Margarita Luna joined The California Endowment in June 2007. As Senior Program Manager for the South Region overseeing TCEs Schools-related investments, Luna manages a grant portfolio focused on improving community health through quality, inclusive and equitable education via community engagement in policy/advocacy and systems change. prior to joining The Endowment, Luna served as a Pedro Zamora Fellow with AIDS United (formerly AIDS Action), Keck-Vivian Weinstein Child Advocacy Fellow and later Senior Social Worker for Public Counsel among many other positions advancing the health and well-being of the most disenfranchised.

Gabriel Maldonado is a leader on LGBTQ+, HIV, housing and health disparities. He founded TruEvolution Inc. fifteen years ago and has grown the organization from offering HIV/STI prevention and care services to include mental health, emergency housing, and now leads the organization’s $20M housing development work. He previously served on President Barack Obama’s Presidential Advisory Council on HIV/AIDS, and serves on regional boards, including Planned Parenthood of the Pacific Southwest, Borrego Healthcare Foundation, and global organizations such as the AIDS Healthcare Foundation. He is an advisory member for ViiV Healthcare’s National Advisory Board and Merck & Co.

Luz Gallegos was born and raised in the In the Inland Empire. She began, “en la causa, el movimiento” as a very young child with the guidance of her parents. Advocating for social justice, organizing, and marching alongside great leaders like Bert Corona, Soledad “Chole” Alatorre, and Cesar E. Chavez. Gallegos is a natural leader. Her organizing and advocating experience came firsthand throughout her childhood. At a very young age she developed a community conscious and commitment and campaigns dealing with an array of issues, immigrant rights, and civic engagement. Gallegos has mentored hundreds of youth and has motivated them to continue with their education while not forgetting their roots. She continues to lead in TODEC Legal Center to give continuity to her family’s community commitment and legacy.

Janice Rooths, MPA, is a racial equity champion and CEO of RootWize, an equity implementation firm. Through her Equity Leadership Academy, she helps guide organizations to operationalize equity and achieve their goals of equality for all. She is also Vice President at Parents Anonymous® Inc., a 53-year-old family strengthening organization. Rooths has built over 35 years of management consulting experience in strategic planning, operationalizing visions, project management, and community organizing. She resides in Riverside, California and is also Co-Founder of Antiracist Riverside, Co-Director of the Center Aganist Racism and Trauma, a member of the Riverside Mayor’s Bipartisan Task Force on Homelessness, and President of The Charles A. Bibbs African American Museum and Cultural Center.

Malek Bendelhoum is a dynamic speaker and storyteller who is regularly sought out all over the country speaking at conferences, Mosques, and institutions of higher learning. He regularly speaks on Islam and Muslims, Social Change, nonprofit growth, Social Entrepreneurship, and more. In college, Bendelhoum Co-founded Sahaba Initiative, an organization that serves underserved communities in the Inland Empire. Currently, he serves as the organization’s Executive Director. In 2018 Sahaba Initiative was voted Nonprofit of the year in California. Bendelhoum has received many awards and distinctions for his leadership such as the youngest director of a Shura council (Religious Council) in the nation gaining the position of 26-years-old, being named one of the 30 most influential people under 30 by the California State Assembly, the Community Leader of the Year Award from USCMO, and was named 2021 Changemaker of the year for his work with Sahaba Initiative.