Leading by Example

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Tony Moya and Santiago Cerna: Committed to Community

Tony Moya and Santiago Cerna have been a couple for 30 years.

In 2016, they were married by a member of the UnidosUS familia – Mary Murguía – a federal court judge in Arizona who also happens to be the twin sister of UnidosUS President and CEO Janet. Together, Tony and Santiago have been working on behalf of, and advocating for, the Latino community in their state for over two decades and supporting UnidosUS’s mission as donors for almost as long.

For 34 years, Tony led Latino outreach for an Arizona utility company and, thus, connected with many UnidosUS Affiliates there, like Chicanos Por La Causa (CPLC), Friendly House, Valle del Sol and others. Through these connections, the couple began attending the UnidosUS Annual Conference and have continued to do so pretty much ever since. “UnidosUS is addressing important issues that affect our community – housing, education, civic engagement – and they do that in partnership with their Affiliates who are on the ground,” said Tony, emphasizing the mutually symbiotic relationship between UnidosUS and our Affiliate Network.

That relationship especially resonates with the couple. Santiago had been a volunteer at CPLC, helping with homeless outreach efforts. When Tony retired from the utility company, he joined his partner in volunteering and, subsequently, joined CPLC’s board of directors, serving as chair for four years. He helped lead the organization through a period of explosive growth that included expanding services from two to six states and establishing a 501c4 advocacy arm. Tony now serves as CPLC’s strategic projects director.

When asked what inspires the couple to remain UnidosUS donors over the years, Tony explained, “Now, more than ever, UnidosUS’s work speaks to me personally as it relates to the political process; that work – encouraging people to vote and educating on the issues and candidates – is key and more important than ever. We need our community to be engaged.”

Santiago added, “UnidosUS represents the Latino voice. Janet does an outstanding job representing us, along with the staff. They stand for our people, and I sleep better knowing there’s an organization like that and knowing that Janet is running it.”

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