MACE honors Man, Woman of the year at scholarship fundraiser
The Mexican American Committee on Education will be hosting its
39th Annual Cinco de Mayo Scholarship Banquet Saturday, May 2, at
the Veterans Memorial Building. As always the event will honor
those selected as the MACE Man of the Year and Woman of the Year,
and will raise money for scholarships.
MACE honors Man, Woman of the year at scholarship fundraiser
The Mexican American Committee on Education will be hosting its 39th Annual Cinco de Mayo Scholarship Banquet Saturday, May 2, at the Veterans Memorial Building. As always the event will honor those selected as the MACE Man of the Year and Woman of the Year, and will raise money for scholarships.
“Probably more than in the past – the last couple years with the economy impacting so many residents, especially students and their families – it’s becoming harder for students to attend college,” said Veronica Lezama, the president of MACE. “The Cinco de Mayo [fundraiser] offers a great opportunity for students.”
Last year, Lezama estimates MACE gave out $15,000 in scholarship money. Lezama herself was a recipient of a MACE scholarship in 1997.
“I definitely know firsthand how much this organization has helped students,” she said.
Tickets are $45 and the event is from 5 p.m. to midnight with dinner at 6 p.m., a keynote speaker at 7 p.m. and dancing from 8 p.m. to midnight. The event has sold out in past years and tickets are available only through presale. The speaker at this year’s event will be Rocky Delgadillo, the city attorney for Los Angeles.
“One committee member knows him so we were able to connect that way so we were really happy,” Lezama said.
Mickie Luna, the event coordinator for MACE and a member of the League of United Latin Americans, knows the L.A. city attorney, Lezama said.
“It shows we are really tied into the community, not just in SBC, but all over the place,” Lezama said.
Jose Zepeda and Guillermina “Guille” Reynoso will be honored at the event as the MACE man of the year and woman of the year.
“We are looking for people out in the community who go above and beyond their job duties,” Lezama said.
She emphasized that community service is also one of the criteria for students applying for the MACE scholarship.
Zepeda was born in Santa Maria and is the son of a field worker. He began working in the fields when he was 12 years old, but his parents understood the importance of education, according to a bio prepared by MACE. He earned an associate’s degree from Cuesta College; a bachelor’s in mathematics from the University of California, Santa Barbara; a teaching credential from UC Santa Cruz; a master’s in leadership from the University of San Francisco; and an administrative credential from San Jose State University.
He started out his teaching career as a math teacher at San Benito High School where he eventually became department chair for math and science. He coached wrestling and girls’ softball.
He later worked as an assistant principal at Gilroy High School and South Valley Junior High School in Gilroy before becoming principal of Mt. Madonna High School in 1997. He has worked with the migrant education program for the last 10 years and is the manager for region 1, which includes San Benito and Santa Cruz counties.
Zepeda is married to Rachel Flores-Zepeda, a San Benito High School teacher. They have two children, Celen and Lucas. Celen graduated from Stanford University in 2007 and Lucas is a senior at UC Santa Cruz.
Reynoso was born in Mexico, but moved to the United States with her family when she was 8 months old. The family first settled in Castroville before moving to Gilroy and eventually to Hollister. Her father Jose Asuncion “Chon” Reynoso opened a grocery store on Fourth and Line streets in Hollister, and like Zepeda, she began working at age 12.
When she got her first job outside the family business, she worked as a teller for Wells Fargo. According to the MACE bio on Reynoso, she often visited labor camps on the weekends to talk to families about the importance of savings and bank accounts. She later worked for Transamerica, where she earned awards and bonuses for her customer service, and where she became branch manager. In 2004, she got her real estate license and later received her California Insurance license. She now works with New York Life Insurance Co., where her goal “is to assist the Latino community in planning their future insurance needs.”
Through the years, Reynoso has also volunteered with LULAC, MACE, served on the San Benito grand jury and worked as a Sunday school teacher with teens.
She is the single mother of three sons, Jose Alberto, Salvador and Braulio Cesar.
39th Annual Cinco de Mayo Scholarship Banquet
Veterans Memorial Building
Saturday, May 2
Tickets are $45 and available through presale only
Doors open at 4:30 p.m. with no-host bar at 5 p.m.
Dinner at 6 p.m.
Keynote speaker at 7 p.m.
Dancing from 8 p.m. to midnight
For tickets call 673-2009 or 245-6971, or visit www.themacecommittee.org
