and finally, we'll bring you the untold story of an entertaining and businessman turned public servant from colorado. thank you so much for being with us tonight. these stories were part of the inaugural latino event held this year by the latino leadership institute at the university of denver. let's get started with the first story about a long distance running coach whose career has spanned seven decades. growing up in a create an easy childhood for coach joe vehil. he knew he would not let this environment stop him from pursuing excellence. >> i learned early on that i wanted to be everybody, so i studied. i was a boy scout and made eagle scout rank and learned how to pursue goals.

anybody else only to show them that i could do it and that quality has stayed with me. >> he fought his own success and taught at alamosa for more than a decade, and then went to track coach in 1965 and that's where he began to make his mark. >> people were beating us and i got tired of getting beat sore i started a culture of running in the community, and -- and little culture developed into a fountain head of running in america. >> at division two adams state, he coached 425 all americans and helped his team win 19 national team championships, and 87 individual titles. over the past three decades, vigil made an impact in enter

>> it's not only coaching human performance. i've become a life coach to them. >> in all, vigil's professional runners won 20 professional medals and he's coached 21 olympians but he's especially proud of those athletes who were considered underdogs. >> working with those athletes for some reason i was able to take them and make an olympian. >> as he did out of won the 2015, 20 meters. she was only two latinas on the track and field team, now making a difference in her own community by inspiring young athletes. >> that has to be sort of a real satisfaction for me to show people that somebody that didn't have a fighting chance but believed in herself could do that. >> his passion for education has

he's known for altitude training in the industry. >> success in our society is power, money, position, materialism. those things have become a religion to americans. but i teach how to be successful through the pursuit of excellence, to be the very best that you can every day of your life. >> winning is the ultimate goal in sports, but for vigil, continuous improvement is more valuable in the pursuit of excellence. >> there are some days i have good days, some days that i have bad days, but there never is a day that i don't try my best. next you'll meet rod tafoya. he started off with yogurt, and

>> rob tafoya was no stranger to airports. he developed a fascination to airplanes and airports dreaming of some day opening a restaurant there. to help make his dream a reality, he sought out advice from his mentor, rob alvarado, who provided guidance and support. >> he successfully put his proposal, and was successful and did it on his own through hard work, tenacity, and perseverance and he's one of my heroes. >> sandwich stop, he's expanded to an impressive portfolio of restaurants at the denver airport, including timberline stakes, root down, que bueno, and the busiest busiest einstein beggels. >> you go to the airport, you always see him at his

under the principles of giving back and opening doors for other entrepreneurs at the airport. >> he's continued to fight for economic empowerment, not just for yourself, but he's opened the door to others and he's also championed others, and he knows that we have to bring people up behind us if we're going to be successful in the long run. >> tafoya's business success extends beyond denver. he's opened restaurants in san diego, and california airports. >> he's earned the success through 25 years of hard work, leadership, giving back to the community, dedication. he's a perfect role model for our community to look at. >> with ongoing tenacity and support from his family, tafoya has been able to follow his

other -- entrepreneurs to follow. >> look what you did, follow his

rob and losa are from denver and are giving back to the community that saw them grow up. they've started a foundation that have impacted thousands of children for the past 17 years. >> the words that i live by, and thate are dream big, set goals, and work really, really hard. but on be kind. >> these values have guided laura salazar throughout her life. her parents encouraged her to dream big and that's exactly what she and her husband, rob did as a young family. >> getting married at 18 and my

worked hard and i put him through school and i never in my mind thought this wasn't going to work. >> their optimism and hard work paid off as they became successful business owners and philanthropic leaders. in 1999, the couple founded the salazar family foundation, with the mission to encourage denver-area students to achieve their dreams. >> we want the world to be a better place and it starts in er it's important for our kids to know that. because we're blessed we need to share. >> the foundation supports numerous organizations through scholarships, literacy programs and classroom grants. along the way, the salazars contributed to the schools they attended as denver. >> i feel great when i walk into a school and i know this child pretty much was me when i was

that they can do it also. >> that optimistic outlook is central to the vision of the family's foundation, a value the couple has passed down to their children, isaiah salazar and angly moyre who work at the private investment firm founded by their father. >> i think my legacy will be my family, and as they grow, it will be our family foundation. >> as the foundation continuesto make an impact in communities through colorado, and hope others to give back through philanthropy and volunteerism. >> actions speak louder than words and to make a difference we have to set an example and that would mean to work hard and set goals and believe you can achieve and once you do, don't forget to give back. >> just like when they were teenagers. lola and rob salazar still dream

overcome challenges. >> when we lived in a little tiny marriage dorm in alamosa, we talked about our dreams and we knew it was going to happen, and like now, there's still so much to dream about. there's still so much to experience and so i think if people should say how do you want to be remembered, it would be that we celebrated life, that i celebrated life, and every night i regrets. . >> he was the first hispanic mayor of denver and held a cabinet position in president clinton's administration. federico pena had a huge vision for denver and he's back at home serving others. federico pena's regarded as one of the most prominent, political leaders in colorado

>> politically, the person influencing those was president john f. kennedy, who asked all of us to do something for our country and made public service noble and that's when i got very interested in public service. >> pena was elected mayor in one of the most competitive races in denver's history. in 1983 at the age of 36, he was sworn in as the first latino mayor of denver. pena's mayoral tenure was the st of my work every day in what i was doing, affecting peoples' lives and rebuilding the economy and infrastructure. that was very rewarding and challenging. >> pena's impact as mayor was profound and worked successfully to improve air quality, and helped bring the colorado rockies to denver and most visibly, oversaw the planning and building of denver international airport, today a symbol of denver's growth and

able to do that and it is my upbringing. my parents instilled in me a belief in myself, a belief if you work hard, you can accomplish anything that you want, but confidence in who i am and the fact that my roots go back more than 250 years in south texas through my ancestors, so i always felt i was standing on a rock, on solid footing. i never not here at the right time, at

because i knew that if i didn't set a high bar for myself, that would reflect on the broader community. >> today, pena is a senior advisor to the colorado impact fund and vestar -- cap capital partners. >> we have to remain involved. if we want remain strong, when we're 1/3 of the population, we have to anticipate. this is why i believe in voter registration, voter anticipation and participation. unless we vote we tonight have a voice. >> as a mentor -- mentor, he he hopes others follow his role. >> if i run for mayor for run for governor, to serve, to be a cabinet member, whatever they have done in their lives today,

in inspiring people to do that,

she's a champion for education. as a teacher, administrator, director, and currently deputy superintendent. denver native, susana cordova has left her mark on the students of denver public schools. susana cordova's career at denver public schools serving as the chief of schools in 2015, she was named acting superintendent for six months while tom bosburg went on leave an experience she cherished. >> i can't help but think back to being a student in the denver public schools and never imagining that i could one day be the leader of that organization. >> cordova has dedicated her life to improving educational opportunities for students in public schools.

lives of children throughout the k through 12 system. >> nelson mandela said education is the most powerful weapon you can use to change the world and it is the absolute truth. it has transformational powers. >> while working as a middle school teacher, she visited the humble homes of students, helping students to excel and encouraged >> it was a really powerful experience to see just how much people were sacrificing to ensure their kids had education and access and how important it is for us in the schools to ensure we're living up to those exact same dreams. >> cordova became interested in her cultural identity while in college. growing up, she believed the route to success was a simulation, but a foretitous reading of a journal challenged

experience as transformational. >> reading that poetry made me decide that i wanted to become a teacher, and made me decide with the message that you cannot be who you aengtically are and be successful. >> cordova is the second-ranking administrator in one of the colorado largest school districts, a english as a second language. >> i've really helped our school district, and school districts around the country know what it means to serve specific learners around the count. >> cordova recognizes she's part of a long line of leaders who has broken barriers. >> the quote that i always love to share is praise the bridge that carried you over, and the reason it really speaks to me is

of myself, by myself. i'm here because of the work

our final story tonight is about casamila pe i 1,800s. casimiro barela was mexico in 1847, one year prior e treaty, which ended the american war and transferred much of the southwest, including mexico and colorado to the united states. barela was raised in a period of change from shifting borders to advancing technology, to economic development. >> mexicans, mexi canoe s across

american part for them means the -- the rights and responsibilities of citizenship. >> seeking to not just get by, but to thrive personally and financially, barela quickly built a portfolio of successful businesses. >> unlike others, he's not daunted or awed by the possibility of working with financialti to serve as justice of the peace, a

community members to participate in the democracy, and ensured the colorado state constitution was written in spanish, as well as english. >> having the constitution in spanish for the community of southern colorado was a way for them to be fully welcomed into the formation of the new state. >> recognizing the importance of political participation in the democracy, barela fought to maintain the teaching and learning of the spanish language, which was key to the future of this region. public and in the legislative halls was important to him. >> his commitment to his constituents led to his re-election numerous times, all told, he served for 40 years in the legislature, one of the longest known state tenures in history. today his stained glass portrait adorns the colorado state capital, a reminder of his role as a catalyst and historical

among the other stories, and if you don't really bring it into some prominence, and some focus, then i think you lose out on solutions for the present because education continues to be a -- an arena that's important for latinos. and this early story of accessing education is entrepreneurship is another area of challenge for latinos, and noting how these successes, how his successes were both individual, but also had a philanthropic aspect to them, just as important. >> these six stories are from the inaugural hall of fame program brought by the university of denver.

professional development program for latino professionals designed to honor the history and contributions of latino leaders and engage today's leaders and inspire the next generation of latinos. contributions to our state by latinos began man years ago. i'm belinda leon. thank you so much for watching. >> cas a particular story that has to do with confronting a socio historical situation that says, what happens to us now, as this changes in the history of the united states and the southwest, and taking up that challenge and finding some answers. >> if you look back on the history of the united states, this country has discriminated against many different kinds of people. this is nothing new in our

managed to survive and prevail and succeed. if they believe in themselves, if they work hard, if they don't get mad and participate and do the kinds of things that give them political power, civic power, and moral power. >> announcer: the following is a paid presentation for lifelock, the best identity-theft protection available. >> wherever you are in america, identity theft is there too. from big cities to small towns, we are all at risk. >> i logged onto my bank account and found that i had no funds whatsoever.

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