Latino Luncheon

Our History:The Latino Luncheon was started in 2001; a collaborative effort between West Chester University who was represented by Luz Hernandez and Idna Corbett and individuals from West Chester who included Anna Rivera, Haydee Gullaksen, and myself (Leonard J. Rivera). I was approached by Luz who asked if I would be interested in organizing a Luncheon whereby citizens from Chester County and employees from West Chester University could come together for the purposes of interacting with each other, learning about West Chester University events, and getting to know each other better. Some of the initial developments of this union were finding great places to eat, meeting new people, making new friends, and to practice speaking in Spanish. Over the course of time, the Latino Luncheon switched locations and people have come and gone but there has always been the core group of regular attendees.Several years later, Idna, Anna, Haydee, and I still see each other at least once a month at the Latino Luncheon, but the group is bigger and better. We have benefited from attending functions at West Chester University and other events such as meeting candidates running for election for Pennsylvania Governor and candidates for reelection in the United States Senate. Today, the group’s main focus is to become acquainted with other Latinos in Chester County and surrounding areas, including anyone interested in Hispanic interacting. Regardless of ethnic background we happily adopt interested persons. We are a nonpartisan Professional group and really appreciate the opportunity to share our diverse culture with each other, and look forward to meeting once a month to enjoy one another’s camaraderie.What we do?:We meet every Friday of the Month in Chester County PA Our Mission: Improve Chester County diversity competence and maintain a positive environment by providing a forum for people from similar backgrounds, culture, and interests to come together to network, develop personally and professionally, identify issues of concern, and provide mutual support and advocacy Motivation: Create bonds between residents of the Latino and non Latino community within the Chester county and outside the Chester County too. Build alliances among participants Address issues of common concern Increased visibility of the people and businesses within the community Community Recognition Share experiences Have fun