National Hispanic/Latinx Heritage month is a time to recognize and celebrate the contributions, diverse cultures and the extensive histories of the Hispanic/Latinx community. At the Y, we believe our communities are stronger when everyone feels welcome and we work together for the common good. This month, we're celebrating our staff and the impact they have made on our community.

Antonio Valencia

What is your title and how long have you been with the Y?

I am the membership services supervisor, and I am currently in my third year at the YMCA.

What do you do at the Y?

I oversee the membership department and process all of the financial aid ... Our goal as a department is to remove all barriers of access to people of the community and never turn people away, as well as providing them with the resources they need for any challenge they may be enduring.

What is your favorite thing about your job?

My coworkers. They genuinely feel like they are part of my family and the sense of comradery that we have. We are always eating our favorite snacks and introducing one another to different little treats that we like. We also get together often outside of work, chat about life and just support each other in the stuff that we go through. They genuinely make my job the best part about my day.

What would you like the community to know about Hispanic/Latinx heritage month?

It is a time to celebrate all of the achievements of the Hispanic Community, as well as a time to enjoy what the culture has to offer such as art and food.

What is something you are proud of about your heritage and background?

I really appreciate the fact that in my culture, we always tend to put their families first. Family is the most important thing to us, and it is what keeps us grounded, happy and gives us a sense of belonging.


Celina Ibarra

What is your title and how long have you been with the Y?

I am the engagement and referral specialist for the Community Health & Well-Being Program. 

What do you do at the Y? 

My role at the Y is to learn, engage and navigate community resources that I can translate to participants in our programs through direct referrals. In addition, I support our program's outreach efforts to promote our free community events. These events range from health education clinics, nutrition workshops and immunizations. We try to promote community health in every facet of our work and part of that includes hosting events that encourage belonging in our community. 

What is your favorite thing about your job? 

There are many things I love about my job, but my favorite is being able to engage with community members on a daily basis. This includes our staff as I consider us all a part of the same community. 

What would you like the community to know about Hispanic/Latinx heritage month? 

I'm very grateful that the Y makes an effort to highlight the different cultures of the people that work in this organization. I think I would like to highlight that people who fall under the umbrella of a Hispanic/ Latinx/a/o label may not always identify with this label and it is important to acknowledge the nuance in each culture. In my case I identify as Mexican, and I celebrate that heritage during this month.  

What is something you are proud of about your heritage and background? 

As a first-generation Mexican immigrant, I feel very connected to my culture and I am happy to share about what makes me proud to be Mexican. In my own experience, our culture can be very warm and inviting. We are loud, fun and love art, music and futbol! I highly recommend travel in Mexico, especially to pre-hispanic archeological sites that provide a glimpse of the indigenous cultures that existed on this land hundreds of years ago.


Elsa Miranda

What is your title and how long have you been with the Y? 

Elsa is a supervisor at Magdalena Ecke Family YMCA.

What do you do at the Y? 

She has been with the YMCA of San Diego for over 20 years in several Member Services roles at various YMCA locations: Palomar, Customer Care Center and currently as a Supervisor.

What would you like the community to know about you? 

She is a mother of five and grandmother of four and lovingly called Queen Elsa ... Elsa is very family focused, loves working at the YMCA and enjoys spending time with her family, going to church and traveling (just went to Puerto Rico for a vacation)!


Justin Lipford

What is your title and how long have you been with the Y?

I am the Y’s Director of CommUNITY Engagement and Belonging. I have been with the Y for over 9 years.

What do you do at the Y? 

I work to increase the Y’s visibility and impact in the community, focusing on our marginalized parts of town. On top of that I work to increase the quality of our culture. My hope is to embody our organization’s values in all I do: Authenticity, Integrity, Innovation, and Belonging.

What is your favorite thing about your job? 

The people. I feel connected to everyone, at all levels of the organization. I believe we are bound by our burning passion to help humanity. This is the energy that I thrive in.

What would you like the community to know about Hispanic/Latinx heritage month? 

Brown is beautiful. Brown is bold. Brown is love and Brown is gold. Brown is us. Brown is this town. Brown is how my people get down. Brown transcends a month.

Which leaders, artists, friends, or family members inspire and guide you in your life? 

My grandfather, Jesus Rosas came to the US from Jalisco during World War 2 through the Bracero program. He came with nothing but ambition and a heart full of love. He dedicated his life to helping and loving his people. I try to keep his legacy alive through all I do.


Veronica Medoza

What is your title and how long have you been with the Y?

I am a housing case manager and have been with the Y for three years.

What is your favorite thing about your job? 

Something I enjoy about my job is seeing the progress some of my participants have made since starting the program.

What would you like the community to know about Hispanic/Latinx heritage month? 

I want the community to know that Hispanic Heritage Month is an opportunity to recognize and celebrate Hispanics impact. It's also a time to appreciate the strong sense of unity.

What is something you are proud of about your heritage and background? 

I am proud of about the strong emphasis that my heritage places on family values, faith, traditions, support and togetherness.


Jessica Cruz

What is your title and how long have you been with the Y?

I am a senior membership services representative at Mission Valley YMCA.

What do you do at the Y? 

I get to help members with not only the back end of signing up and helping them out with their accounts, but also meeting and maintaining relationships with all types of people from different backgrounds.

What is your favorite thing about your job? 

My favorite part of my job is that I am able to talk to members about everything and anything and the connections I make here are so sincere. I have been here since 2019 and I now have so many members that I can call friends.

What is something you are proud of about your heritage and background? 

This month is special for me as I am both Mexican and Salvadorean. I can celebrate both countries in different ways. I love this month because Hispanics are so proud about where we come from, what we've accomplished and where we are going.

Which leaders, artists, friends, or family members inspire and guide you in your life? 

​I'm proud of where my parents came from and all the things and memories from their culture that they brought along to share with their children like the food recipes, the celebrations, the culture, and I'm blessed to be able to keep it going by sharing it with my own children. Viva la Raza! 


Marisol Garcia

What is your title and how long have you been with the Y?

I’m a proud group fitness instructor and have been teaching for 13.5 years. I teach yoga, barre, mat Pilates, Zumba and BODYPUMP. I have been with the Y on and off for the past 5 years. 

What is your favorite thing about your job? 

As a military family, I love serving military families and gyms where community is strong which is why the Y has been a great fit for me and where I feel most at home. My favorite thing about my job is connecting with my students and motivating them to lead healthy lives and to look to movement as a key to their longevity and health. I love seeing the same consistent and dedicated faces every week, they inspire me to be better for them - and I love meeting new people!

What is something you are proud of about your heritage and background?

I want people to know how proud Latinos are and how hardworking we are as a people...we work hard....and keep family and connections with others as a top priority!

Which leaders, artists, friends, or family members inspire and guide you in your life? 

I'm a first generation Chicana with Mexican roots, born and raised in Los Angeles, and the first in my family to go to college. My parents believe in a good education and toeing faith to move ahead in life. They raised 3 daughters to be professionals in their fields, working as doctors, counselors and teachers/fitness professionals. I'm blessed and grateful to be at the Y!Viva Latinx Heritage Month! Si se puede!


Ayarim De Anda Avendano 

What is your title and how long have you been with the Y? 

I am the project director II and have 12 years at the Y.

What do you do at the Y? 

I support several grants through our CSS & CRS departments, help facilitate trainings for staff and community members. I also do several outreach events in the community as well as work with community partners to bring additional programming to our community members.

What is your favorite thing about your job?

I love being able to connect community members to the many programs, activities and resources that the Y has to offer. I love that we support communities and empower them to be their best self and eliminate barriers in order for them to be successful.

What would you like the community to know about Hispanic/Latinx Heritage Month? 

Hispanic/Latinx heritage month is a time to embrace that we are the 200% and that we are both from here and there. Embracing our culture with our American success stories. Somos de aqui y de alla.

What is something you are proud of about your heritage and background? 

I am very proud of my Mexican heritage and our beautiful culture. How it bleeds into everything that I do and has this magical influence full of life, color and flavor. The balance of being both strong and delicate, the beauty in the resilience to make our dreams come true and not let anything get in the way. Most of all the passion we have when we set our minds to something and to be vocal and stand up for what we believe.


Prizila Vidal

What is your title and how long have you been with the Y?

I joined in 2018 left due to the pandemic in 2021 and returned this past June!!!

What do you do at the Y? 

Until this October I am a social work case manager-LGBTQ+ Safe STAY Wellness Center- residential supervisor, then I am switching over to be a support specialist within the same program.

What is your favorite thing about your job? 

Being able to use my lived experience to guide those and aide the resident's in my program to be on the journey to live independently & self-sufficient!!!

What would you like the community to know about Hispanic/Latinx Heritage Month? 

It's a very diverse culture, very vibrant and colorful!

What is something you are proud of about your heritage and background? 

The music, I live and breathe music, it is very diverse, very inspirational!!


Fatima Barbosa-Perez

What is your title and how long have you been with the Y? 

I’m a support specialist – and I’ve been working with the YMCA for 4 years and 9 months. I started as a summer camp counselor and transitioned into a youth development teacher and now into a Support specialist for Housing Our Youth.

What do you do at the Y? 

I use my knowledge to provide services for youth between the ages of 18 and 24 to either interrupt their homelessness or prevent it from occurring. My main goal is helping them feel supported and developing the skills for getting out of the situation that they’re in.

What is your favorite thing about your job? 

Seeing outcomes and seeing the youth that I work with grow beyond their barriers. I have worked with from many different walks of life including young people that were living in their car to people with severe mental illness and it was admirable to see that they don’t let their circumstance that stop them from reaching their potential.

What would you like the community to know about Hispanic/Latinx Heritage Month? 

We all show up for each other’s purpose and we work as a community to uproot injustices. I feel that we see something wrong and we join together even as strangers to protect those in need and stand up. I think this is a reflection of how the Hispanic community wants to help others and I am proud to be a part of it.

What is something you are proud of about your heritage and background? 

We go above and beyond for people and we’re not afraid to embrace it. I feel like Hispanic communities adapt to embrace others and make them feel welcomed. Both of my parents immigrated from Mexico and they brought a lot of the Hispanic culture with them and I feel like I have been given the opportunities to break intergenerational barriers. I feel motivated to rise above the barriers that were presented to me because I want to be an example for others. People, like Justin, represent our culture very well. Once he gave me a button that said “si se puede” which translates to "we can do it" in English and it made me feel welcomed as a primarily Spanish speaker. I want to be that for others!


Miriam Martinez 

What is your title and how long have you been with the Y? 

Miriam has spent her entire professional career serving the South Bay Family YMCA community and families. Miriam came to us in 2006 as a part time staff and college student. Miriam was promoted to a Program Director in 2008 overseeing our State Funded Title 5 program at Cook Elementary and our Preschool. Miriam took our Preschool program to a whole new level of excellence.  Under her leadership we created the famous preschool graduation ceremony that grew to performances with preschoolers in caps and gowns. Miriam has been recognized across the San Diego Y for the high quality that she brought into the preschool scoring the highest quality rating of any preschool in our association. 

What do you do at the Y? 

Miriam creates a culture of nurturing, compassion, and accountability. Anyone that knows her knows that she is the most positive leader and really takes the time to see all perspectives.Miriam received the Sue Miller Excellence in Child and Youth Development Leadership Award in 2022 at the South Bay Family YMCA. She was the 2nd recipient to receive this award which was inaugurated in 2021, shortly after Sue’s passing. Miriam developed a partnership with Quality Preschool Initiative and Preschool for All which helped the Y provide preschool funding for families that couldn’t afford it. Miriam was then promoted to our CYD Department Head overseeing the largest Character Builders  program in the county, DASH, Child Watch and now Day Camp. We are so blessed to have Miriam on our team!


Carlos Malagamba

What is your title and how long have you been with the Y?

Carlos Malagamba is the Membership Director at the South Bay Family Y and Border View Family Y. Since arriving to the YMCA, Carlos has been an extremely dedicated employee and a wonderful asset to the team.  He has been our leader for the Traction Rec conversion leading trainings and managing this major change initiative. Carlos was a key leader in the reopening of Border View, often supporting the front-line staff directly as we build up the resources and capacity to hire more staff. 

What do you do at the Y? 

He hired our first Resource Engagement Specialist as a hybrid position with membership, a position that we are piloting at the Centers of Wellbeing.  The RES supports community members and Y members by linking them to various resources in the community such as housing, food, mental health counseling, utility assistance, medical assistance and YMCA resources, just to name a few.  They are also leading the charge in developing a case management system so we can better track the support we are providing people and are able to follow-up with them and link them with other organizations. Carlos has done a great job of reintroducing the Y to the Border View community after several years of not offering wellness programs, and membership continues to grow at both branches under his leadership. He also sends staff (or attends himself) to as many outreach activities as possible (festivals, health fairs, etc), to promote the Y. We are so blessed to have Carlos on our team!