Portland, April 16th, 2016. The Fiesta of Hope for Adelante Mujeres was a celebration of women, community and leadership featuring inspirational stories of hope and strength. Board Members Michelle Kosta, Miguel Cholula, Leroy Feigelson, and Jacqueline Alarcón posed for a photo. The annual fundarising event for Adelante Mujeres raised $118,000. The nonprofit educates and empowers Latina women and their families through holistic programs. (Photo credit, Brit Forbes Photography)
Adelante Mujeres Board Members Michelle Kosta, Miguel Cholula, Leroy Feigelson, Jacqueline Alarcón
Here’s a video about the program.
Michelle Kosta and the Adelante Mujeres Board of Directors performed an original rap to kick off the evening’s festivities.
Hortensia Mandujano, Adult Education and ESPERE Program Student, and Teacher’s Assistant with Adelante Mujeres Early Childhood Education Program, told her amazing story at Fiesta of Hope.
From Adelante Mujeres:
Founded in 2002 by Bridget Cooke and Sister Barbara Raymond, Adelante Mujeres was created to serve an otherwise overlooked population: Latina women. Through their work with the Latino community in other local organizations, Bridget and Barbara noticed that Latina women did not actively participate in classes or activities, and often remained isolated in their homes. When Adelante Mujeres began to offer programs developed specifically for their needs, these women quickly found their voices.
Sister Barbara Raymond (left) and Bridget Cooke, Co-Founders of Adelante Mujeres
Adelante Mujeres has been serving western Washington County for over 12 years and has worked with over 3,000 families. We strive to continually evolve our education and enterprise opportunities to meet the various needs of low income Latino families in our community.
As our organization continues to grow, our programs and services have expanded to serve Latino men as well as women, especially through our microenterprise and agriculture services and the Forest Grove Farmers Market. At Adelante Mujeres, we endeavor to strengthen Latino families as a whole because we believe a strong community requires the inclusion of everyone.
Our Mission: Adelante Mujeres provides holistic education and empowerment opportunities to low income Latina women and their families to ensure full participation and active leadership in the community.
Nuestra misión: Adelante Mujeres provee educación integral y oportunidades de empoderamiento a mujeres latinas de bajos ingresos económicos y sus familias para lograr su participación completa y su liderazgo activo en la comunidad.
Our Vision: We envision a community where all families thrive.
Nuestra visión: Nos imaginamos una comunidad en la que todas las familias prosperan.
Our Values:
- Believe in yourself and others and commit to personal growth
- Be in solidarity with the community
- Love and respect the earth
Nuestros valores:
- Creer en sí misma y en los demás y comprometerse a crecer personalmente
- Solidarizarse con la comunidad
- Amar y respetar la naturaleza
Adelante Mujeres strives to:
- Increase opportunities for family and community self-determination through holistic education, workforce and entrepreneurial training and family literacy.
- Build community through leadership development and the search for solutions to common concerns.
- Preserve, foster and share participants’ cultural heritage with the wider community and facilitate intercultural exchange.
- Advocate ecological awareness and action for a sustainable economy and healthy communities.
Adelante Mujeres believes in:
- Cooperation, accountability and a fair distribution of resources.
- Commitment to the resolution of conflict through peaceful means.
- Awareness and appreciation of the inter-relatedness of all life in the universe.
