In Community, There is Unity / En Communidad, Hay Unidad

When offered the opportunity to write an article for Hispanic Heritage Month, I immediately said yes. I thought it was the perfect time to reflect on the past 18 months as co-lead for the Latinx Affinity Group. I have the joy and privilege of leading a group of fundraisers who identify as Latinx. I became co-lead by chance but if you ask me today, I would say it was fate.

Early last year, during an AFP IDEA Committee meeting, the chair asked if anyone would be leading the Latinx Affinity Group at AFP ICON. When ascertained no one could, they asked for volunteers. As a newbie to the committee, I asked what it entailed, and it sounded like it was manageable. I thought it would be a wonderful way to meet other Latinx fundraisers (I did not know many then) and to step up as a member of the IDEA Committee. That experience changed everything.

During the Latinx Affinity Group meeting at ICON, I met people from cities across the United States, plus a group from Mexico, sponsored by AFP to attend the conference. The meeting was too short, but everyone seemed genuinely happy to be in that room — Latinas, Latinos, Hispanics, Latinx — however each person personally identified. Some of us were different culturally, geographically, some only spoke Spanish while others only spoke English. Yet, those differences did not matter. I was happy to translate. Everyone listened. We were in community.

Before arriving in Toronto, fellow IDEA Committee member, Jennifer Li Dotson, MSc, CAP® reached out to invite me to a meetup that evening. She introduced me to EVERYONE. It was my first ICON conference. If you have attended ICON in the past, you have probably met her. That evening Jennifer invited friends who identify as API, and Latinx, and African American, and LGBTQIA, and the list went on. This was an inclusive gathering of people connected to the powerhouse, who is Jennifer.

Several days into the conference, an affinity groups mixer took place. I found myself in awe of what I witnessed. There was connection, empathy, compassion, kindness, and understanding. I had not only found community, but a place where people felt safe, seen, and were able to express a vulnerability I had not witnessed in a group of that size within the fundraising sector before. Three months later, Jennifer and I collaborated for a joint API/Latinx affinity group meeting and were thrilled to do it again this year. Our time in Toronto developed into a professional collaboration and a friendship I value.

I know I am a better fundraiser because of my upbringing in a Latino household. Growing up we were taught that family comes first, to always take care of one another, to send money “home,” to welcome members of the family while they get situated in a new country. This was the norm and what was expected. Sometimes we cannot do it alone. That is why community is so important.
Although I live in one of the most diverse cities in the country, I have often been the only Latina fundraiser in the room. That is why I facilitate these spaces. I am motivated to do what I can to help fellow Latino fundraisers in any way possible. It is my responsibility to my community.

I celebrate every moment I have with my fellow Latino fundraisers in the Latinx Affinity Group. When we gather, we can be our vibrant selves — no filters, no pretense, no judgement, no shame, no fear — truly a safe space where we can be our authentic selves.

Personally, I strive to be my authentic self in every room I step into. It is because of that authenticity that I am able to bring my best self, my Latina self, into every donor meeting, alumni conversation, work collaboration, or the spaces created by the fundraising organizations I am a member of. It is in this space that we can come together to share successes, seek support, ask for advice, learn from each other, lean on one another, and connect through our shared identities and lived experiences.

When you have community and surround yourself with like-minded people, everything is better. With community, there is unity. When we are together anything is possible.