My memories of my life in Pawtucket date back to 1993, when I would spend my days at my uncle’s meat market on Main Street while my parents worked. I was exposed to local business from a very early age. At four years old, I was convinced I had a job. And right next door was Noni’s Fruit Market, my “second job”.

I was baptized at the Cape Verdean Catholic Church on High Street and spent most of my time there once I got a little older.  I served on the altar from age 7 to 17, and continue to serve today, as the social service chair of the parish. I am deeply devoted to Cape Verdean Catholic Church, and the community it serves.

My passion for community organizing and philanthropy is deeply rooted in my genes. My grandmother, who became a widow at age 39, crossed the Atlantic Ocean in 1980 with her 12 children, in pursuit of a better life and opportunity in America. Her home became a refuge for many new immigrants from Cape Verde; a place where they could find the support they needed to navigate the system, write letters, and complete applications. I remember helping many of these people by providing interpretation and other types of support.

As a first generation American, I feel privileged to have had access to opportunities that otherwise I may not have had, were it not for the determination of the generations before me.

I am a graduate of Classical High School, and the University of Rhode Island, where I earned a Bachelor of Science degree in health care administration and management. After my undergraduate studies in 2012, I became a resident of Pawtucket. I started my professional career at Narragansett Bay Insurance in downtown Pawtucket providing support to many people impacted by Hurricane Sandy. Five years ago, right before the Pandemic, I earned a Master’s Degree in health care administration from the Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences.

At a time when the world was turned upside down, in 2020, I served as Pawtucket’s first Public Health & Equity Director, leading the COVID-19 response effort, and bringing multilingual support and resources to Rhode Island’s hardest hit communities. Pawtucket’s incident command system and local-level response demonstrated how resilient our communities are when they unite around an emergency response. I am often invited to give presentations about my experiences, best practices, lessons learned, and the unique approaches we took to lead Pawtucket through one of the most vulnerable times in our history.

Building off the transformational efforts of the emergency response through strategy and business planning, I began facilitating programs for Pawtucket Central Falls Health Equity Zone (HEZ) in September of 2022. I serve as the backbone health connector, providing specialized multilingual technical assistance to over 40 multi-sector stakeholders, and convening residents, municipal leaders,government officials, health care organizations and agencies to address health disparities and non-medical social drivers of health.

In addition, I volunteer as the Director of Operations for Project Health CV Inc., where I coordinate medical missions to Cape Verde, and help provide grassroots, culturally sensitive resources, and support to the Pawtucket community.

I am deeply committed to our community, its health and wellbeing, furthering its economic development, and the education of our youth, and I fulfill this commitment through my work in Pawtucket, and internationally.

I am very proud to say that I was named “Person of the Year” by both the Pawtucket Hall of Fame, in November 2022, and the Pawtucket Foundation, in May 2023, in recognition of these efforts. Over that same year, I completed the Rhode Island Foundation’s Equity Leadership Initiative.

All of this has prepared me for my next role, as State Representative for District 58 in Pawtucket, to draw from my lived experience and my passion to uplift the district’s diverse community voices.

I am well-positioned and committed to do the work that is needed from day one to ensure that Pawtucket has high opportunity neighborhoods and continues to be a desirable place for all people to live, work, learn, play, and invest.

It would be a profound honor to serve the community that made me the person I am today, and I am asking for your help, and your vote, to help me get there.