Patricia Veliz Macal
Patricia Veliz Macal has been a community educator and motivational speaker for over twenty years. Patricia was born in Guatemala where she studied Communication Science at the prestigious Francisco Marroquín University. Her education as well as her long-time experience as a communicator and actress has empowered Patricia to dedicate most of her time to creating educational plays and motivational presentations. For the past twelve years, she has worked with Planned Parenthood Los Angeles as a program supervisor for the Promotoras Comunitarias program. Patricia is a strong group facilitator, trainer, and presenter. Her work has focused mainly on community health, domestic violence, and HIV/AIDS issues. She has done presentations on self-esteem, public speaking, client services, and female leadership. Patricia’s genuine care for the community has taken her to develop important community projects such as the Decision play (La Decisión) and Designing Your Life weekend seminar (Diseñando Tu Vida), among others. For the past four years, she has been co-chair of the Los Angeles County Latino Caucus on HIV/AIDS for ALIANZA, which together organizes the largest national Spanish HIV/AIDS conference for Latinos in the United States. In 2007, she was honored as one of thirty Outstanding Women by La Opinion, one of the largest and most widely circulated Latino newspapers. Currently, Patricia’s tireless work focuses on teaching other individuals how to take better care of themselves and to develop fully as human beings.