BETHLEHEM, Pa. — Two very important organizations from the Lehigh Valley are merging to better support the Latino community. The merger called for a celebration. There was dancing and singing from the seniors at the Hispanic Center, where a news conference was held Wednesday.
“Hispanic Center Lehigh Valley and Latino Leadership Alliance of the Lehigh Valley will merge into a single, dynamic organization dedicated to empowering our Latino community”, said Raymond Santiago, the executive director of the Hispanic Center Lehigh Valley.
The Hispanic Center has served the Lehigh Valley’s low-income and Hispanic/Latino communities since 1968, and the Latino Leadership has been dedicated to strengthening the Latino community through education, health, and more.
Education is a big priority for both.
“It was always our main goal to really help Latino youth that wanted to pursue higher education. And we know that that is in the mission of the Hispanic Center,” shared Maria Teresa Donate, member of the Latino Leadership Alliance.
Donate tells 69 News that she has been a part of the Latino Leadership Alliance for 30 years, since the beginning.
“We want to make sure that our youth continue doing our work and become advocates. So that’s our legacy,” added Donate.
“Our motto has always been: ‘la unión está en la fuerza.’ ‘in unity there is strength’”, commented Janine Santoro, president of Latino Leadership.
The Lehigh Valley now is about 26% Hispanic in Lehigh County and 15% in Northampton County. And in Allentown it’s nearly 55% Hispanic.
“We have a significant portion of the population, and the more we unite, the more influence we have on how things work out for us”, said Guillermo Lopez, vice president of Hispanic Center, Lehigh Valley.
