Alliance for Cultural
and Ethnic Harmony

Mayor's
Proclamation

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Yessenia Aguirre moved to Holland from Florida and graduated from West Ottawa High School. Now a junior at Hope College with an interest in studying psychology, she was a Phelps Scholar and is president of La Raza Unida (LaRU). Yessenia has volunteered with Latin Americans United for Progress (LAUP) and worked on the Hispanic Youth Leadership Conference. She first served ACEH as a youth advisor and is now an elected member of the board. She says: "I wanted to be part of the Alliance because its purpose and mission to have unity within the diversities in the community really speaks to me; it's a movement I want to be part of."

Patricia Bradfield worked as an administrative assistant and in corporate information technology. A survivor of domestic violence and sexual assault, she became a volunteer for the Center for Women in Transition and Ginny's Place, a shelter for battered women and their children. By 2006, she had logged more than 7,000 volunteer hours with CWIT. She ran for election as a board member because "I would like to do my part to achieve the goals of the ACEH mission statement, helping to achieve harmony in a world with equal rights and opportunities for everyone, everywhere."

Jack Hyde a high school special education teacher in New Jersey and suburban Chicago for many years, retired to Holland in 2000. He has a master's degree in special education and is author of "Just Another Brick or How I Survived over 8500 School Lunches," an education memoir and treatise. Jack says: "When we moved to Holland, my biggest fear was that there would be a lack of diverse population. I have been pleased to learn otherwise; lives are strengthened by diverse people who gather in friendship and trust and learn from one another. Celebrating our diversity in ethnicity, faith, national origin, sexual orientation, gender, and age is a positive option to ignoring differences or trying to fit them into a preconceived mold. ACEH leads in many ways with positive examples and I want to help that continue and grow."

Bin Lim has been an ACEH member from its founding and has served as treasurer. He is an engineer, retired from Herman Miller, and active in the Lakeshore Interfaith Institute. Bin and his wife, Lisa, have 4 children and 4 grandchildren. He says, "I think ACEH is a unique organization attracting progressive, open-minded, and compassionate people who are trying to dismantle the (sometimes ever so subtle) social injustices in our community by getting involved in discussion in a very personal way. We have to educate ourselves and the community, to get rid of our prejudices and unconscious false understanding of others. I have no choice but to be active and hope to attract others to do the same."

Norma Luna works part-time as a nurse for a local temp agency and full-time at Hope College food service. She was on the Holland Human Relations Commission 1993-95 and has been active in the community, taking part in the Neighborhood Leadership Academy and Holland Citizen Police Academy. She coordinates the All For One Dance group led by her teenage daughter, Dominique Vargas. Norma also has two adult sons and two grandchildren. She says: "I want to be part of the board to contribute a little of my past as well as my growing knowledge of working with diverse groups in the community. I can share ideas that we use to continue our diverse dance program and hear how young people feel about barriers that exist because of discrimination. We need to promote unity."

Al Minert taught high school and middle school math and accounting in a career that spanned 40 years and 11 locations. He and his wife, Peg, retired to Holland in 2008 from Washington, DC, where he was financial manager for Witness for Peace, a faith-based organization that advocates nonviolent solutions to problems and works for changes in U.S. policy toward Latin America. The couple has a daughter, two sons, and five grandchildren; his immediate and extended family includes a wide variety of ethnicities. Al says: "I would like to be a part of the board of the Alliance for Cultural and Ethnic Harmony because I want to do my part in promoting and celebrating cultural diversity in the Holland community."

Rev. Angela Taylor Perry is pastor of Reconciliation Ministries at Faith Christian Reformed Church, Holland; her Hearts in Harmony program seeks to intentionally create multiracial friendships. An artist, poet, and vocalist, in 2005 she was the first African American woman to graduate from Calvin Theological Seminary. Angela is married, with adult children and several grandchildren, and defines herself as a "25-year survivor of multiple sclerosis." She says: "I believe my desire to bring people into harmonious reconciliation is also the passion of Alliance people. I have found ACEH to be a group of sincere folk who have a passion and an appreciation for people of all nations. Because I have a need to be connected multiculturally, I want to walk my journey of life with others who have the same need."

Lucia Rios was born in Holland and for 6 years has worked for the local nonprofit Disability Network/Lakeshore, where she focuses on accessibility and youth with disabilities. She graduated from Western Michigan University with a degree in journalism and comparative religion. Lucia also volunteers in the community and enjoys spending time with family and friends. She says: "I believe in the value of educating our community about all cultures and differences. I think what ACEH does is beneficial and encouraging, and I would love to be part of strengthening what has already been put in place."

Marvin Younger taught Holland elementary students for over 30 years; he also trained teachers for the Federated States of Micronesia. He serves on the Lakeshore Area Youth Leadership board, Upward Bound, and the city's Human Relations Commission, International Relations Commission, and Multicultural Network, and is involved in two multicultural celebrations in the city. He has been an ACEH board member for two years, serving as president in 2008-09. Marvin says: "I hope to continue to give back to the community by fostering a respect for and acceptance of the diversity that is so much a part of Holland, working to build bridges of communication between ethnic groups and the city, and examining ways to involve all stakeholders in the life of this community."

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