Latino Leadership Alliance of the Lehigh Valley held its Nuestro Futuro (Our Future) Scholarship Brunch June 24 at Northampton Community College. The event celebrated 29 Latino/x students being awarded scholarships to attend accredited colleges, universities, and trade schools.

Since the organization’s inception in 2004 to the present day, LLALV has given 491 scholarships to deserving students looking to advance their opportunities.

Elected officials and representatives came to share words of encouragement, proclamations, and handshakes with the scholars. Northampton County Executive Lamont McClure gave the organization a proclamation with gratitude to the mission, and stood beside Mayor Matthew Tuerk of Allentown and Public Engagement Liaison for Congresswoman Susan Wild’s Office Selina Winchester to help award scholarships and certificates of special congressional recognition to the students and their families.

Keynote speaker Victoria Montero, who serves Bethlehem as both interim executive director of the Hispanic Center Lehigh Valley and as the manager of Health Equity Initiatives at St. Luke’s University Health Network, shared her struggles of leaving Mexico at the age of 14. LLALV presented her with the first ever “Distinguished Alumna Award,” as she was one of the first recipients to receive a scholarship from the organization in 2004.

The program ended with a call to attendees to join the LLALV board or its committees if they would like to support the organization’s mission of improving the quality of life for the Latino/x community through leadership development, education, health, and cultural activities.

LLALV encourages donations to the scholarship fund by visiting www.llalv.org. Those interested in supporting the mission in any capacity can reach out to LLALV President Janine Carambot Santoro at president@llalv.org.

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