TEACHERS ADVOCATES STORYTELLERS
Morning Call readers identify Hispanic difference-makers in the Lehigh Valley
Hispanic Heritage Month kicked off Sept. 15 and will continue through mid-October. The Morning Call asked readers to nominate Hispanic community members making a difference in the Lehigh Valley, and below are just some of the people creating change in the region.
If you would like to highlight a community member, there’s still time. We will be profiling more difference-makers throughout the month.
To nominate someone, you can email mbilinski@mcall.com or jroberts@mcall. com and include “Lehigh Valley Hispanic Difference-Makers” in the subject line. Be sure to include your name and contact information, as well as how we can reach out to the resident you’re suggesting.
Lupita Bonilla
Lupita Bonilla, director of residential services at New Bethany Ministries in Bethlehem, was nominated for “having a true passion to help others when they’re at their lowest.”
She joined the nonprofit in November 2019. After securing temporary housing for those in need of shelter, Bonilla said she and her team connect clients to local resources, working with the family as a whole.
“Our program is 90 days,” she said. “And in the 90 days, I tell parents to take advantage while they’re there and try to work on goals that you can’t do if you were on your own, and you need the support.”
But, even after they’ve left the program, they’re still connected to Bonilla.
“A lot of my clients still reach out to me, like ‘Don’t let yourself fall back into the same situation.’ So a lot of my families call me back and consult for advice and direction on what to do when certain situations arise,” she said. “I started letting families know once you leave, reach out to us and we will still help you with anything that you may need, because I want them to stay permanently housed and not fall back into the same situation.”
About two weeks ago, Bonilla was promoted to her new role, which means she’s now also responsible for single rooms, housing people who might be struggling with their mental health or substance use disorders.
Before coming to the Lehigh Valley, she worked as a child care case manager in New Jersey. As a Spanish-speaker, she worked in three counties helping those applying for child care subsidies.
“And as I was doing that, I started finding people coming in telling me their story,” she said. “Even though all I did was child care subsidy, I found myself telling them, ‘Hey, do this, go this direction, do this,’ Because I get it. I’ve been through a lot myself.’ ”
She also helps undocumented families — many of them in the Hispanic community — navigate their way.
“In the past year, we’ve had a total of five undocumented families come into our shelter,” she said. “And we’ve been able to successfully house them, get them employment, and get them connected with lawyers. I started reaching out and finding lawyers who will see them pro bono, letting them know what their options were.”
Bonilla said she loves her job, and wouldn’t change it “for anything in the world.”
“Our doors are always open to help people — that’s what we’re there for,” she said. “I know some people are fearful, especially in the Hispanic community. We understand different cultures. We’re a no-judgment zone. We are here to help people make their life just a little bit better.”
AJ Suero
A member of the Lehigh Valley’s Hispanic community for almost two decades, AJ Suero was nominated for being an “empathetic leader, friend and intentional listener” while he “strives to do good, pay[s] it forward and takes feedback eloquently and respectfully.”
Suero started working in communications in the Valley about seven years ago through the American Red Cross. For three years, he responded to emergencies locally and around the country.
“Seeing the impact that has had on folks locally, and being able to tell that story, I think that I learned the importance of communication and community, and how those two tie together,” he said. He also worked as communications director for PBS39 and currently serves as the chair for the Hispanic Chamber of the Lehigh Valley.
He never saw himself as chair of the chamber, he said, but he was nominated for his communication skills.
“They felt that, because one area that the chamber has really suffered through for some time now is this — how do you tell the story,” he explained. “I think that the team around me, they realized that, ‘Hey, I think it’s really important for us to have somebody who’s able to get in front of people and be able to tell our story.’ They nominated me as chair, and we’ve been kind of running with trying to get more visibility for the things that we do.”
Raised in a Spanish household in New York, Suero says he’s passionate about uplifting the Hispanic community in the Valley. He moved to the region in 2004.
“I didn’t speak the language, so I can relate to a lot of kids nowadays, and that they feel that tie to the culture, but they don’t know the language,” he said. “But then, learning the language as an adult, I can also relate to the folks who do have a deeper tie because they think language is such a big part of it.”
Being a role model in the community is not a responsibility he takes lightly.
“I think that it’s extremely impactful when you have someone who’s in a role where they’re serving the community, where they’re helping in terms of kind of modeling that for the next generation,” he said. “One of the things that I’ve seen with our current generation of young people is that they are passionate about causes, and they are passionate about making an impact in the world. I think that being able to do that, and being proud of your ethnicity, of your ancestry is super important.”
Clarissa Lopez
Clarissa Lopez, medical assistant program director at the Falcon Institute of Health and Science in Bethlehem, was nominated because she “inspires everyone around her to be more generous through her example.”
Lopez, who has been with Falcon for about three years, created the program and also teaches in it, she said, focusing on “training medical assistants to go out in the field, to work in a doctor’s office — trying to get better health care people out there that really care, teaching them values of caring.”
Born in Belize, her family moved to Jersey City. In college, she studied to become a veterinarian, but became allergic to animals and switched to art, hoping to become a medical illustrator. Her high school principal called her to work at the school after she graduated, teaching biology for a couple years before moving on to other teaching positions in Spanish, physical education and art.
She went to school to become a medical assistant, and Lopez moved into a home in the Lehigh Valley.
“I’m big on ethics. This is who I am. I’m a workaholic,” she said. “My students are my children. I don’t have kids. Between my dogs and my students — they are my children, and they can always reach out to me.”
She identifies as mestizo, a term used throughout Latin America to describe people of mixed ancestry with a white European and an indigenous background.
“I like to kind of tell Hispanic girls to have more confidence in themselves, more pride in themselves,” she said. “They can do anything, anything like anyone else. Just because we may not come from that strong, rich family, or a wealthy family doesn’t mean you can’t pull yourself out.”
Marbel Moran
Marbel Moran was nominated for the “quiet strength and determination” she brings to her work as a parent liaison in the Allentown School District.
In her role, Moran breaks down language barriers for Spanish-speaking parents at Hays Elementary and Building 21 by translating information about students’ behavior, academics and attendance.
She serves as an interpreter to help school staff communicate with parents and works with immigrant families when they first arrive in the district. Moran also connects families with community resources, such as clothing, food and mental health services.
“Families [know] that they can reach out to me in their native language,” Moran said. “[This] allows me to build trust a little bit faster and build trust with the district through me.”
Moran has held various roles in Allentown schools since 2009, working on attendance and college and career readiness. She is also currently earning her master’s degree in clinical counseling at Moravian University while continuing her work as a parent liaison.
Moran first moved to the U.S. from her home in Barranquilla, Colombia, more than 20 years ago to complete her bachelor’s degree at East Stroudsburg University before settling permanently in Allentown soon after.
Her hometown in Colombia is on the coast of the South American country, she said, which means her accent resembles that of Spanish speakers from the Caribbean. This linguistic
similarity helps her connect with district families from Puerto Rico or the Dominican Republic.
“Families like to recognize their own culture within the district and feel that they can relate to people based on culture, and I think I can bring that,” Moran said.
Moran still practices cultural traditions from her home country on holidays and often enjoys Colombian dishes, such as fried fish, coconut rice and plantains. Her connection to Colombian culture and the Spanish language has helped her find success working with the district’s Hispanic and Latino families, she said.
“We don’t stop belonging to our own cultures, we always need that part of us,” Moran said. “And that’s what I also see in our parents.”
Ariel Torres, also known as Elektra Fearce St. James
An LGBT advocate in the Lehigh Valley, Ariel Torres was nominated for “his heart and passion.”
Torres was born and raised in Bethlehem by a large Puerto Rican family. Today, he takes pride in being an LGBT person of color, and a locally famous drag performer, known as Elektra Fearce St. James.
Torres also works with college students at The Pride Center for Sexual Orientation & Gender Diversity at Lehigh University, where he serves as associate director.
“Systemically, at this table, it’s usually cisgender white men,” Torres said. “I met so many students who had never come to the Pride Center before, and were like, ‘I’m just so happy to see a person of color that’s on staff. I feel so much more comfortable coming in here and being able to talk to you.’ ”
Torres said when he first came out as gay, he was worried his family might not accept him because of stereotypes that enforce traditional gender roles in the Hispanic community. But fortunately, that wasn’t the case.
“I’ve always had a very, very supportive family,” Torres said. “As soon as I came out, I was never treated differently. I was embraced.”
Torres said his experience isn’t the case for all LGBT people, and so he understands the importance of being able to create a “chosen family.”
Through his role at Lehigh, Torres is an adviser to student groups and gives presentations to university staff about the LGBT community.
Before joining Lehigh’s staff last December, Torres had worked at the Bradbury-Sullivan LGBT Center for about five years.
In his most recent position, he organized Lehigh Valley Pride, and this past year, Elektra Fearce St. James was pride’s grand marshal.
“It is very important for our community to have that sense of visibility,” Torres said. “And when somebody goes to PRIDE, they can see that they’re not alone.”
Roy Ortiz
Roy Ortiz was nominated as a difference-maker for being “a man who really cares about his community.”
Ortiz works with Bethlehem’s youth as president of Lynfield Community Center on the city’s South Side. Ortiz is also a commissioner with the Bethlehem Housing Authority and president of the Southside Youth Baseball League.
His work with children was inspired by his mother, he said. When Ortiz was 8-years-old, his father died, and she led their family.
“She showed me what it is to have grit and how to overcome the obstacles that might be in your way,” Ortiz said of his mother.
Ortiz is a father of five himself. Now that their children are grown, Ortiz and his wife have turned their focus toward Bethlehem’s youth.
At the community center, they have a homework club for students to attend after school. They also offer extracurricular activities, such as cooking, soccer, and arts and crafts.
“We don’t want the streets raising our kids, especially in these times,” Ortiz said. “And once the parents are working, it’s easier to get in trouble and wind up with the wrong crowd, so we utilize the center as a safe haven.”
Ortiz, who is Puerto Rican, said many of the families he serves at the community center are Latino, and he uses his Spanish language skills to help parents who may not know English navigate the local school system.
Ortiz’s mission will always be making sure local kids are on a good path, he said.
“That’s my calling, to always give back,” he said. “And always try to look out for our future generation.”