Hispanic Business Education Network

HBEN is honored to be an organization with such distinguished members, some of whom give of themselves to extraordinary lengths. There are certain people who have a quiet way of sharing their compassion, a heartfelt manner of giving back to the community. They are our Heroes de la Sombra, those with a genuine sense of caring for others and never expecting recognition for such noble efforts.

Heroes de la Sombra

Rosa Yolando Mendoza (In Loving Memory)
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Gilberto Victoria Navarro
Hailing from his original homeland of Mexico, Gilberto Navarro came to the United States as a child and grew up in Oakland. After serving several years in the US Army, he continued his education, going on to earn his B.A. from the University of California, Irvine in Social Ecology and an M.A. from Cal State in Counseling and Mental Health. Mr. Navarro has dedicated his life to working with the Latino community in hopes of creating more opportunity for people to improve their lives and flourish in the United States.

Miriam Wong
As founder of The Latina Center, Miriam Wong has served the Hispanic community for the last ten years with complete dedication and compassion. She strove to create educational programs for Hispanic women, children and seniors in the Bay Area, with a strong emphasis on preventing domestic violence, mental health, work force skills and general education. Through The Latina Center, many lives have been changed as women find the strength, courage and confidence to take control of their lives.

Reverend Juan Segura and Mrs. Maria del Carmen Segura
Reverend Segura and his wife founded a church in San Diego, California in 1972 before expanding their work into Los Angeles, Las Vegas and in 1980 made the move to “Rosa de Sharon” in San Francisco. The couple share four children, all of whom actively participate in the congregation. The family’s extensive contributions to the community include forming groups to clean graffiti in the city, provide lunches for hundreds of homeless people, the creation of youth programs to counsel against drug use and free community counseling for family conflicts. They have also trained numerous young men and women to become pastors sharing the same vision for a better community, many of whom started life on the streets and went on to graduate from prestigious schools with Bachelor’s degrees and now serve their respective communities.

Reverend Filiberto Barrera
Ordained in 1998 and first served at the St. Beded Church in Hayward, California, Reverend Barrera has been the Pastor and Administrator of the St. Cornelius Catholic Church in Richmond for the past nine years. Reverend Barrera works extensively with other organizations to distribute hundreds of Christmas gifts for the community as well as spearheads many programs, including the Youth Music and Art Programs which has significantly helped to keep kids off the streets and provides a safe haven to explore musical and artistic creativity. The school of St. Cornelius in conjunction with the church, UC Berkeley and other organizations has after school programs, helps with donations to the Children’s Hospital and promotes the enrichment of the community’s spiritual life. Seasonal and holiday programs are also maintained to encourage a better life for the community’s children. Reverend Barrera has established a stellar reputation throughout the Bay Area as a caring and attentive leader.

Ramona Holguin
As overseer of the Homeless Advocacy Project, Ramona Holguin has been serving the San Francisco Bay Area community with a profound sense of compassion and dedication. For numerous homeless people as well as families in danger of losing their homes, Ramona’s project has often been the only avenue they have been able to turn to for reliable and effective help to put their lives back together. Ramona’s free legal clinics bring professionals in the field who are interested in being of service to their community with people of little to no incomes who are in desperate need of guidance.