community. We will forever be grateful for her influence and investment in our organization and the community at-large