Board Members

Rosemary Bombela-Tobias Board Chair

A native of East Chicago, Indiana, Ms. Bombela-Tobias began her career as a reporter and joined former Illinois Governor James Thompson’s staff in 1978, as Assistant Press Secretary to the Governor. Rosemary was appointed Director of the Illinois Department of Human Rights by Governor Jim Edgar in 1991, making her the first Hispanic in Illinois history to serve as the Director in a cabinet level position.

She also co-authored the book “The Complete Job Search Guide for Latinos” published by Barron’s Educational Series.

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Carlos Tortolero Board Vice-Chair

Carlos Tortolero is President Emeritus and Founder of the National Museum of Mexican Art (NMMA) in Chicago, the first accredited Latino museum in the U.S. and the largest cultural organization based on the Mexican culture outside of Mexico. The Museum has a collection of over 21,000 pieces. He founded the museum in 1982 and the museum opened its doors in 1987. The Museum has been free since Day One. He retired as President at the end of 2023. From 1975-1987, Tortolero worked as a teacher, counselor, and administrator in the Chicago Public School System.

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Mony Ruiz-Velazco Board Secretary

Mony Ruiz-Velasco is a human rights advocate and the Deputy Director at Equality Illinois where she works to advance a more equitable Illinois for all LGBTQ+ communities. For more than two decades, Mony worked to combine organizing, advocacy, and legal efforts on behalf of immigrant rights and social justice.

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Enrique Lopez Treasurer

Enrique Lopez is principal of Lopez & Company, CPAs. Lopez & Company represents various businesses ranging in size from start-ups to mature businesses spanning various industry sectors both domestically and internationally.

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Antonio R. Guillen

Antonio also serves as the President of the Hispanic Bankers Association (HBA), and serves on several other Boards including Little Village Chamber of Commerce (LVCC), Eighteenth Street Development Corporation (ESDC), Latino Professionals for a Cause (LPC), Puerto Rican Arts Alliance (PRAA), and is a member of the Latino Advisory Council (LAC) for Catholic Charities.

Antonio is a Chicago native, married with 5 children; he joined Wintrust in July of 2010.

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Omar Diaz

Omar Diaz is a Managing Director of Balmoral Advisors who works with clients primarily in the Building Products, Chemicals and Materials, and Industrials industries. Omar has more than 30 years of investment banking, management consulting and project engineering experience. Omar’s clients have ranged from emerging growth to large, publicly traded enterprises. His transaction experience includes M&A advisory, corporate divestitures and carve-outs, take-over defense advisory, fairness opinion mandates, capital raising, and financial restructuring transactions on both the debtor and creditor sides.

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Melissa Flores

Melissa Flores-Born and raised in Chicago and the daughter of Mexican immigrants, Melissa Flores has dedicated her career to advocate for equity and improve the educational and economic outcomes of children and families, especially within Chicago's Latino and immigrant communities.

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Jose Melendez

Jose Melendez is the president of Melendez Insurance Group (MIG). He has over 20 years of experience in the insurance industry and has been helping businesses of all sizes with their risk management needs with an emphasis on long-term relationship building as well as excellent customer service. MIG prides itself on procuring the best insurance coverage using innovative risk management solutions at the most competitive price.

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Ydalmi V. Noriega

Ydalmi V. Noriega serves as Vice President of Programs and Engagement at the Poetry Foundation, leading the team responsible for public programming, the Foundation's library, and organizational partnerships in Chicago, the US, and internationally. Ydalmi created or co-created programs including the Summer Poetry Teachers Institute, the Incubator for Community-Engaged Poets, the Chicago Poetry Block Party, and Webby-honoree VS Podcast.

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Doris Salomón

Doris Salomón is Vice President of Programs and Initiatives at Chicago United, a corporate membership organization whose mission is to achieve parity of economic opportunity for people of color in business. Her primary responsibility is to enhance the membership experience through the development and execution of programs and initiatives. She also oversees the Corporate Inclusion Institute, a nine-month talent development program that drives business performance through inclusion.

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Jorge Valdivia Executive Director

Jorge Valdivia has over twenty-five years of experience in arts and media management. His work is centered in diversity and equity through social practice, public engagement, and advocacy in the arts. He has won awards and been recognized for his strong contributions to both the Latino/a/e and LGBTQ communities. Most recently, Valdivia served as the Director of Performing Arts Director for the National Museum of Mexican Art where he led the Museum in presenting a year-round calendar of events focusing on performing arts, literature, and film. There he also curated the Sor Juana Arts Festival, a multidisciplinary arts festival that he successfully expanded into seven cities.

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