SACRAMENTO – In a ceremony today at the State Capitol in Sacramento, Assemblymember Jesse Gabriel honored Michelle Fuentes-Miranda as Woman of the Year for her service to the West San Fernando Valley. Today’s events included a lunch with members of the Legislature, presentation of a legislative proclamation, and a special ceremony on the floor of the State Assembly.
Fuentes-Miranda is the Founder and President of the Alliance for Community Empowerment (ACE), a community-based nonprofit in Canoga Park that seeks to empower underserved communities by providing young people facing challenges with education, vocational programming, mentorship, and leadership training. She is also President of the Canoga Park Neighborhood Council and the founder of the Council’s Homelessness Solutions Committee.
In introducing Fuentes-Miranda, Assemblymember Gabriel made the following remarks:
“I am proud to recognize Michelle Fuentes-Miranda as Woman of the Year for the West San Fernando Valley. Through her work with ACE and as President of the Canoga Park Neighborhood Council, she has devoted herself to serving our community and uplifting those in need. She is a role model for young people in Canoga Park and across the San Fernando Valley, and I am so pleased to have the State Legislature recognize her enormous contributions to our community.”
Fuentes-Miranda said, “I am so pleased to have been selected as Woman of the Year by Assemblymember Jesse Gabriel. Serving my community in Canoga Park and our communities throughout the San Fernando Valley is a lifelong passion for me, and it is an honor to be recognized today.”
Fuentes-Miranda began her career working in education and has focused on helping underserved communities in the San Fernando Valley for more than 25 years. She founded ACE in 2013, with the mission of helping young people facing challenges make a positive difference in their community. Through strategic collaborations, ACE provides a high school education, valuable job training, leadership development, and supportive services for young people from high-risk environments.