Nominated by Assemblymember Lisa Calderon

Ruby Dueñas is a lifelong Whittier resident, first-generation college student, and proud daughter to immigrant parents.

She is a product of her local public school districts: Whittier City and Whittier Union High. Ruby received her Bachelor of Arts in Political Science and Spanish at California State University, Fullerton. During her schooling, she volunteered her time internationally working with host countries on sustainable development projects designed to improve infrastructure, education, sanitation, and the environment.

In 2016, Ms. Dueñas joined the California State Assembly and worked for Assembly Majority Leader Ian Calderon as his intern, Field Representative, Senior Field Representative and, ultimately, District Director. In this capacity, she has worked diligently addressing the issues of immigration, the youth, and K-12 education. She is currently the District Director for Assemblymember Lisa Calderon and is proud to continue serving her hometown district, the 56^th Assembly District.

As the beneficiary of strong Latina leadership, the Honorable Lisa Calderon and her Chief of Staff Lucia Saldivar have guided Ms. Dueñas’ professional development and success as a liaison between her district and the State Assembly. During the COVID-19 pandemic, Ruby was instrumental in developing and implementing policy objectives, strategies, and effective coalition building. This led to her handling and supporting her team with spikes in casework for constituents, distributing critical resources and vaccination clinics to her communities, and hosting a much-needed College and Career Fair in a virtual platform. She also worked in supporting her Member to establish the first regional LGBTQ+ Center in her hometown, which is set to open this upcoming September.

Additionally, during her time in the California State Assembly, Ms. Dueñas has engaged stakeholders and served to support her community’s ongoing needs through infrastructure funding for fire stations, open space, parks, and much more. She is most proud of her work engaging Spanish-speaking communities throughout unincorporated Los Angeles County. This earned her the distinction of the Community Leader award by El Arbol de San Jose in South San Jose Hills (unincorporated La Puente).

Her mom sparked her interest in giving back to her community; as she would cook hundreds of burritos during her free time to hand out to unhoused neighbors. Ruby continues engaging as a Project Lead supporting the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority efforts and volunteering with her mom to provide meals and blankets to those in need.

Ms. Dueñas served as the co-chair of the California Democratic Party Credentialing Committee and is currently a member of both the California Democratic Party and the Los Angeles County Democratic Party.

Ruby leads with compassion and most importantly, hopes to continue to empower the next generation of young leaders just as the communities that raised her have done for her.

She continues residing in unincorporated Whittier and, in her spare time, enjoys reading, running, and golfing.

Nominated by Assemblymember Wendy Carrillo

For over 20 years, Kristie has led a life in public service with a passion for government relations, legislative affairs, policy advocacy, and community engagement. Kristie’s professional experience extends into every level of government – local, state, federal, and the executive branch.

Ms. Hernandez has worked in the classroom with students at the Los Angeles Unified School District, advocated with the national Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund, and represented the California State Legislature’s Senate Majority Leader. She also advocated for medically vulnerable communities while at AltaMed Health Services – the largest federally qualified health center organization in the country.

In 2014, Kristie was appointed by then President Barack Obama to serve at the Department of Defense (DoD) in the Office of Legislative Affairs as a legislative liaison to the United States Congress. While at the Pentagon, she advised the Office of the Secretary of Defense and senior leadership on sensitive military personnel and readiness portfolios. Kristie coordinated and prepared DoD leadership for Congressional engagements and committee hearings to uphold the department’s policies and budget priorities. In 2017, Kristie continued serving in the Obama Administration as the Deputy Director of Congressional Relations at Peace Corps Headquarters. She advised the Director and senior leadership on legislative priorities and strategies.

After working in Washington, D.C., Kristie returned to Los Angeles and served as the Director of UCLA’s Office of Veterans Affairs Relations. Kristie worked with leadership at UCLA and the VA of Greater Los Angeles (VAGLA) to ensure compliance of the newly implemented VA lease agreement. She administered UCLA’s 10 year commitment of $16.5 million to provide supplemental veteran-related programming housed on the VAGLA campus. Kristie championed the Chancellor’s veteran-related initiatives, which served as a national model for how institutions of higher education can successfully partner with their regional VA health facilities. Under her leadership, she elevated UCLA’s growing commitment to military veterans and their families. Consequently, she advanced the university’s efforts to empower the military-connected population on campus and throughout Los Angeles County.

Kristie most recently supported The Boeing Company’s National Strategy and Engagement team. She was responsible for their government relations and community engagement efforts in Southern California. Kristie interfaced with internal leaders and external partners, managing relationships with government, aerospace, and community stakeholders. She led Boeing’s community investment strategies and STEM partnerships in California focused on high school, workforce development and military veterans. She also facilitated employee engagement opportunities, and promoted employee-giving campaigns.
Kristie carries over her passion for advocacy to promote civic and community engagement in her hometown of East Los Angeles. She serves on several non-profit boards and committees in the Greater Los Angeles area, including the Weingart East Los Angeles YMCA and Eastmont Community Center. She is also the Chairperson of her local Neighborhood Community Advisory Council.

Kristie earned her Master of Public Administration with a Certificate in Public Policy at the University of Southern California, and graduated with her Bachelor of Arts from the University of California, Los Angeles. She is a proud K-12 LAUSD alumna and California native from Unincorporated East Los Angeles, where she currently resides.

Nominated by Assemblymember Blanca Rubio

Azucena Maldonado is a trailblazer on a mission to transform girls’ and women’s lives through golf. She founded the Latina Golfers Association (LGA) in 2008 to introduce Latinas to the sport of golf for their personal, educational, and professional development. Women learn how to leverage golf as a business tool so they can advance in their careers/businesses and shatter the glass ceiling with a golf ball. The LGA empowers girls through its mentorship and leadership development programs that guide them on how to use golf as a fairway to a higher education. What started as a passion and love of the game quickly turned into a movement with over 3,000 members in Los Angeles County and many more throughout Southern California, Texas and the United States. The Latina Golfers Association is an official strategic partner with the PGA of America and Callaway Golf for whom Azucena is an Ambassador.

Azucena has received numerous awards and recognition for her efforts to introduce Latinas to golf. In 2023 she was featured in Hispanic Executive’s inaugural sports edition. In 2022 the NFL Chargers recognized Azucena as their Latino Heritage honoree and she was featured on the cover of Celebrando Latinas in 2021. In 2020 she was bestowed the National Latina Champion Award from Latinas & Power and 2019 brought her many recognitions including the Brillante Award from PROSPANICA (A national organization of Latino MBAs) at their national conference in Orlando. She also received the Woman of the Year award from the National Hispanic Business Women’s Association (NHBWA) and the Latina Style Magazine Leadership Award.

Azucena serves on the executive board of the California Alliance for Golf. And the United States Golf Association’s Advocacy Working Group Committee and the PGA Of America Southern California Section Advisory Board, as well as the National Golf Course Superintendents Association Advisory Board. Additionally she sits on the Golf Advisory Committees of the City of Los Angeles and the County of Los Angeles.

An important component of Latina Golfers Association is its outreach to girls and young ladies. In its eighth year of operation, the LGA’s Golf In The Park program provides free summer golf lessons at Los Angeles’ inner-city county parks. The LGA also created a Leadership Through Golf program for girls and women. Introducing girls to golf is of special importance. To that end they have initiated middle and high school girls golf programs that not only teach them the fundamentals of golf but also introduce them to careers in the golf industry that include hands-on experience including a mentorship program. In addition to fundraising and providing golf clubs, equipment, and golf attirec for the girls, the LGA takes the girls on golf outings and provides them with a valuable mentorship experience. The Latina Golfers Association Foundation, a 501(c)(3) organization was created in 2022 to further the LGA’s work on a community level.

Nominated by Senator Maria Elena Durazo

Diana Alfaro (she/her/ella) is the Associate Executive Director of Central City Neighborhood Partners. With years of experience in community mobilizing, Diana has a deep appreciation for how CCNP seeks to improve the quality of life of Angelenos, one program at a time. As a leader, Diana hopes to continue fostering the relationship with the community by providing adequate resources and services. Her ultimate goal is to create a healthy, happy environment within CCNP and make a lasting impact.

Born and raised in Southeast Los Angeles, Diana knows firsthand how the social determinants of health affect one’s ability to live a long and healthy life. Diana’s mission is to educate and empower community members to be agents of change and to keep striving for a better future. Previously, Diana served as a teaching assistant, research coordinator, and graduate mentor, where she dedicated herself to empowering and uplifting the voices of young adults.

Diana is a Certified Health Education Specialist (CHES) and holds a Master of Public Health Degree with a concentration in Community Health Sciences from UCLA’s Fielding School of Public Health. Diana grounds herself by striving to be an active advocate for social and health justice among communities that have been historically marginalized, disenfranchised, and oppressed. In her free time, she enjoys traveling and spending quality time with friends and family.

Nominated by Senate Majority Leader Lena Gonzalez

Gaby Hernandez (she/her) serves as the Executive Director for the ORALE: Organizing Rooted in Abolition, Liberation, and Empowerment. Gaby was born and lived in Mexico City until she was twelve years old and moved to Oceanside, CA where she grew up before moving to Long Beach five years ago. Her life experiences as an undocumented woman have fueled her passion and commitment for social justice and immigrant rights. She’s an abolitionist who believes in the importance of people power and grassroots organizing in order to make real systemic change. Gaby received her Master of Arts in Applied Anthropology and a Bachelor of Arts in Anthropology with a minor in International Studies from California State University, Long Beach.

Nominated by Senator Marie Alvarado-Gil

Maribel Delgado is Vice President and Deputy General Counsel of Gallo, where her focus has been in global alcohol beverage law, distributor affairs, advertising and promotions law and contracts. Currently, she leads Gallo’s legal team supporting U.S. Sales, Marketing, and Regulatory functions.  She is also responsible for Gallo’s Government Affairs function at the federal and state level including management of the company’s retained lobbyists and acting as company representative for various trade associations in the wine, spirits, and glass manufacturing areas.  Maribel also serves on the Legal Department Leadership Team.

In 2020, Maribel served as an inaugural member of Gallo’s Diversity and Inclusion Council for a two-year period.  During that time the Council developed and set Gallo’s strategic action plan and accountabilities to successfully embed diversity and inclusion into Gallo’s culture.  She is an active participant in Gallo’s La Casa Employee Resource Group, which is dedicated to fostering an environment that empowers and unites Latinos to develop, influence, and magnify cultural awareness across the company.  Maribel is currently serving on the board of Derechos, Stanford University’s Latino Pre-Law and Public Service organization, where she provides guidance and feedback on the organization’s initiatives, strengthening alumni relations, and fundraising.  She is often invited to speak to students in elementary, junior high, high school and college where she shares her personal story and path to success to empower Latino students to pursue their own professional aspirations.

Prior to joining Gallo in 2003 Maribel was in private practice for eight years in large law firms in San Francisco.  Immediately prior to joining Gallo, she was an associate at McCutchen, Doyle, Brown & Enerson (later Bingham McCutchen).  At Bingham McCutchen she represented and advised a variety of private and public companies on general corporate transactions and securities law matters.  Before Bingham McCutchen, Maribel was a litigation associate at Hancock, Rothert & Bunshoft.  While at Hancock she worked on all aspects of state and federal complex commercial litigation cases, including environmental coverage actions, breach of contract, products liability, and defense of ski resorts in California and Nevada.

Now a naturalized U.S. citizen, Maribel was born in Tijuana, Mexico and raised by a single mom in L.A.  She received her Bachelor of Arts in Psychology and Political Science from Stanford University in 1992, and her Juris Doctorate degree from U.C. Berkeley’s School of Law in 1995.

Nominated by Assembly Majority Leader Emerita Eloise Gomez Reyes

Graciela Moran serves as the Associate Director of Policy and Community Engagement at the Inland Empire Community Foundation. In her role, she oversees the Office of Policy and Engagement, leading the Foundation’s public policy initiatives and community engagement efforts such as California Jobs First and the Governor’s Masterplan for Career Education. Graciela builds strategies and influence through deep collaboration with community-based organizations and partners while bridging institutional relationships and cultivating partnerships with publicly elected and appointed leaders. At IECF she champions efforts of creating belonging and a civic muscle, all the while driving forward plans to advance strategies that promote equity and inclusion in humane housing, meaningful work & wealth, and lifelong learning. These goals, developed in collaboration with diverse coalition partners, aim to establish legacies in the Inland Empire.

As the proud daughter of Mexican immigrants from Colima, Mexico, Graciela consistently reflects on the women in her lineage who dreamt of having choices. With that dream in mind, her father crossed deserts and borders fearlessly to give Graciela that choice. Her first hand experiences drive her commitment to the Inland Empire – a region that provided her family an opportunity that her ancestors could only dream of. She hopes to build lasting legacies in California and help people transition from suffering and struggling to thriving. Graciela holds a Bachelor’s degree in Global Studies from California State University, San Bernardino and a Master’s in Public Administration from San Diego State University. Throughout her time at those institutions, she was a Student Body President amidst the pandemic, an award-winning researcher and a first-generation college graduate – the first in her family to pursue a graduate degree.

Nominated by Assemblymember Esmeralda Soria