Erendira Arianna Vazquez
Founding Executive Director, Pioneros Unidos
Co-Organizing Director & Services Coordinator, Arkansas United
About me: I was born in Torreon and raised in Matamoros in the state of Coahuila, Mexico. I immigrated at the age of 19 and have called Dumas, Arkansas, home ever since. I have two sons, Jorge and Dylan, and I started a nonprofit in 2020 amid the COVID-19 pandemic after seeing my community struggling and the lack of resources that were available.
I have the heart to serve through Pioneros Unidos’ mission to restore and protect families, promote education and resources, help domestic violence survivors and provide cultural and recreational activities. I hope to make the families in this rural part of the state feel welcome and taken care of, as we are sometimes forgotten or overlooked.
Lives/Works in: Dumas
Best Career Advice: Design your goals. That will be your best strategy to achieve them.
Proudest Moment of Impact: Starting a nonprofit during the pandemic, without prior knowledge or the resources to manage what was to come, but knowing it was necessary to provide the needed resources. We have been able to do food giveaways, toy distributions around Christmastime, provide much information about knowing your rights to the migrant workers and resources and help for victims of domestic violence. I have slowly been seeing the positive change in Dumas.
Call to Action: We need more resources to be readily available so that the families here can continue to prosper and reach their goals. We need to take into account the population, which is mostly field workers who have long and unusual work schedules, as well as language access since many of the families aren’t English proficient.
TOP 100 WOMEN OF IMPACT IN ARKANSAS 2023
A Women’s Foundation of Arkansas Initiative