In celebration of Women’s History Month, the Association of Latino Professionals For America (ALPFA), planned a brunch for the Latina women in the community. 

Upon arrival at the brunch, guests were greeted with multiple members of ALPFA and were even gifted a little box with goodies. They also had a photo booth where a member would take a picture using a polaroid camera.

Once inside the meeting room, they had a wonderful spread of food and drink options like bagels, yogurts, variations of sandwiches, orange juice, and hot coffee. They also had a few sweet treats like mini cupcakes and multiple types of cookies.

After giving everyone some time to settle down with some food, Cynthia Vargas, the Vice President of Marketing (VPM), talked about what they had planned for the brunch. She then introduced Chris Paredes, the President of ALPFA and Suleiny Altamirano VP of Women of ALPFA.

Then she brought in the four panelists. The panelists introduced themselves and talked about their careers and some of the hardships they encountered. 

Mariza Hardin, the Co-Founder & COO of Zocalo Health and a business leader with more than 15 years of policy experience, believes that the Latino community deserves a health care experience where they feel seen and heard. She wanted a health care team that spoke their language, delivers compassionate care, and aligns with their culture.

Hardin founded Zócalo Health in 2021 with a vision to enhance the primary care experience and overall health journey for Latino families. She currently serves as chief operating officer for the company.

Prior to leading Zócalo Health, Hardin was on the founding team for Amazon Care and AWS’s Health and Human Service Vertical where she led business development initiatives for Amazon customers.

Sixta Morel was a former TV host, producer of Gente, Historias y Emociones podcast, she was born in the Dominican Republic and established in Seattle. 

Morel works as a voice actress for clients all over the world, in English and Spanish, she was able to interpret from the “cool millennial mom” to the “revel teen”, or even a toddler boy.

Morel’s voice can be heard in Commercials, E-learning, Audiobooks, Corporate narration, Radio ads, Political spots, Dubbing and Animation projects. She even won an award from the Society of Voice Arts and Science, SOVAS for the podcast of real life stories that she produces and narrates.

Dr. Elba Moise, a UW inclusion and community program manager, was born in Houston to parents from El Salvador and Haiti, she has observed the power of inclusive learning environments throughout her life. As of recently, she has accepted the Women’s History Month Proclamation from the Bellevue City Council at Bellevue City Hall.

Eileen Lambert, chapter director women in tech Seattle, is a second gen Latinx Strategy Consultant and Tech and Climate Community Builder. Her experience includes 10 years of Data Driven Sr. Program/Project Management experience consulting with Fortune 500 companies – including F5, AWS, Microsoft, Disney, and Starbucks.

When asked, “What is one of the biggest challenges they faced?” Hardin said, “I could spend all day talking about the challenges of being a female, being a female of color and trying to find room at the table in places like the federal government and in places like Amazon and now in the startup world were I have to raise up into central capitol where everybody I have to pitch to doesn’t look like me.”

Another question asked of the panel was, “What are the challenges that come with making life changing decisions and how do you navigate those challenges?”  

Sixta said, “I had to tell myself this is the plan, what are we gonna do with our time now? I couldn’t at the time because I was on my husband’s visa, so I went back to school. I took a course here at UW, I started volunteering, with something in mind that was clear in my head that I wanted to go back to my career some way or another.”

After a few questions that were asked by Gabby, a new member of the ALPFA, they let four of the attendees ask any questions they had for the panelists. 

One woman asked, “How do I separate myself from just being a mom and having time to focus on my career?”And another woman inquired, “How do I make friends and network with people when I struggle with being nervous to talk to people?”

A few of the ALPFA members wanted to get a photo with most of the attendees and the panelists but they had a little trouble due to the windy weather and with making sure everyone was visible.

Once they had the photo they then let everyone start to network with each other seeing as most of the women there were either wanting to start a business or already have one, while some of the other women were trying to get their degrees or their dream careers. 

Patricia Mayorga, with a focus on corporate social responsibility, said, “One of the major things that stood out to me was when one of the panelists said you belong exactly where you are. And I think that personally, where I am right now that really resonated with me.”

Beatriz Cortez, a tax associate was asked what her favorite part of the brunch was, she said, “I really like the panelists, they all came from different backgrounds and they were very vulnerable and were willing to share the lessons they learned and some very insightful tips and just advice they have on being a woman and being Latina.”  

UW student Amy Dohad said her favorite part of the brunch was when “I was able to connect with people I haven’t seen in a while or just meet new people in general.”

In the end, this event was created to help bring a community together and help people network with each other. While also being able to get any questions about their careers or how to navigate the struggle of being a Latina woman.