Annual benefit honors community change makers
Cross-post from Benito Link | Reporter, Patty Lopez Day
Youth Alliance held its Change Makers benefit on Sept. 21 at Leal Vineyards’ The Barn, which provided a rustic, intimate setting. Guests posed for pictures in front of a backdrop with words that fit the evening’s theme: engage, transform, grow, connect, and lead.
“Every time we help one person rise to the level of their potential, we all rise,” said Executive Director Diane Ortiz in her opening ceremony speech.
The stars of the night were honorees Osvaldo Gonzalez, 18, Aphrodite Ayala, 17, and husband and wife honorees Monica and Raymond Rodriguez.
Gonzalez received the 2019 Tony Ruiz Scholarship and a $500 check. He works as Youth Alliance support staff in operations/outreach and attends Gavilan College with a goal of becoming an engineer. He said Youth Alliance changed his life.
“Within two years, YA changed me into a whole different person that you see here today,” he said. “I could’ve been in jail for life, or dead.”
The 2019 Youth Inspiration award went to Ayala, along with a $500 check. A senior at Gilroy High School, she has recorded 900 volunteer hours and been involved with Youth Alliance for 11 years.
The Rodriguezes received the night’s highest honor, the 2019 Change Makers Award. In the event program, YA recognized their “amazing dedication to young people as champions, advocates and community leaders for over three decades.”
Raymond Rodriguez is a former San Benito High School board member, founder of the Baler Education Foundation, and an inaugural member of the Parents and Students for Educational Justice group. Monica Rodriguez is an advocate for students and parents focusing on education rights, education code and special education.
“We have to make sure that our kids are given the opportunity for an education,” Raymond said. “The public education system has to support our kids. We have to thank our kids because we did this work when our kids were small, hopefully we made it a little bit better for your kids.”