Conocer al Equipo
Voluntario desde 2018
CLAUDIA A. PORTILLO es una especialista en marketing con más de 20 años de experiencia en el crecimiento de negocios para organizaciones con y sin fines de lucro. CAHAAS surgió de su pasión por la investigación de la historia y la ascendencia centroamericana. Aprendió a crear exhibiciones digitales y encontró que el medio era una herramienta poderosa para difundir interpretaciones visuales de artefactos culturales. Fue cofundadora de CAHAAS para cerrar la brecha de conocimiento que persiste en nuestra sociedad sobre la experiencia centroamericana.
Claudia A. Portillo
Cofundador
Voluntario desde 2018
CARLA PORTILLO-WHITBY lleva 30 años en Servicios Creativos, perfeccionando el arte del diseño gráfico. Ha estado frente a la cámara cuando era adolescente y detrás de escena en la producción con casi 100 tÃtulos en su haber en asociaciones con Paramount, Rhino y Warner Studios. Aporta a CAHAAS una sólida formación creativa y técnica. Sus amores son sus dos adolescentes y la construcción de un futuro mejor para ellos. Como cofundadora de CAHAAS, Carla está decidida a construir una red de personas y comunidades empoderadas.
Carla Portillo-Whitby
Cofundador
Voluntariado desde 2020
SASHA WHITBY es estudiante de primer año en Pasadena City College. Su pasión es la escritura y tiene varios cuentos en su haber. Está trabajando para cumplir con los cursos requeridos para transferirse a UCLA en el otoño de 2022. Su objetivo es finalmente obtener su MFA en escritura de guiones. Actualmente es voluntario de CAHAAS como editor y guionista de la campaña 100 BiografÃas Históricas.
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Sasha David Whitby
Editor y guionista voluntario Jr.
Voluntariado desde 2021
STEVEN DEMILLE ha pasado más de 30 años trabajando como un ejecutivo de marketing de gran éxito en el negocio del cine independiente. Además de su carrera profesional en marketing, Steven ha donado su tiempo para participar en misiones médicas en Camboya y Honduras. Durante estos viajes, ayudó con la programación y el mantenimiento de registros, distribuyó prótesis donadas y ayudó a enfermeras y médicos con el cuidado del paciente.
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Steven Demille
Desarrollo voluntario Director
Nuestro Camino
The CAHAAS team of advisors is a dynamic and diverse group of individuals dedicated to providing strategic guidance and expertise in fostering the growth and development of our vibrant cultural community. Comprised of professionals, community leaders, and experts in various fields, this team collaborates to ensure the organization's mission and goals align with the needs and aspirations of the community it serves.
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The advisory team plays a crucial role in shaping the organization's vision, offering valuable insights, and fostering strategic partnerships. Through regular meetings, collaborative discussions, and ongoing communication, the team ensures that the cultural community organization remains responsive to the ever-evolving needs of its constituents.
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By leveraging the collective wisdom and passion of its members, the Advisory Team serves as a catalyst for positive change, driving the organization towards greater inclusivity, cultural awareness, and community empowerment. Together, they create a foundation for a thriving cultural community that reflects the diversity and richness of its heritage.
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Dr. Ester E. Hernández received her Ph.D. in social science from UC Irvine. She is a professor of anthropology at California State University, Los Angeles. She has published on Salvadoran migration and remittances in social science journals such as the Journal of American Ethnic History and Economy & Society. She is co-editor of the anthology U.S. Central Americans: Reconstructing Memories, Struggles and Communities of Resistance (University of Arizona Press, 2017) about 1.5 and second generation Centroamericanas/os and U.S. Central Americans. Her current research is linked to immigrant rights and cultures of memory among children of immigrants. She recently co-authored a piece on family separation, #FamiliesBelongTogether that appeared in the anthology Critical Latinx Studies (NYU Press 2022). Joining efforts to amplify the voices of immigrant communities in OC and beyond, she co-hosts a morning news segment in Spanish with Radio Santa Ana and serves as the board chair of CHIRLA. Dr. Hernandez was born in El Salvador and grew up in Los Angeles.
Your name: CAHAAS is always open to volunteer advisors.
Your name: CAHAAS is always open to volunteer advisors.
Your name: CAHAAS is always open to volunteer advisors.
Our
Story
Get to know us
Claudia A. Portillo started the Central American Ancestry project in 2018 to begin researching, documenting and exhibiting untold stories online. She first documented her own family history, and uncovered many other buried stories about Central Americans that helped shape their countries or influenced communities in California. She understood a need existed to document these stories for the general public, but most importantly, for other Central Americans who may find inspiration in knowing about their history in California and in Central America.
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With an M.A. in Latin American Studies, she was able to create educational content and a simple website dedicated to her mission. She also gained new digital skills at her local community college to better understand archives and digital preservation, and to put it all in practice, she volunteered and worked on digital projects with historical societies. But with the need to grow a collection of artifacts, historical documents and photographs, and start a project to research, write, and disseminate biographies, Claudia realized she needed to bring into the project support from like-minded people. It was this chain of events that lead to the idea of a Central American historical society.
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Instinctively, Claudia reached out to her sister, Carla Portillo-Whitby, a Creative Director with a B.A. in Radio/TV and Film to take this project to the next level.
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The founders of CAHAAS have an entrepreneurial spirit that has seen them through many ups and downs. Their first business, backed by their beloved grandfather, was in 1978 pushing a shaved ice cart around their neighborhood in San Salvador. After selling a few deliciously flavored snow cones for ¢.10, they retired the same day. Carla was 11 years old and Claudia was seven.
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Over the years they embarked upon several more start-ups, and built lasting careers in business. Another side to them includes fighting social injustices; whether it is marching against a war, raising funds for the unhoused, or simply standing up for someone else -- sometimes even for themselves.
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Their resilient and fighting spirit has brought them to create CAHAAS in response to the continuous under representation of Central Americans in society and history. And while these sisters do not plan on pushing a shaved ice cart this time around, they will be pushing for the documentation and preservation of the Central American experience for future generations to learn from and explore.