damian trujillo: hello, and welcome to "comunidad del valle." i'm damian trujillo, and today, the symbol of giving. the sacred heart community services has some big news on your "comunidad del valle." ♪♪♪ cc by aberdeen captioning 1-800-688-6621 aberdeen.io damian: we begin today with the monthly visit of the consulate of mexico in san jose. with me on "comunidad del valle" is ambassador alejandra bologna, who is a consul general of the consulate of san jose. consul, welcome back to the show. alejandra bologna: thank you so much for having me. damian: we have a lot to talk about in such a short time, but i want to throw some numbers at you because you're doing a lot of work in the first three months of this year alone. you've given out 9,300 passports in the first three months.

that's about 155 passports per day. damian: that's a lot of work. alejandra: yes, of course. we have done a lot in these first three months. we know that they are very important for our community because they are paying taxes, and march and april are months that we have a lot of requests for the documents. so, but we have been working very hard. and i just want to say to all the people that are seeing us that we are open, and we have been open since last year during the pandemic also. and we are doing our most effort to attend most people possible. we know that there have been some issues with the appointments, but what we request is not to go and pay for the appointments because the appointments are free, and that help us to have the opportunity to everyone to get their appointment. there are a lot of places that they say that they have direct

line with the consulate, and they assure that they can get you appointments. but the problem is that first of all, they are sharing delicate information with third people that they don't know. and some of them are using that information for doing appointments for other people. second, there's not a guarantee that we can do the process because if they're not in our list, then they will not get the appointment. and third of all is that it's increasing the places where they are selling appointments instead of doing it free, calling direct in the numbers that we have in our pages and that we have constantly telling with our networks and in facebook at our consulate. damian: yeah, i mean, people get frustrated because apparently they can't make appointments as soon as they want to, so they hire somebody else. that's not the way to do it. you have to go to the consulate's office.

but the fact that you're doing 155 passports per day, only passports, tells me you guys are super busy, so appointments are going to be backed up. alejandra: exactly, and not just passports because we also do--we have done in three months more than 6,000 matriculas consulares, so it's a lot. and also, we use [speaking in foreign language]. and also, as you know, attorney powers and birth certificates and other documents that our community needs. so, it's just to show that we are working hard. it's not closed, the consulate. there are some misunderstanding when they called and they have not appointments. it's because they say that we are closed, but we are not closed. we are working, we are working hard. and please continue to insisting to get your appointments. and we open about 1,000 appointments or more than 1,000

appointments for each week on tuesdays. damian: all right, we have about another minute left. we want to mention the semana financiera, financial week. you have them for one week, but then you post it online, so on facebook so people can see it later on. alejandra: yes, once a year, we do a special week all around the consular network. it's to giving our community valuable information to empower them. that's why it's called semana financiera integral. and it's focused on different webinars, also information here at the consulate that they can get. it's regarding retirement, telephone fraud, employment opportunities for young people, economic empowerment. and there's--if they couldn't come or if they couldn't came to the semana financiera, you can go through our website in

facebook, and you will review all the different webinars and information that we have that we post for these semanas education financiera. damian: all right, well, a lot of things to talk about and so little time. ambassador, thank you so much for being on the show, doing a lot of work. when you're doing 155 passports alone per day, means that y'all are busy. thank you so much for being on the show. alejandra: thank you. damian: thank you. for more information, the consulate of mexico is right here on enzo drive in south san jose. there's a web address for more information. you can make your appointments there. log on for more information. we'll be back and talk with the director of the sacred heart community services agency, stay with us.

damian: there is some great news coming out of the sacred heart community services agency in san jose. with me is the long-time executive director of the agency is poncho guevara on "comunidad del valle." poncho, welcome back to the show. it's been a long time. poncho guevara: thank you, damian. it's a pleasure being here, being here with you.

and thank you for all of your work you've been doing for this community for a long time. damian: i appreciate you. thank you so much for that, it does mean a lot. you know, i wish we were here to say that the need is down and that mission accomplished, but we can't say that, right? poncho: no, we can't. it's really been a--it's been a challenging time, especially--you know, especially as a result of the covid pandemic. a lot of families that were already very vulnerable from, you know, from a sense of the economic inequality and fearing a lot of issues around displacement were really hard hit. and so, sacred heart community services not only stepped up and adapted, but we've had to grow quite a bit in order to actually meet some of the critical needs, not only food and clothing, but also stepping up our work around providing financial assistance. and helping families with the educational system as they've been hit with the education loss. and then just really doing some of the community organizing work and policy work to try to help advance some of the rights of tenants and immigrants during this time. it's been a very challenging time, but we're happy to be able to step up, and we're happy with the support we've gotten from the community to do so.

damian: no, that's awesome. you know, when we drive on 1st and alma at your headquarters there, there's two feelings that cross all of our minds. and one is a sense of sadness because of the need that persists day in and day out. the second feeling is a sense of joy and relief because there's people like you and agencies like yours who are there to help. poncho: yeah, that's something that we're always incredibly impressed by and by the generosity of our community to be able to step up during times of need. especially for people that they don't know, people that they aren't in relationship with, and making sure that we're able to come together as one community and show that kind of support. and that generosity is what we're hoping to continue to tap into as we develop and grow what we do. and not only provide resources to families that are really struggling and know that we're there for them during this time of need, but also those opportunities for families to give back, those of us that have been blessed by so much in our community, and asking people to actually come forward and help us, and volunteer, come back.

i know it's been scary. after the pandemic, people feel like, "well, i can't go volunteer," we really need volunteers. we really need the financial support. and we really need to make sure that we're helping some of the families that were hard hit during the last couple of years. damian: and that's a good segue to our next topic because you're expanding, you're moving. well, not necessarily moving, but you're moving part of your operation. tell us what's happening with sacred heart. poncho: well, it's really an amazing story because almost 25 years ago, we built our home, our headquarters on 1st and alma. and we were serving--you know, we were serving like 10,000 people a year. the year before the pandemic, we're serving over 50,000, 60,000 people a year that were actually coming to us. and so, we've far outgrown that space. and what we turn--what we did, damian, was we turned a lot of what was formerly program space into office space as our staff expanded from 10, to 50, to 75, to over 100 staff that are actually helping touch thousands--the lives of thousands of families, and helping to provide,

you know, like financial assistance to other families, and providing lots of services. so, what we're doing is we're actually expanding to actually we're acquiring another building just up the street in downtown in the sofa district. and in that building, we're going to have a bunch of the staff that are really taking over a lot of our program space. and a lot of people are working from home virtually and remotely. and we're going to actually make sure that they're able to be able to work there, provide some services to folks in the community by appointment and providing additional training and other types of work. but also what's happened with sacred heart over the last couple years is we've grown not only just to provide services to folks in the community, but we're also partnering with a lot of different organizations that do similar work around food and financial assistance. and so, our partnerships, we're helping to lead and spearhead a homelessness prevention system. that's provided a lot of financial assistance to families during the pandemic. and we need office space for them to be able to work, and training space, and collaboration space. and hopefully, we're going to be able to do community events, and

art, and other types of things, and really be part of the downtown neighborhood in new and exciting ways. damian: your core services will remain on 1st and alma, just some other more specified projects will be taking place at the new facility. poncho: it means we're gonna be able to move out a whole bunch of cubicles. a lot of people that were working in a building that was designed to have about 20 staff now having over 100 staff, so we're gonna be moving a number of our staff over to the new facility, opening up our ability to be able to provide things like we've actually--we've done an expansion of our warehouse space. we've done an expansion of, like, turning one of our program spaces into a new clothes closet that's more like a more dignified shopping area. so, as families are looking for clothing for themselves, for their children, they're able to kind of shop in more of a-- more of like a--like more like a boutique than going through racks in a warehouse. and so, we're really excited about some of those changes and

being able to provide more training, and teaching, and other areas and collaboration areas in our main building. but basically moving a bunch of--by moving some of our staff office spaces and cubicles into a new building, and reconfiguring, and updating our existing facility, we're excited about both of them. so, it's not just the new building, but it's the changes that we're able to make to our existing home that gives us--makes us really excited. damian: well, that's wonderful. and it's not just an effort from the agency of sacred heart, it's a community effort. we're gonna talk about that in the next segment, campaign to make sure that everybody puts their--my mom would say [speaking in foreign language], their little contribution, if you will, to the expansion efforts there. if you want more information, we have the address of the new facility. it's going to flash up on your screen. it'll include the old one as well on 1381 south first, but there's 550 south first street. you can log onto that website there to find out more about the new building and find out more about the programs of sacred heart. we'll be back with poncho guevara here on

"comunidad del valle," so stay with us.

damian: well, we're back here with the executive director of the sacred heart community services agency in san jose, poncho guevara. and before we get to the campaign, poncho, let me ask you because you're not going to get rich in your 16th year as executive director of sacred heart. you're gonna get rich in other ways, i would imagine. talk about the satisfaction or gratitude, and how full your heart is by the work that you do, knowing that the financial reward may not be there at the end. poncho: damian, you and i, i think we've talked about this before about how important our families are. and my--i remember joining sacred heart 16 years ago because i wanted my children--i had one daughter at the time, shamata. i wanted them to grow up in a community filled with values and commitment and generosity.

you know, people that actually cared about the community and weren't just benefiting from it. and not only from the perspective of giving back, but how do we build a community worthy of every child? and i feel like that's the kind of work that i've had the blessing to be able to do. and i've just been enriched by the incredible wealth of commitment, and love, and talent, and creativity from so many different people that have come together. and not only seeing the power that comes from the generosity of those that are willing to give back, but also the power of the strength of resolve, the ideas, the creativity, commitment of our community members that are sometimes looking for help and looking for support. and their power to rally to change the conditions in their lives, and reach out, and become networks of [speaking in foreign language], you know, together to be able to help solve problems together. [sit's something that has been, yothe most incredible journey of my life and my career. and it's been wonderful to raise my two children in this valley and surround them with those values at sacred heart community service. damian: boy, i can't think of a better way to make this

campaign pitch, but let's give it a shot anyway. i mean, what you said is beautiful. so, there's the campaign, and it's a community effort to make sure that this happens. now, you keep helping people. you're accepting $5 donations even from people so they can get involved in your movement there at sacred heart. poncho: yeah, our campaign for a better future that we've been launching here at sacred heart community services not only to help us with this new facility and being able to--being able to help us renovate our 25 year old--next year is our 25th anniversary of our permanent headquarters. and being able to make sure that we're actually bringing these facilities up to speed. but the whole point of a campaign is that it's something that we all own, that we're all a part of. and so, what we're seeking to do is get 10,000 donations of any size, $5, $10, $50, $500, whatever level that people want to be able to give. so, this is really about--we'll be asking folks for some of

those larger gifts, and we've been doing that, but our goal is to raise--is to raise $2 million from the community to help us actually renovate these facilities, make sure that we have beautiful facilities for our families so they could actually come to receive services in dignity, and we can take care of our building and actually make sure that we build some strength, you know, for our programs, you know, long into the future. and so, any member of the community can actually give at this particular--at a level they're comfortable with. and we are going to be working with other funders to match those. and so, for every dollar that you give, it'll turn into $2. and with those resources, we're hoping to build this long-term legacy that--of a community and an organization that brings people together, to make sure that no one has to live in deprivation in our community. damian: and that way, poncho, your center becomes the center belonging to not just sacred heart and maybe not just to those big donors, but to dona sarita, who lives in washington

district, who made a $5 contribution. the center and your services belong to the community. poncho: exactly, and i think that's what has been so beautiful and powerful for me in this journey is not just about what it means to give to others, but seeing, you know, all the mujeres, especially the moms and the grandmothers that have been so fiercely fighting to actually stay in their community, be part of their community. we want to be of them, for them. and they actually are the ones that really own us. we refer to all of the people that come to sacred heart as members. and it is our members that really give us that strength and that power. you invite everyone to be part of that membership by giving and contributing in a way that's meaningful for them, so that we're actually building a stronger community long-term for every family. damian: that's wonderful. we have about 30 seconds, poncho. we'll let you give us your final thoughts. poncho: well, i just want to thank this community. the silicon valley community is incredible important. this comunidad del valle really is

about our community coming together. and being one of those institutions that is part of that, we're really proud to be part of your family as well. so, bless you and thank you, everyone. damian: thank you, poncho. good luck to you, and thank you for the selfless work that you do there at sacred heart, you and your staff, and the many, many, many volunteers who come from, again, the washington district or they come from cisco, or adobe, or google. they all come because it's one cause. thank you, poncho. poncho: thank you, damian, be well. damian: thank you, gracias. and if you want to be part of that familia, the sacred heart familia, the web address again is on the screen. you can make your $5 contribution or as much as you'd like. but there is the web address for more information. find out more about the new building, the facility, and maybe how you can make it become part of your own legacy as well. we'll have more here on "comunidad del valle" when we continue, so please stay with us.

damian: thank you for letting us be a part of your sunday once again. we're going to leave you now with another interview, another important agency here in the bay area.

we'll see you again here next week, buenos dias. damian: the latino community foundation now has the latino power fund. here to explain is jacqueline martinez garcel, the executive director of the latino community foundation. jacqueline, welcome back to the show. jacqueline martinez garcel: thanks, damian, it's good to be back with you. damian: thank you, tell us, you have some great news today. tell us first of all about your foundation and what it does. jacqueline: sure, so the latino community foundation exists to unleash the civic and economic power of latinos across california. and we have decided as of last year to launch this latino power fund to ensure that this moment of recovery and healing for our community really has the impact that our governor, our state leaders, and our president is intending at this moment. we've committed $50 million to invest in organizations that can help families and help businesses access the federal and state resources made available to them right now. damian: and you know what, jacqueline?

a lot about those funds, a lot of people who i speak to out on the street in my reporting, the claim is always, "well, you know, they always promise that they're gonna give us money. we never end up seeing the money." this is our opportunity to visualize what was promised. jacqueline: that's right, to visualize it and to--and embrace this moment that we have to use our voices and our power to request that these resources are used. the american public, especially latinos and immigrants, have every right to have doubts of how government has worked for them. but what we have seen already in the last 16 months is a commitment by our president and our governor. and the money is now made available. so, there is over $45 billion federally, and $45 billion here in the state of california focused on infrastructure alone in the state of california. which means the creation of jobs, which means the rebuilding of our communities in a way that builds

a more just and equitable economy for latinos. but what is required of us at this moment is to show up at meetings that county officials are hosting, that city council members are putting together, to help inform how these dollars are spent. it is also incumbent upon our county leaders and our city leaders to open up the process where community voices are heard in allocation of these dollars. we have seen two extremes happen here in california. fresno has had a very open ended process, where organizations like 99 roots has requested and required that the county actually put money in creating jobs for high school students, who are predominately latinos in fresno. but we've also seen other counties that--and other cities that have shut the community out. and we want to be able to change that and ensure that we are not cut out of the process. damian: so, your role, the latino community foundation

role, is it more on the advocacy side, or the lobbying side, a combination of both? jacqueline: so, it's advocacy in the sense of we know that these resources were made available by our federal and state leaders, and they are saying we need input from the community. so, the latino community foundation is, number one, funding organizations that are organizing the community voices and bringing them to the table. we're also providing funding to organizations so they can apply for these federal and state dollars. and these organizations are the ones that are gonna make these resources and put them--available and put them in the hands of the families that need them, and who are the ones, rightly so, saying, "we never see government working for us." these are the non-profit organizations that have the trust and the connections to families that have been most impacted by covid. so, lcf is funding them to ensure that they have the staff capacity and the ability to be able to apply for those resources, and also advocate

for how those resources are being used. damian: and you know the old saying, the squeaky wheel gets the grease. if we're not attending those city council meetings or county board of supervisors meetings, how can we expect them to know what our needs are and to direct those funds in the right direction? jacqueline: we have a window of an opportunity right now to inform how billions of dollars are going to be spent on supposedly our behalf. so, it is critically important that we show up to these meetings. and if they're not happening, we've had a number of organizations actually demand that the county supervisors and city council members open up the process. some folks want to take a shortcut to get the money out, and they have plans for those money. but the requirement is that the voices of our community is heard, and informing, and recommending how those resources are used. what we don't want to see happening is, for example, police departments to be funded with resources that are intended to create jobs in our community. we need to balance both.

we need to be able to help latino families recover from the economic hit that they've experienced because of covid, and also affirm the reality that a lot of our communities need mental health support to be able to bounce back from what has been an incredible, difficult period of loss and heartache for our family members. damian: is this a long-term band aid? i don't know--i don't even know if it's a band aid. jacqueline: i mean, we have--it's three years that we have really to spend down these federal resources. and even in the state of california, it's on an annual basis that the governor sets aside these resources. they're not band aid if we use them correctly. the idea behind these federal resources are to make up the fact that sectors like retail, for example, who have been hardest hit, small businesses that have been hardest hit by the pandemic actually recreate themselves in a way where jobs that will be meaningful for the 21st century

and beyond are made available to latinos. it's also an opportunity to train a new workforce to enter jobs that were lagging before. for example, automation of jobs is something that's happening very quickly in california. so, how do we speed up the training of people who have worked in retail, who have worked in service delivery to shift now and get the training they need to enter the automation of these jobs, right? jobs that require new skills and new talent. jobs that can use the same attributes and skills that latino families have already, but really transfer them into new sectors. damian: that's wonderful. well, for more information, the latino community foundation. their website, we're going to flash it for you on the screen. you can get more information there. again, this is the latino power fund trying to empower our individual communities wherever we are. ♪♪♪

life-changing surprises, transformations, and reveals. when families and communities come together, anything is possible. this is "george to the rescue." when i think of camp anchor, i think of unconditional love first. it's a magical, magical place. a place of acceptance, a place to push your boundaries. every day you walk in and you just see smiles and you get hugs.