BEAUMONT, Texas — The Hispanic Proactive Coalition celebrated Hispanic Heritage Month by presenting awards to changemakers in Southeast Texas.
At least 150 people attended Sunday's ceremony at the MCM Elegante Hotel in Beaumont.
The six honorees come from all walks of life. Some of them are immigrants and others are first generation college graduates.
All of them were celebrated and recognized for their hard work.
"It's a treasure and I'll probably put it in my office so that everybody can come over and see it," said Jefferson County Clerk Roxanne Acousta-Hellberg.
Members of the Hispanic Proactive Coalition gave leaders in the Hispanic and Latino communities plaques to show their accomplishments.
"A lot of these individuals go without any recognition. And so we want to make sure that they are recognized for their work their contributions," said Co-Founder Richard Rosario.
All of these recipients have made a lasting impact on the community.
"I work in education for all these years and it's my pleasure. I don't think of it as my job," said Community Liaison for Beaumont Independent School District Alberto Iglesias.
The crowd seen at the Elegante Hotel is proof that hard work and dedication doesn't go unnoticed.
"The awards started in 2021, the year before what we were doing was highlighting people just on Facebook. We saw that other cities were hosting awards ceremonies. We grew from 50 in 2022 to 150 two years later," said Rosario.
The nonprofit originally started on the campus of Lamar University in 2015 with three students, including Rosario.
"We wanted to register, educate and get the community voting because we didn't see much of an initiative. Wo we took it upon ourselves to do something," said Rosario.
While the mission continues to stay the same, leaders say there is still more work to be done.
"Elections we're gearing up for next year and everybody's excited and starting to get a little nervous," said Acousta-Hellberg.
"I'm going to keep working for the families I can help, because there is a big need for that especially the immigrant families," Iglesias said.
Rosario told 12News the nonprofit's committee will began planning for next year's awards ceremony in January, where they hope to see an even bigger turnout.
The full list of winner includes:
- Education-Alberto Iglesias
- Orgullo Hispanic Achievement- Roxanne Acousta-Hellberg
- Hispanic Ally- Albert "AJ" Turner
- Community- Andrew Ortiz
- Business- Raquel Ochoa
- Rising Star Youth- Antonio Lopez Maldonado