CON SABOR! NAME Pilar O’Leary OCCUPATION Director, Smithsonian Latino Center HER SUBSTANCE Increasing awareness of Latino culture HER STYLE Flawless refinement Life is all about the journey, and few people have a passage as purposeful as Pilar O’Leary’s. She worked as a high-powered lawyer in New York for JP Morgan and Goldman Sachs before moving to Washington to work at Fannie Mae. Then she decided to leave the corporate world to pursue a more fulfilling vocation – increasing awareness of Latino heritage and history at the illustrious Smithsonian Institution. Pilar is responsible for fulfilling the Center’s mission to foster understanding and appreciation of Latino history and culture through the use of the Smithsonian’s museums and collections. Under her direction, the Center has awarded more than $1.2 million in federal funding to more than 20 projects. She also launched the “Young Ambassadors” program, a national educational initiative for Hispanic high school seniors gifted in the arts. The program provides 24 students selected out of a nationwide pool of applicants an opportunity to receive an educational grant and spend a week in an intensive seminar at the Smithsonian. Under her leadership this September, the Center held its first black-tie gala benefit “Smithsonian con Sabor” and raised over $600,000 for its programs. Pilar is happily married to Bill O’Leary, and is a mother of two little girls. In her nomination, her coworker, Isabel Lara, described her as “an inspiration ... a tireless worker who is committed to ensuring that Latino contributions to this country’s cultural heritage are appreciated and highlighted.”
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