Jessica Fuentes

Jessica Fuentes has been active in neighborhood initiatives in a number of communities since 2012,including East Houston, Pleasantville, Fifth Ward, Kashmere, and Settegast. After seeing the destruction brought on by Hurricane Harvey in her neighborhood, Jessica felt empowered to serve on the board of the East Houston Civic Club. Through her civic club, she has planned community-engagement activities and acted as a liaison to city, state, and federal agencies to enhance the quality of life for the East Houston neighborhood. Jessica has advocated for better public transportation from low-income areas to nearby colleges, hospitals, clinics, grocery stores, the downtown area, Texas Medical Center (TMC), and shopping centers. In order to address issues with public transportation in 2018, she took part in Link Houston's Equity in Transit campaign. Jessica was previously a Community Engagement Coordinator for the East Harris County Empowerment Council's Community Impact & Initiatives program. In collaboration with United Healthcare, she oversaw the Maternal and Infant Health initiative, which provided brand-new clothing to kids aged 0 to 14, provided flexible financial assistance for 30 moms, and hosted virtual community workshops that brought neighbors together to share resources and address issues like maternal mental health. Jessica also adopted the role of volunteer management in addition to her responsibility for community engagement, helping to recruit volunteers for the numerous opportunities that EHCEC provides to the communities it serves. In order to address issues of health equity, community development, and the future of the community of Settegast, Jessica is currently a Bilingual Community Ambassador for the Actions for Health Equity in Settegast project with Harris County Public Health, Rice University's Kinder Institute for Urban Research, Urban Land Institute-Houston, and Houston Landbank. Additionally, Jessica, her mother, and her older brother have improved the nutritional status and way of life of more than 2000 residents of several townships or cantones in San Miguel, El Salvador by organizing annual food and toy distribution drives.