Tatiana Banhon, Jossie Maldonado and Azucena Valentin to be Honored for Commitment to Leadership and Community at Latinas & Power Virtual Symposium on September 24
Marilyn Alverio, founder, and producer of Latinas & Power Symposium (LPS) announced today the three Latinas being honored with the Latinas & Power Latina Champion Awards for 2020. Tatiana Banhon, Azucena Maldonado, and Jossie Valentin have been selected for this distinction because of their commitment to leadership, community involvement, and effort to elevate fellow Latinas. The Latina Champion Awards will be conferred as part of the 17th Latinas & Power Virtual Symposium, Part II, being held on Thursday, September 24 at 11:30 am. This event is free and open to all with registration
LPS’s Latina Champion Award was created to honor a Latina who is paving the way, making strides and contributing to the progress of the Latino community. Winners embody courage and practice positive behaviors and principles to help others along the way. Alverio states, “We recognize Latinas who demonstrate leadership in their respective areas, as well as contribute to the Latino community in a variety of ways. This year, and for the first time, we are recognizing three women. One is local to Connecticut, the second is from our regional area in New England, and the third is at the national level.”
About the 2020 Latina Champion Award Winners
Tatiana Banhon has been in the insurance industry for over 25 years and is currently a Director for the Middle & Large Commercial Property Product team at The Hartford. The support of her sponsors and influence from past leaders have shaped her career journey and fueled her passion for Latino advancement in the workplace. Tatiana is on her third year of service as Tri-Chair of the Hispanic Leadership Network (HLN), The Hartford’s Employee Resource Group focused on Latino employee population. She also serves on the Middle & Large Commercial D&I Council. As a D&I (Diversity & Inclusion) leader, Tatiana is focused on driving greater representation of POC and women in leadership roles. In her current HLN role, she helped design a leadership development program that enables professional growth for members of the Latino Community and have an impact in their longterm career journey.
In addition to her passion for D&I, Tatiana also supports local the Hartford local community including active participation and promotion of ongoing American Red Cross Blood Drives, Fight Against Hunger (FoodShare), and Hartford’s Hart In The Holidays gift drive where the organization collects gifts during the holiday season to support thousands of individuals in need.
Azucena Maldonado
Azucena Maldonado is a trailblazer on a mission to transform women’s lives through golf. She founded the Latina Golfers Association in 2008 to introduce girls and women to the sport of golf for their personal and professional development and to promote a healthy lifestyle. #LatinaGolfers teaches women how to leverage golf as a business tool so they can advance in their careers/businesses and shatter the glass ceiling with a golf ball. What started as a passion and love of the game quickly turned into a movement with over 2,000 members in Southern California. Azucena has received numerous awards, was inducted into the Latino Sports Hall of Fame in 2013, and Hispanic Lifestyle named her a Latina of Influence. She has been featured on the cover of Southland Golf Magazine, and has also appeared in Golf Digest and Golf Business, SCGA FORE magazine, SCPGA Program Magazine, PGA of America Magazine, and Arnold Palmer’s Kingdom magazine.
Jossie Valentin
Jossie Valentin is the State Policy Advisor for U.S. Senator Ed Markey and a former Holyoke, MA City Councilor. She served as the Massachusetts State Director for Elizabeth Warren’s 2020 Presidential campaign, making Ms. Valentin the first Latina lesbian to serve in that capacity in Bay State history. Before joining politics, her career was in mental health, substance abuse, and higher education including a 13-year tenure as an academic advisor at Holyoke Community College. She earned a BA in Psychology from the University of Puerto Rico and an MS in Forensic Psychology from American International College.
A proud resident of Massachusetts and of its LGBTQ community, Ms. Valentin has been with her wife for 14 years and “pays it forward” by giving back to her community as much as possible through board service, door-knocking for campaigns, and other grassroots activism.
The 17th Latinas & Power Virtual Symposium will be held on Thursday, September 24 from 11:30 am to 2:30 pm EST. This motivating virtual event will be offered via a Zoom webinar and is brought to you by LPS sponsors at no cost and is open to all. #LPS2020 will feature a lineup of Latina speakers including a keynote address from actor/singer Ivonne Coll, star of Jane the Virgin. For more information and free registration, interested parties should visit LatinasandPower.com/virtual-symposium/.
Presenting sponsors for the 17th Annual Latinas & Power Symposiums are MassMutual, Eversource, and CHET (Connecticut Higher Education Trust). Media and marketing partners are BuzzEngine and Camelo Communications. Gold sponsors include The Hartford, Voya, AARP Connecticut, and Webster Bank. Additional sponsors include; CT Health Foundation, TJX, Aetna, Liberty Bank, Latin Financial, and Latin2Latin Marketing. Media partners include Latina Style, La Voz Hispana, Telemundo CT/NBC Connecticut, and Latin Heat.Latinas & Power Symposium is a Connecticut-based 501c3 non-profit. For more information and to register, visit LatinasandPower.com.