The Team
Maricruz Herrera
Executive Director
Maricruz Herrera is a proud Latina with the origins of a leader. Born in the capital of historical architecture, Durango Mexico. Reared in a community where she had seen the unjust treatment and inequities of Latinos, Herrera became a community advocate in the Denver Metro area in Colorado. Herrera’s career began as an organizer in the Westwood neighbourhood, advocating for access to healthy food and public transportation. She later built the community engagement infrastructure for Latino Age Wave, a program of the Latino Community Foundation. Working with Latinx Seniors in the Montbello neighborhood. She has consulted with various local foundations, including the Denver Foundation, The Colorado Trust, and the Latino Community Foundation. She served on the Mayor’s Commission on Immigrants and Refugees for 5 years. In addition to her leadership, Herrera is also the co-founder of My Nanny Solution and a former board member of Centro Humanitario. Today, Herrera is a Community Engagement Specialist and now Director and founder of the Colectiva Creando Cambios en Colorado. She is well-respected for her ability to bring together diverse stakeholders to work on issues of education, immigrant and refugee rights, seniors, transportation, and small business development. Her hard work in organizing led up to become a trusted partner to the City and County of Denver Colorado.
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Carlos Herrera
Program Manager
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Glenda Muñoz
Promotora Coordinator/ Bookkeeper
Glenda Muñoz is originally from Chihuahua, Mexico. She loves the outdoors and spending time with people close to her. Meeting resilient people, who take advantage of bad experiences or situations inspire her. She believes we all need everyone and it is always a pleasure for her to be able to help a person with some skill or resource that she may have. She joined the CCC in November 2021 as Bookkeeper and is currently undertaking the task of Promotora coordination. She is a technical professional in administration, which has helped her to perform in the area of ​​accounting and human resource management. She had the opportunity to support another non-profit organization in the administrative area for 5 years.It is a pleasure for her to be part of the CCC team as a coordinator of promoters. She considers it a great opportunity to learn and help our community.
Ilse
Promotora
Ilse Zareth Jiménez is a promotora for La Colectiva. She manages the youth group, “empowering leadership” and will soon undertake a nutrition initiative within the organization. Ilse’s background in fitness and nutrition has allowed her to help other feel better physically and emotionally. She will begin teaching nutrition classes in an effort to inform the community about the importance of a healthy diet and teach them healthy eating and exercise habits. Ilse has a beautiful family that are her main support system. They inspire her to meet her goals and support all of her endeavors. The loss of her baby, although difficult, has motivated her to help other moms in the same situation. She wants to help mothers feel navigate this difficult situation by helping them feel better both emotionally and physically.
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Maria
Promotora
Maria Rojas is a promotora for the CCC. She leads the Education committee where she holds frequent table talks that focus on navigating the education system as well as managing mental health. Maria is also responsible for spreading information and resources to members of the community. Outside of the organization, Maria has participated in the parents education committee for Denver Public Schools. She has collaborated with a handful of organizations in the education committee to better the public schooling system. In 2014 she briefly moved to Colorado and due to the lack of support she moved back to her country. Now she focuses on providing the support she didn’t have to immigrant families in her community. She credits her family for being the support system that has enabled her to continue her work. In her free time she enjoys the fresh air of the mountains and listening to a good audiobook.
Mersi Canelas
Promotora
Mersi Canelas is a community leader. She is a promotora in La Colectiva where she manages the youth group “empoderando liderazgo.” Here she focuses mainly on guiding the youth to actively and safely engage with their community. Mersi was born on November 1, 1984, in Honduras.She was born in the village of Cuyomapa where she spent her childhood with her 10 siblings. In an attempt to pursue her education and pay for her studies she migrated to the Calvario neighborhood in Morazan Yoro Honduras. There she was adopted by a wonderful man, his wife, and welcomed by their three children. She spent her adolescence with her three new siblings, forming a part of their family. She then emigrated to this country, being the first of her siblings to do so. She settled in Denver Colorado. She is a proud mother to a wonderful son. Mersi is an avid reader and greatly enjoys literature. She enjoys spending time with the youth as well as the elderly where she can listen to the stories of the elderly and shape the minds of the young. She is passionate about serving others in her community. The wise words of her mother to always help her neighbors has empowered her to continue her journey as a community leader and server. She believes that in order to serve you don’t need money you just need the willingness to do it.
Judith
Promotora
Judith Padilla is a promotora for La Colectiva. She manages the ‘Safe neighborhood committee that focuses on mobilizing community members to incentivize safe community practices. Judith has worked in the field of community service for over 10 years where she has worked tirelessly to see positive changes in her community. Most recently she was recognized by the city of Aurora for her work and commitment to community service. Her commitment is driven by the hardships she has experienced. She recognizes that these experiences were painful and made more difficult by a tremendous lack of resources. She works to bridge the gap between the community and resources so that those who experience hardship are able to have the tools they need to navigate these difficult situations. Outside of the organization, she loves to spend time with her three wonderful children. She also enjoys participating in training sessions that help her increase her outreach and knowledge about how to effectively lead and serve her community.
Erika
Promotora
Erika Orozco is a promotora here at the CCC. She joined the CCC in February of 2022. Prior to joining, she had an interest in community engagement and participated in training that increased her desire to work in the community. In the CCC she represents the organization in community events providing bilingual services to spanish speaking community members. After experiencing a very difficult time in her life, she realized that the support she received from her family and others in the community saved her life.She values community and it’s contribution in her life and wishes to do all she can to give back. She is passionate about working to be better equipped at serving her community in any capacity. Erika has a beautiful family. Her mom and daughter are her greatest inspirations. They have taught her to be resilient and break through any obstacle in her way. In her free time, Erika enjoys listening to music and verse writing. She believes it's an important outlet that allows her to express herself.
Fernanda Cerros
Social Media Coordinator
Fernanda Cerros is the social media coordinator for the CCC. She is currently a college student at the University of Colorado Boulder working on getting her BA in international affairs and political science. Within the organization, she is responsible for social media engagement and increased outreach of the CCC via the web. She has been engaged in community organizing for about three years and has worked to raise awareness of social issues in her community. She currently works with different organizations to increase youth civic engagement. She also works with highschool students to teach about and preform social justice work. She believes that the media is a fundamental instrument that connects our community. She hopes to build a platform where the CCC can connect it’s community through shared media.
CCC Board
