15th Anniversary Commemorative Book

MESSAGE FROM THE PRESIDENT/CEO

In the Latino community, the quinceañera (15th birthday) is a rite of passage that elevates maturity and responsibility and is celebrated through a social event that emphasizes the importance of family, community, and relationships.

Guided by our culture, traditions and heritage, the Latino Community Foundation of Colorado (LCFC) is proud to commemorate its quince. As one of only six stand-alone Latino community foundations in the country, our work, from the beginning, has been rooted in the understanding that “we know best how to invest in our communities and our families, and by having our own foundation, we will be able to take our generosity and compassion one step further to ensure our communities thrive.”

Since 2007, LCFC has invested over $13 million and leveraged almost $50 million in our Colorado Latino communities, as well as other communities of color and LGBTQ. We have earned the community’s trust and have witnessed how generous Latinos are when they understand the transformative power of philanthropy. When we bring together our collective assets, we can meaningfully address complex issues that transform communities and improve the lives of all Coloradans, as you’ll read in the stories of transformation herein.

We could not do this work without each of you who has supported us over the years - from our founders, to those who have donated time, talent or treasure, to leaders who turned our investment into opportunity for thousands of families and hundreds of communities – LCFC’s work – and impact – are born from the love and commitment of many. We are doing philanthropy

OUR FUTURE

As the LCFC enters a new era, it builds on the past and looks to cement its future for generations to come. The seeds planted 15 years ago, are bearing fruit that are leading to exciting opportunities for Latino communities throughout Colorado.

To solidify our place in history, now and for decades to come, the LCFC is launching a $20 million One Community, One Legacy campaign that honors our past, embraces our present, and positions Latino communities for a brighter future. As the LCFC moves forward, it looks to elevate its impact through bold, innovative philanthropy that is family-centered, community-led, and rooted in culture justice.

We know that:

• Strong leaders transform communities. The foundation invests in people throughout Colorado to become strong leaders who can help build an inspiring vision for their community.

• Strong Latino organizations are essential. Through grantmaking, training, and special projects we help build the capacities of organizations so that they can achieve their mission and better serve the community.

• Empowered communities create change. Providing resources to organizations serves as an entry-point that connects people to opportunities that expand their sense of possibilities to build strong communities.

We invite you to be part of our story. Your partnership helps fuel our innovation and expand our reach. Your investments are turned into powerful opportunities that help our nonprofits transform lives and communities. Together, we are changing the Latino story.

OUR HISTORY

“Latinos have a tradition of generosity and are ready to be recognized as philanthropists.

For Latinos, giving to the Latino Community Foundation of Colorado is a tremendous opportunity for us to help our own community, and create a legacy of giving for future generations.”

Fifteen years ago, Ron Montoya and our founding members expressed a vision of Colorado creating a legacy of Latino philanthropy for generations to come through the establishment of a foundation. Seventeen visionary families, allies, and several community foundations pooled their resources to seed the foundation with $1,000,000.

With the Latino population steadily growing, but less than 2% of all funding from U.S. foundations going to Latino organizations, the urgency for a Latino foundation was clear. The LCFC founders could no longer wait for traditional foundations and philanthropy to address the needs in the Latino community. They understood it was time to step up and invest in the future of Colorado Latinos. They quickly established themselves with the help of the Rose Community Foundation, which provided administrative support and brought on Marcelina Rivera as the managing director. By late 2007, LCFC disbursed its inaugural grant funding, totaling $204,000, to 13 organizations. In 2009, Yolanda Quezada took the helm and, over the next several years, granted over $2 million in funding and elevated the work of the foundation, which led to LCFC becoming the Outstanding Foundation Award recipient at the National Philanthropy Day Colorado luncheon. The leadership baton was then handed off to Carlos Martinez in 2014.

- Ron Montoya, Founding Chair, 2007

In 2014, LCFC launched a new strategy to leverage its work of the prior six years and become a community thought partner that would raise the voice of Latinos and build collective power to create change. Today, the LCFC is guided by its mission to work hand in hand with our diverse communities to create culturally responsive strategies that build influence, equity and opportunity for all Latino Coloradans.

Since its inception, the LCFC has invested $13 million dollars in the community and has helped establish the groundwork for building strong Latino led and serving organizations, cultivating emerging leaders, and educating Latinos about philanthropy to empower people to see themselves as givers and investors in their community.

As one of only six standalone Latino community foundations in the country, the LCFC has grown to be a leader and influencer in the Latino, philanthropic, and government sectors. The future holds endless opportunities.

LCFC’s visionary founders include: The Abarca Family Raydean Acevedo Linda & Robert Alvarado Robert & Chantil Arciniaga Cyndi & Richard Bush-Luna Toti Cadavid & Luis Colón Francisco Garcia Andrew & Mitchell Gonzales & Family Elsa Holguín Irene Ibarra* & Armando Quiróz Timothy & Bernadette Marquez Ron & Naomi* Montoya Jerry & Grace Natividad Annette Quintana & Len Silverston Deborah Quintana & Family Lola & Rob Salazar

The Tafoya FamiIy Rose Community Foundation Jay & Rose Phillips Family Foundation of Colorado Western Union Foundation

YOUNG LATINO PHILANTHROPISTS (YLP)

LCFC’s Young Latino Philanthropists (YLP) was started in 2014 by a group of visionaries under 35 years old who wanted to make a difference in the Latino community by collectively pooling financial resources.

Using the “giving circle” model, these young visionaries helped to grow leadership and philanthropy in Colorado. YLP is a new generation of philanthropists dedicated to tackling pressing issues in the Latino community through culturally relevant giving. For the past seven years, the YLP has funded innovation and forward-thinkers whose project ideas encompassed the values of family, empowerment, and cultural inclusiveness to build strong communities. In addition to their yearly grantmaking, Young Latino Philanthropists held yearround fundraisers, events, and networking opportunities. Since its inception, YLP has granted over $100,000 to Latino-led and immigrant/refugee serving nonprofits across the state.

“Your support translates to building the next generation of leaders, which is critical to mobilizing and moving forward reproductive health and equity. Youth of color and the leadership of young people deserve our investment.”

- Colorado Organization for Latina Opportunity and Reproductive Rights (COLOR), 2019 YLP grant recipient

This year, we celebrate and thank the past and current YLP members for their commitment and leadership as we plan for its evolution moving forward.

We are grateful to the current YLP leadership team: Allie Barnard (Events Chair), Vicente Cardona (CoChair), Mitchell Gonzales (Founder/Treasurer), Marlene Sanchez, Denise Santana (Secretary), Che Sheehan, Elizabeth Velasco and Felipe Vieyra (Co-Chair), as well as past members, for their contributions.

REGIONAL COMMUNITY INVESTMENTS

Guided by the principle that authentic change begins within communities, our Regional Community Investments (RCI) work embraces local leaders’ sovereignty and agency in determining the best pathways for improving the lives of Latinos. LCFC is investing in three key regions - the San Luis Valley, the Mountain Region, and Northern Colorado – where community members have expressed the desire for help from the foundation. Partnering with local leaders, we provide technical assistance, coaching, mentoring, facilitated conversations, timeline implementation, and training on hard skills.

In Northern Colorado, LCFC proudly supported the Hand that Feeds monument and plaza project in Fort Collins’ Sugar Beet Park through funding to develop and implement a fundraising campaign. The Hand that Feeds, both a monument and a sculpture created by artist

Frank Garza of Loveland, tells the story of the people who changed the culture and fabric of the Fort Collins community with their hard work, perseverance, courage, and determination. The short-hoe represents the back-breaking work required by the field workers. The hand represents the very people who carried out that work, the Mexican and Hispanic families who came to the area to cultivate the beet fields. Included in the sculpture plaza is a large interpretive storyboard to help visitors understand Northern Colorado’s sugar beet industry and its impact. Betty Aragon Mitotes envisioned and led the project. As executive director of Mujeres de Colores, Betty received the Soul of Leadership (SOL) Award in 2018 and is a Las Mujeres Valientes (LMV) fellow alum.

LCFC is also currently working with four communities in three counties across the San Luis Valley to create locally-driven planning processes, develop leadership skills, and build awareness of systemic inequities within each community. This effort utilizes collaborative problem-solving techniques as a tool for envisioning new opportunities as well as implementing a regional approach to addressing economic, health, educational and other inequities.

LATINAS LEAD

Launched in 2016, Latinas LEAD was created to strengthen the leadership development of Latinas so they can be the drivers of social change. Latinas LEAD continues to serve as a community of support and connection. Since its inception, the program has impacted thousands of Latinas statewide and created a new generation of philanthropists. The giving circle has been powered by modest personal donations, and all proceeds have gone to supporting small organizations that are dedicated to the professional and personal leadership development of Latinas.

Out of Latinas LEAD, several other foundation initiatives were born:

• Latinas LEAD is recognized for hosting the annual Latinas LEAD Power Summit which takes place, annually, each June. Participants of the Power Summit discover impactful strategies to advance their leadership as they interact with established leaders and peers.

• To further build on the program’s reach and impact, in 2018 the Las Mujeres Valientes Statewide Two-Year Fellowship was created. The fellowship program’s goals included reducing ageism, promoting health and well-being, creating shared learning environments, and transferring knowledge and wisdom so that all generations of Latinas can thrive. LMV’s six diverse leaders were successful in building communities across Colorado in a culturally responsive way that not only created a new narrative for aging, but also helped Latinas of all ages in navigating their lives to be more fulfilled in their identities, with families, and in their communities.

The newest addition to our Connecting Communities experiences is the Maestra Series (meaning “master” or “teacher”), a virtual event that grew out of the success of the 2020 Latinas LEAD Virtual Leadership Series which was held in place of the in-person Power Summit in the first year of the COVID pandemic. This five-part series pilot featured diverse Latinas sharing their leadership learnings, experiences, and expertise. The sessions, created by Latinas for Latinas, continued to provide community support and culturally relevant learning during a time when we couldn’t convene in person. Due to its success and ability to capture a much wider audience statewide, and beyond, the LCFC will continue to curate this virtual series as a lead up to the annual Power Summit.

OUR STORY FORUM

LCFC keeps the Colorado Latino community connected through offerings like our one-of-a-kind, bilingual, statewide event the Our Story Forum, where communities can build relationships, focus on cultural traditions, experience performances by local and national artists, and provide powerful platforms for Latinos to tell their own stories.

For the past eight years, this in person and virtual event has welcomed thousands of Latinos who want to help grow, build power, and influence their communities locally, regionally, and statewide. With this event, LCFC has created a unique space for our community to come as they are and actively engage in elevating and addressing issues pertinent to Latinos across Colorado. LCFC believes that transformative social change is only possible when the collective power of the Latino community is forged together.

In response to the community’s request for ongoing opportunities to connect, LCFC piloted the Our Story Podcast. This podcast will serve to bridge the time between each annual forum, addressing relevant issues impacting the Latino community in Colorado and beyond.

AYUDA COLORADO FUND

In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Latino Community Foundation launched the Ayuda Colorado Fund in March 2020. This funding was designed to help support, stabilize, and ensure sustainability for Latino-led and Latino-serving (LLS) nonprofits, as well as immigrant and refugee-serving (IRS) organizations, through direct grants, organizational capacity building, and resource acquisition.

Ayuda Colorado’s strategy was derived from conversations with current and former grant recipients, input from grassroots leaders, feedback from LCFC staff, board of directors, consultants, and others. In a time, fraught with complex barriers for Latinos, especially immigrants and refugees, LCFC recognized that LLS and IRS nonprofits are the most trusted by and resourceful in empowering, our underserved communities.

The LCFC team developed a simplified, streamlined, bilingual system for applications and grant distribution to ensure that nonprofit organizations could access funding for operational and infrastructure needs such as improving technology use, providing basic needs for community members, piloting innovative problem-solving ventures, and keeping their doors open via general operating cost support.

By the end of 2021, LCFC had invested $1,960,199 into the community and has now adopted Ayuda Colorado as its anchor grantmaking strategy.

ADELANTE COLORADO

Launched in 2021, Adelante Colorado is a three-year capacity building program to help Latino nonprofits grow and thrive. The program was created to tackle the inequities found in philanthropy that often prevent Latino-led nonprofits from building proactive, nimble, and strategic organizations that can respond to our community’s growth, diversity, and evolution.

The need for healthy, robust organizations that can help shape a vibrant future for Latino communities across all sectors is paramount. If Colorado is to continue to prosper, so must the Latino community—a community that will make up one-third of the state’s population within 20 to 25 years. Strong Latino nonprofit leadership is integral to empowering our community and contributes to a vision that prepares people to create a better Colorado for everyone.

Over the course of three years, LCFC will invest $2 million in its cohort of 22 Latino-serving nonprofits to help support capacity building, including collaborative meetings and trainings dedicated to leadership and organizational infrastructure development. With Adelante Colorado, LCFC is excited to be able to build on the existing influence and power of communities and invest in the work of individual leaders and nonprofit institutions that lead to improved civic and economic development, as well as community health and wellness.

PHILANTHROPIC ADVOCACY

LCFC established and is a proud member of the steering committee of the Communities Lead. Communities Thrive Coalition (CLCT), launched in 2021 to advocate for resources on behalf of Colorado nonprofits that work in underserved and under-resourced communities of color and rural areas of the state.

During the 2022 legislative session, CLCT championed and secured $35 million of federal ARPA funding to provide infrastructure grants for smaller nonprofits that provide culturally appropriate and relevant services and resources to families and communities who have historically been underrepresented and underfunded and who continue to struggle with pandemic recovery.

Sponsored by Representatives Edie Hooton (D-Boulder) and Leslie Herod (D-Denver) and Senators Julie Gonzales (D-Denver) and Bob Rankin (R-Carbondale), House Bill 1356, known as the Small Community-based Nonprofit Grant Program, ensures that these nonprofits have the funding necessary to continue to survive and adapt at a time when their services are more critical than ever. Nonprofits will be able to use grant funding from this bill to improve their technology infrastructure, develop strategic plans, provide professional development for staff, and build capacity.

This extraordinary accomplishment – achieved on behalf of some of our most vulnerable neighbors – was led by CLCT’s steering committee: The Asian Pacific Development Center, Black Resilience in Colorado (BRIC), The Hispanic Affairs Project (HAP), The Latino Community Foundation of Colorado (LCFC), Out Boulder County, and a statewide coalition of Colorado nonprofits serving Black, Indigenous, Latino, Asian American and Pacific Islander, LGBTQ+, rural, and other underrepresented communities.

COLORADO COMMUNITIES OF COLOR LOAN FUND

Launched in 2021, the Colorado Communities of Color (CCC) Loan Fund is a five-year revolving loan fund pilot project created in response to decades of undercapitalization and chronic financial instability for many organizations serving communities of color. Providing a muchneeded boost to grassroots nonprofits, the fund will ensure access to capital for organizations led by, and serving, communities of color.

The CCC Loan Fund will make Program Related Investments (PRI’s) to nonprofits of color in Colorado, ranging in amounts from $10,000 to $250,000 at interest rates between 0% and 2%. This unprecedented access to capital, at low-to-no interest rates, will ensure that Colorado nonprofits, serving and led by communities of color, can invest in capital projects, infrastructure, internal capacity building, and more. Our vital grassroots organizations will now have the means to build stability and create bold and powerful visions for the future.

LATINO AGE WAVE COLORADO

The Latino Age Wave Colorado (LAWC) program spanned eight years and was the catalyst for lifting up the voices of Latino older adults. For the first three years, it focused on educating the community about Colorado’s growing Latino older adults and in the last five years, it focused on improving the lives of Latino older adults and their caregiving families in the Montbello neighborhood of Denver.

Serving over 300 families through the work of four project Conectoras, LAWC worked with community, care network, and policy partners to advocate for improved care access and coordination for Latino older adults and the family members who care for them. Importantly, the project utilized a community needs assessment to identify needs and subsequently provide the appropriate responses, including case management, peer mental health counseling, and a variety of socialization services, as many identified isolation as a key concern in their lives. LAWC also served as an intermediary between Latino resident leaders and providers so community voices were integrated into policy practices.

Over the years, the LCFC helped build the capacity of the community leaders involved so that, by 2021, LAWC was turned over to the community. Today, the infrastructure that the Conectoras built continues to support hundreds of Latino elders, ensuring that they are able to age with dignity and respect, while honoring their language, traditions and heritage.

SOUL OF LEADERSHIP AWARD

The Soul of Leadership (SOL) Award was established in 2014 to pay homage to a Latino leader or organization that demonstrates courageous leadership, embodies high standards of integrity, and is deeply committed to the advancement of Latinos. This prestigious award is presented annually at the Our Story Forum.

Olga Gonzalez, Denver – 2021 Awardee

Born in Mexico and raised in L.A., Olga has been leading community engagement, inclusion, and equity efforts in the nonprofit space for over 28 years. She is a long-time community activist and organizer and, since 2019, Olga has served as executive director of Cultivando, which is dedicated to cultivating Latinx leadership to advance health equity. Under Olga’s leadership, the organization won a $1.9 million grant from the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment via a settlement from Suncor Energya local refinery- for air pollution violations in Commerce City over many years. Now, Cultivando serves as an official monitor of air quality for the community it serves, with the ability to document pollution coming from the refinery so people can make informed decisions about their health.

Ricardo Perez, Grand Junction – 2020 Awardee

Born in El Salvador, where his social justice, community organizing, and leadership development training work began, Ricardo has dedicated more than 30 years to this field, working with organizations in his natal country, Guatemala, and the U.S. In 2006, he helped found the Hispanic Affairs Project (HAP) in Montrose, CO, and now serves as executive director. Having planted roots in Colorado, throughout his time in the state, Ricardo has helped elevate Latino engagement in the Western Slope to new heights and has contributed to creating a cadre of new local leaders, especially women and immigrant changemakers.

San Luis Valley Immigrant Resource Center (SLVIRC), Alamosa – 2019 Awardee

With a mission to connect and empower immigrants with resources to achieve legal documentation, fulfill their economic needs and integrate into the community, SLVIRC has been doing just that since 2003. SLVIRC is anchored in a remote, underserved area of south-central Colorado, home to more than 10,000 immigrant and seasonal workers and more than 400 Q’anjob’al Mayans from Guatemala. The organization prides itself as a safe haven for community members to address, not only their immigration related questions, but also their human needs, such as work, school and community safety; mental health; and food insecurity, among others.

Betty Aragon Mitotes, Ft. Collins –2018 Awardee

The daughter of a miner, Betty migrated with her family to the historically Latino Tres Colonias neighborhood of Fort Collins in 1962. By the 1990s, she was organizing her community to address living conditions, safety issues, and other injustices. A life-long activist, Betty is founder and president of Mujeres de Colores, co-founder of Museo de las Tres Colonias, and producer of two documentaries to raise awareness and propel change, “Fort Collins, Choice City. For Whom?” about gentrification and “Hispanic Community Voices: COVID:19.” Through Betty’s leadership, “The Hand that Feeds” sculpture at Sugar Beet Park was erected in 2021 to honor the many Hispanic families who came to the region to work the sugar beet fields and become an integral part of Fort Collins.

Rosemary E. Rodriguez and Trinidad Rodriguez, Denver – 2017 Awardees

Rosemary Rodriguez’s family roots in Colorado span well over a century. She and her son, Trinidad (Trini), have dedicated their lives to public and community service, philanthropy, and other efforts to uplift the Latino community in the state and beyond. Among Rosemary’s many contributions, she served as Denver City Council member and Denver Public Schools board member. She was the founder and director of Together We Count, just part of her in-depth work in the civic engagement arena to help empower Latinos to vote and participate in the Census. A career public finance investment banker, Trini’s focus has been on municipal finance, higher education, and nonprofit clients. His community involvement is also extensive, having served on numerous civic, public, nonprofit, and foundation boards, taskforces, and committees.

Marguerite and Arnold Salazar, Alamosa –2016 Awardees

Marguerite and Arnold have spent their careers championing access to quality, comprehensive health care for all. Marguerite spent more than 25 years with Valley Wide Health Systems, one of the largest rural health centers in the country, and worked to advance the community health center movement statewide. She subsequently served as regional director for Colorado’s Health and Human Services, then as the state’s Insurance Commissioner where she worked to bring an inclusive, fair-minded regulatory approach to insurance. Arnold has been dedicated to advancing and providing community mental health services. After serving as director of the San Luis Valley Mental Health Center, he later served as CEO of Colorado Health Partnerships which included a consortium of nonprofits and covered 43 predominantly rural counties.

Salazar Family Foundation, Denver –2015 Awardee

When the Salazar Family Foundation reached its 20th anniversary a few years ago, it also celebrated $20 million of giving to Colorado organizations committed to improving the quality of education and students’ access to it. In partnership with the organizations it supports, the Foundation provides educational opportunities through scholarships, literacy programs, wellness, and classroom grants. Rob and Lola Salazar launched the foundation to support their shared belief that ensuring Latino children have educational opportunities to reach their full potential is critical to the success of both the individual students and their community.

Irene M. Ibarra, Denver – 2014 Awardee

Irene M. Ibarra and her husband Armando Quiroz were one of the 17 founding families of the LCFC. With more than 25 years’ experience as a chief executive, public policy leader, and health advocate prior to her retirement in 2010, Irene dedicated her career to improving health for children, families, and individuals and to developing policy solutions to complicated health care issues in Colorado and beyond. Irene received LCFC’s inaugural Soul of Leadership Award in 2014. Irene, who passed away in 2019, was a true champion, mentor, and friend to many. She was an example of all that the SOL Award embodies. LCFC continues to present the SOL Award to leaders and organizations who, like Irene, are deeply committed to the advancement of Latinos.

PHILANTHROPIST OF THE YEAR

In 2015, The Latino Community Foundation of Colorado established the Philanthropist of the Year Award to honor those individuals in the community who give of their time, talent and treasure but who are rarely publicly recognized by the mainstream or Latino communities for their contributions. Except for 2021 LCFC has bestowed this award on individuals and organizations since 2015.

Cecilia “Cec” Sanchez de Ortiz, Erie – 2022

The daughter of parents who moved from Mexico to plant roots in rural southeastern Colorado in the early 1900s, and the single mom of two boys, Cec has dedicated her career to working with individuals and communities to fight structural and institutionalized inequities. Tackling these issues over decades in the areas of community/economic development, healthcare access, and business development in both the public and non-profit sectors, Cec has created a lasting legacy. Her passion for this work started early on, learning from her mother, whose message was one of love, courage, and a fundamental belief in fairness for all. Cec’s recognition during this milestone year for LCFC matches the level of her commitment and impact to the foundation as well as the entire Colorado community.

Jamie and Cristalray Dominguez, Alamosa – 2020

Alamosa-area business owners, community advocates, and parents Jamie and Cristalray work tirelessly, using their talents and giving of their financial resources, to strengthen their community. In 2012, Jamie co-founded the Five Star Riders’ Car Club. Together, he and Cristalray have raised, and donated, tens of thousands of dollars for local toy drives, Thanksgiving meals for vulnerable families, support to wildfire victims, and assistance for funeral expenses to bereaved families of overdose victims. Through their leadership, they organized the community to develop a three-year suicide-prevention project for middle schools that received a $215,000 grant. Jamie and Cristalray lean on their family for support and ensure they pass down the tradition of giving back, using philanthropy to help transform their community.

Marlene De La Rosa and children LaPhonso and TaShina Salas, Denver – 2019

A lifelong volunteer and advocate, Marlene always finds opportunities to uplift her community. Her mother instilled the importance of giving back at a young age and she’s passed this down to her children. An advocate for education equity, Marlene has volunteered for the Denver Public Schools for over 20 years and served on the board of Mile-High Early Learning Centers. She’s helped lead the Latinas Give Giving Circle, which raises funds to support nonprofits in the Latino community. Marlene has been integral to the success of LCFC’s statewide forums and launch of the Latinas LEAD program. Annually, she and her children volunteer at the UnidosUS national conference. From board service, to raising money, to making sandwiches, giving back is part of Marlene’s, LaPhonso’s, and TaShina’s DNA.

Anna Jo Garcia Haynes, Denver – 2018

Born in 1934 into the Garcia family, pioneers in Colorado who left a legacy in their community, Anna Jo continues embodying – and passing on – her family’s values of giving back. For over 50 years, her visionary leadership has resulted in improving the lives of children and families. She founded Mile High Early Learning Centers, Denver’s oldest provider of quality, early childhood education, and spearheaded bringing the Head Start program to that city. She co-founded the Colorado Children’s Campaign and the Women’s Foundation of Colorado. In 2021, Colorado passed the Anna Jo Garcia Haynes Early Childhood Act, making universal pre-K accessible to all four-year old children in the state. Anna Jo not only gives of her time and talent, but also financially to help build the power of philanthropy in the Latino community. Annette Quintana and daughter Danielle Quintana Silverston, Castle Rock – 2017

A business and IT consulting firm founder and CEO, Annette shares her success as an entrepreneur with her community, working to affect positive change in the state. One of the founding families of the LCFC, Annette, a Colorado Springs native, has also served on the boards of the Latin American Education Foundation and the Denver Hispanic Chamber, among many others. Her daughter Danielle is actively contributing to her community, as well, and credits Annette with instilling in her the importance of volunteering and donating to important causes. Danielle has served on the Rose Youth Foundation board and was a founding member of the LCFC’s Young Latino Philanthropists, which raises funds to invest in the community through grants.

Rusty, Jean, and son Mitchell Gonzales, Denver – 2016

As one of the founding families of the LCFC, the Gonzaleses have been deeply involved with their community for many years. The owner and CEO of a successful construction services company since 1996, Rusty and Jean were raised to appreciate what they had and not forget about others, a value they have passed on to their children. Their son Mitchell was instrumental in building LCFC’s Young Latino Philanthropists (YLP) Giving Circle, where he served as chair for several years, contributing to YLP’s ability to grant over $100,000 to Latino-focused nonprofits. From providing families with food during the holidays and warm clothing in the winter, to giving monetary contributions to worthy organizations, when the Gonzaleses see a need, they are ready to give back, even when it means, sometimes, stretching the family financially.

Timothy and Bernadette Marquez, Denver – 2015

Retired from a long career as an oil and gas executive and entrepreneur, Tim, and his wife Bernadette, believe in hard work, persistence and taking chances. Together, Tim - a graduate of Denver Public Schools and the Colorado School of Mines - and Bernadette - who received her nursing degree from Michigan State University - have dedicated themselves to sustained and meaningful philanthropic work, including as a founding family of LCFC. They also founded the Denver Scholarship Foundation, with an initial investment of $50 million to help youth achieve their educational dreams. In 2006, they formed the Timothy and Bernadette Marquez Foundation which focuses on incentivizing big ideas in the fields of education and health care. The Marquezes’ legacy will positively impact Coloradans for years to come.

EMERGING LEADER AWARD

Emerging Latino leaders have very few opportunities to be recognized, acknowledged, and spotlighted as role models for younger generations. Thus LCFC created the Emerging Leader Award, which recognizes and celebrates young, aspiring Latinos in Colorado.

Nelly Navarro, Executive Director, Integrated Community (IC), Steamboat Springs - 2021

Born and raised in Peru, Nelly arrived in Steamboat Springs 16 years ago and, since then, she has unleashed her leadership talents to support the immigrant and refugee community of northwest Colorado. In 2019, she became the executive director of Integrated Community and the first Latinx person to lead a local nonprofit in the area. During her tenure, she has expanded services to the community, established critical partners in the community –from schools to hospitals to the police department – and led a successful campaign to purchase a permanent home for IC.

Susana Guardado, Executive Director, OneMorgan County, Fort Morgan - 2020

Susana was born in Zacatecas, Mexico, and her commitments to her community are shaped by her immigrant background and experience of living between two worlds. In 2017 she became executive director of OneMorgan County, a non-profit organization fostering community cohesion in Morgan County, a predominantly rural area in eastern Colorado. Since then, she has grown the organization to be a leading advocate for the immigrant and refugee community. Her leadership contributions have extended beyond Fort Morgan; indeed throughout Colorado, Susana has been instrumental in supporting immigrant leaders. Victor Galvan, Strategic Partnership Manager, Protégée, Denver - 2020

Victor was born is Chihuahua, Mexico and raised in Denver. For the past 15 years he has helped shape immigration policy in the state of Colorado. Notable policies include ASSET, which provides in-state tuition for undocumented students in Colorado; the expansion of the Colorado Road and Safety Act, which allows more undocumented people access to drivers’ licenses in Colorado; and Virginia’s law, which made it illegal for police to utilize ICE warrants to hold immigrants in custody for immigration. Victor also led the 2017 walk-outs to prevent the end of the DACA program, championed by thousands of undocumented youth across the country.

STORIES OF TRANSFORMATION

Donors: Ellen Alires-Trujillo and Lorenzo Trujillo

For longtime attorneys and philanthropists in Denver, Ellen and Lorenzo, giving back is a core value passed down from both sides of the couple’s respective families. The importance of giving back to their community was instilled in each of them at an early age. They were taught to be generous, and that generosity is not guided by a tax deduction, a public acknowledgement, or an award. Both agree that giving back is about unconditionally sharing one’s time, talents, and treasure.

Throughout their lives, their culture has played a significant role in how they approach life, including cultivating a philanthropic spirit. “As Latinos, we give back in unique ways. For me, giving of your talent is the most precious commodity one can share – to teach and council, to care and nurture, to pass down stories,” says Lorenzo. By sharing talents, Lorenzo believes, Latinos can contribute to building strength and power in our communities. “We become role models; we change the narrative; and we learn to celebrate the rich cultural background of our people.”

For decades, Ellen and Lorenzo have been generous with their time and talents, as well as with financial investments in their community. They see collective giving as a strength in the Latino community. “That is why we are strong supporters of LCFC. [The foundation] pools our donations and invests so that Latinos are tackling the issues in ways they know best,” says Ellen. “LCFC has shown us that we must create our own philanthropic opportunities and engage our community in ways that they feel connected.”

Leaders: Angela Tzul and Aurelio Avalos, Co-Directors, Conectoras de Montbello

Having arrived in Denver in the 1990s from Guatemala and Mexico, respectively, Angela Tzul and Aurelio Avalos have become integral to the local fabric of the community. Traversing thousands of miles from their home countries was deeply difficult but necessary - for Angela, it was to escape poverty and a lack of opportunity; for Aurelio it was to find a place to be free and live an authentic life as a gay man.

With a desire to navigate their place in society and to give back, Angela and Aurelio both sought out community service opportunities in their neighborhood, mostly through volunteerism. But that soon led to leadership courses and related training.

In 2016, Aurelio and Angela were hired for an LCFC project focused on Latino older adults. Angela recalls, “I was scared…I felt I didn’t have the proper education. But through LCFC, I learned my lived experience was far more important…that ignited my confidence to be a community leader.” Aurelio adds, “When one lacks formal education, you feel ‘less-than.’ LCFC took me on a six-year leadership journey that has changed my life. They...had the patience to invest in me over time.” Both agree, “LCFC believed in us; we felt like a bonsai tree that was constantly being cultivated.”

Today, having gone through personal and professional transformation, these tenacious, confident, and risk-taking leaders co-direct Conectoras de Montbello, which provides supportive services, advocacy, and peer mental health to older adults and their families. Angela’s and Aurelio’s leadership is providing comfort, connection, and a sense of dignity to a group of community members who are often forgotten.

Organization: Pueblo Hispanic Education Foundation

For the past 34 years, the Pueblo Hispanic Education Foundation (PHEF) has been at the forefront of advancing higher education opportunities for Latinos in Pueblo County through scholarships and support services that help ensure an optimal college experience and successful graduation. Founded in 1988 to help Latino students reach their educational dreams, and with a proven track record of doing just that, PHEF received inaugural LCFC funding in 2007 and is a current member of the Adelante Colorado cohort.

Since its inception, PHEF has provided over $7 million in scholarships to over 1,600 students on all postsecondary pathways, including four-year degrees, two-year degrees, technical school certification, and GED. PHEF has created a pipeline of opportunity that is critical to nurture the talent in their community and help students live up to their highest potential

“Over 70% of our students stay [in the local area] and want to give back,” says Janelle Quick, executive director. The connection with their students runs deep. Monica Madrid, a former PHEF scholarship recipient (1999-2001), who is now a diplomat in Washington DC, reconnected with the organization in 2020 to establish a scholarship in memory of her uncle, Roger P. Madrid which assists low-income, minority students enrolled in a full-time business-related degree program.

“This scholarship fund is to give back to PHEF and the community that helped me pay for my undergraduate degree,” says Madrid.

PHEF continues to transform the lives of hundreds of young people through access to higher education so that, like Monica, they can pay it forward as they become the next generation of leaders!

COMMUNITY PARTNER AWARD DENVER ART MUSEUM - 2020

In 2020, the Latino Community Foundation of Colorado honored the Denver Art Museum (DAM) with its first-ever Community Partner Award. Since 2014, the partnership has been strongly reciprocal supporting the missions and aspirations of both LCFC and the DAM. DAM’s openness to welcome the Latino community has meant more opportunities for meaningful engagement. Many of the Our Forum participants have expressed that attending an LCFC event at the DAM was their first time visiting the museum. These types of experiences at one of our city’s premier institutions can last a lifetime and influence families for generations to come.

ESTABLISHED PARTNERS

Caring for Colorado

The Colorado Health Foundation Colorado Finance and Housing Authority Community Language Cooperative City and County of Denver/The McNichols Civic Center

The Denver Art Museum

The Denver Center for Performing Arts Department of Local Affairs, State of Colorado ForSci Associates

History Colorado Center

Grantmakers Concerned with Immigrants and Refugees Jay & Rose Phillips Family Foundation of Colorado Molson Coors

Rose Community Foundation

Truce Media Collective Unidos US W.K. Kellogg Foundation

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Chair Elaine Torres

Director of Community and Strategic Partnerships CBS4

Secretary

Midy Aponte

Former Chief Experience Officer Spitfire Strategies

Treasurer

Thomas Bryan, CPA Chief Financial Officer Colorado Housing and Finance Authority

Yesenia Silva-Estrada Executive Director of Strategic Initiatives Colorado Mountain College

Elsa Holguín President and CEO Denver Preschool Program

Eric Ishiwata, PhD Associate Professor, Ethnic Studies Colorado State University

Guillermo J. Lambarri Director of External Affairs and Legislative Affairs AT&T – CO, WY

Debora Ortega, PhD Professor, Founding Director of Latinx Center University of Denver

Susana Salamun Director of Staff Development Alpine Bank

Gloria M. Schoch Executive Director and Senior Director of Global Impact, VF Foundation

Hollie Velasquez Horvath Regional Vice President, State Affairs and Community Relations Xcel Energy

PAST BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Adriana Abarca Raydean Acevedo

Ariel Cisneros

Luis Colón

Gay Cook Sue Damour

Mitchell Gonzales Diego Hunt

Monique Lovato

Ron E. Montoya

Antonio Parès

Theresa Peña

Gary Poling Martha Rubi

Gloria Rubio Cortez

STAFF

Carlos Martinez, President and CEO

Ezzie Baltierra-Chavez, Administrative Assistant

Rachel M. Griego, Senior Vice President, Community Innovation and Strategic Partnerships

Priscilla Montoya, Vice President, Development and Communications

Kourtney Rimbert, Director of Finance and Human Resources

Kaitlyn Throgmorton, Program Assistant

Sonya Ulibarri, Chief Impact Officer

PAST STAFF

Diana Aldapa

Ryan Ayala

Ashley Cano

Enrique Cintrón

Diamond Garcia

Denise Gomez

Mayra Gonzáles

Marisa Krueger

Andrea Girón Mathern

Nicole Melaku

Yolanda Quezada

Marcelina Rivera

Brenda Rodriguez-Vera

Leticia Salinas

Alexis Whitham

Daniela Young

ADVISORS

Fernando Aguirre, Development

Andres Casas, Investment Committee

Dalia Dorta de Gonzalez, Adelante Colorado

Nita Gonzales, Adelante Colorado

Johanna Leyba, Gayle Warner, Kim Sanchez, Evaluation Team

Jennifer Lopez, Communities of Color Loan Fund

Letter Shop, Marketing

Brayan Montes, YAMZ World of Color, Design ModKaf, Public Relations

Alejandro Monarez, Communities of Color Loan Fund

Cec Ortiz, Confluence Denver Gloria Price, Development

Monica Rowers, Adelante Colorado

Emma Schwarz, Finance & Communities of Color Loan Fund

LaDawn Sullivan, Communities of Color Loan Fund

Garland Yates, Community Democracy

A special thank you to the following for making this commemorative book possible:

Molson Coors

Carlos Martinez

Laurie Shields Design

Lisa Ramirez

Priscilla Montoya

Print Partners L.L.C.

Rachel Griego

TaShina Salas

And to the many photographers who contributed over the years

A LETTER TO LCFC COMMUNITY CONCERNING LOS ROBLES DE NUESTRA RAZA

Hermano/as, it feels good to be writing after much time away from this gift I neglect too often. Thank you for your prompting, your wish for our Raza, la Raza Cosmica, Nuestra Gente. I feel as though I am writing to you, not as myself but as this vessel of my ancestors whose roots have worked their unstoppable and protective fingers into the dark and rich soil of my soul. For that, I thank you, the reminder of their sacrifice, their love, their strength, their suffering so that I might not.

Sometimes, I feel as though the world is spinning away from each of us, but ironically it feels as though there is too much weight to bear, too many problems – problems all at once...loan officers denying not just a loan but our existence; children in cages; a pandemic that makes us choose between our health and our work; teachers that instruct us to hate both of our tongues; a world that works to make us anonymous and ordinary – ya sabes, I could go on and on here, perhaps for centuries. It is at times like this, when I feel like, perhaps, our lives are spent in shadow and oppression that I come to realize that really we are in the cool shade and liberation of los robles de los antepasados.

I have considered their blessings for some time now, counted them as protectors. I imagine, somehow, they led me and my wife Michele, our school and our community to you and therefore LCFC. We both know there are no accidents or coincidences where the swift axe of racism and prejudice are concerned; every blow is intentional. So too, there are no accidents or blind luck when we are called to stand together, a stand of robles with roots so deep they touch pyramids, lakes, suns and oceans – wood so strong it builds anew our history from the lessons of its strength, its scars, is collective memory of survival. I read somewhere that in its lifetime a single oak produces 10 million acorns. Think about that. That’s 10 million opportunities to live, thrive, grow, stand, protect, build, prosper – nuestra gente, nuestra roble having existed on this planet for 65 million years. I am writing to you on the occasion of LCFC’s quince, born from such a seed as those I have just described. Yet there is this sense of a tree already fully grown. In this analogy there is both hope and strength, and for those two gifts you and your organization have given La Raza de Colorado, I thank you.

Like those of our ancestors, the roots of LCFC must do the work of keeping the tree alive, keep it firm against the ice of ignorance; the blizzards of lies about our worth and place in this country; against the droughts of despair that many of us have inherited from the schools, systems and a society that sought and still seeks to say we are inferior; and what of the tornadoes of hatred, malice, colonialism, and the criminalization of just existing – against all of this and so much more the roots must hold strong.

I wonder, too, of the tree itself – all that it protects, endures, represents, its lifespan of over one thousand years, the shade it will offer to our own ancestors because ours wished and worked it to be so by walking through so much weather on their own journey, planting their own power and gifts knowing full well that they might not realize the tree in their own lives. Our gente, at least in my observations find heroism not in the caped and the superpowered but in the humble and the sacrificial. Our loved ones and therefore our ancestors gave so wholly that their mettle, their raices, their protective shade still gives. This is our inheritance – written in blood, in justice, in survival, in song, in story, in the fallen, in broken promises, in whispered prayer; written in the work of so many of our heroes, not for their own triumph but work done with the knowledge that our lives will and must be given to the same labor – humble and giving – the vocation of planting and building simultaneously. This is the effort of what we do, to live in at least three places all at once and do so with multiple languages and the awareness that we are made of our past, our future, and our present – los robles of our resilience, our poder and our love.

Feliz cumpleaños a LCFC, a todos que trabajan para la justicia y nuestra familia, nuestra gente. Congratulations on being that oak for so many of us, for showing us our depth and our power – that which is obvious and that which is invisible but there nonetheless, those gifts we have inherited and possess made real and alive by our presence, our voices, our work and our survival.

Su Amigo, Aaron Abeyta

Colorado Native Professor Past Mayor of Antonito Poet Laureate of Colorado’s Western Slope Recipient of Colorado’s Governors Creative Leadership Award