Political Quotes

“I would like to take a moment to thank Carmen Velasquez of Chicago, who is retiring as executive director of Alivio Medical Center, for her many years of service to the Latino Community and the city of Chicago. As a community leader, civil rights activist, health and education advocate, and one of my personal ``she-ros,'' Carmen Velasquez has dedicated her life to justice and equitable health access for all. As one of the original founders of the Alivio Medical Center, she has served the community for 25 years, helping grow one community health center to a network of 6 clinics, with plans to open two new sites this year. Carmen is the daughter of Mexican immigrants--her father harvested beets in South Dakota before coming to Illinois to start a successful jukebox business. Carmen went on to earn degrees from Loyola University Chicago and the University of the Americas in Puebla, Mexico. In her professional career, Carmen dedicated her talents and energy to universal health care and immigration reform as a community organizer. She was a social worker and bilingual education specialist, who quickly became a pillar of Chicago's Latino community. As a member of Chicago's Board of Education, she realized that more needed to be done not only to address the needs of the Latino community in schools, but also in health clinics. In 1988, Carmen's mission was clear; she needed to find a place to address the too often neglected medical needs of her community.…”