This is one of the 12 finalists for the Herald Business Journal’s annual Emerging Leaders Award for 2025. The winner will be named at an event on April 8.
Melinda Cervantes, 39
Melinda Cervantes is dedicated to serving the people of Snohomish County, especially members of the Latino population.
She has worked on the Community Emergency Response Team for the Everett Fire Department, the Diversity Advisory Board of the city of Everett, the Snohomish County Latino Coalition, the Snohomish County Department of Emergency Management and has volunteered at about 10 other nonprofits.
Understanding the importance of civic engagement, Cervantes facilitated connections between Spanish-speaking public representatives and community members to host the first-ever Spanish Legislative Coffee. This provided a space for meaningful discussions about leadership and allowed community members to voice their concerns directly with their representatives.
From 2016 to 2020, she worked as a Hispanic outreach coordinator at The Arc of Snohomish County and as a multicultural resource coordinator from 2023 to 2024 in the same organization.
Cervantes said she loves what she does.
“I am empathetic, I love learning every day and I believe that kindness and compassion are very important in today’s world,” she said. “I am bilingual and have worked as a bridge to my community and consider myself a community ally.”
Cervantes said upon completing the fire department’s Community Emergency Response Team training in English she learned that the program would soon be offered in Spanish.
“Recognizing the importance of making this critical training accessible to Spanish-speaking community members, I took the initiative to translate the promotional flyer into Spanish and conducted outreach within the community,” she said. “As a result, more Spanish-speaking individuals were able to participate in the training, empowering them with essential emergency preparedness skills.”
Randy Diamond: 425-339-3097; randy.diamond@heraldnet.com.
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