Jess (Jesus) M. Gonzalez M. - Vice Chair
The Beginning
Born in Weslaco, Texas, in the heart of the Rio Grande Valley, Jess (Jesus) M. Gonzalez M. was raised in Reedley, California. Like most childhood friends, he labored in the agricultural fields to help his large family. He attended the University of Texas at El Paso on a track scholarship where he majored in mass communications. After college, he returned to Central California and started a career in the Spanish broadcast industry. Among the various positions he worked were as a reporter, writer, producer, director, news director, program director, guardian of the station’s public file, and on-camera talent for KFTV Channel 21, the Fresno, California, Univision TV Network station. Within his many tasks and responsibilities, Jess created, produced and directed numerous TV news programs, documentaries, variety shows, telethons, live community broadcasts, and endless numbers of commercials and promotional spots. He also worked in various capacities in area radio stations and did Spanish-language radio play-by-play for Triple A baseball as well as college football, basketball, and soccer. Being fully bilingual in English and Spanish, Jess also wrote for local newspapers and magazines.
Community Involvement
As part of Univision, Jess continually covered community events related to the area’s growing Hispanic Spanish-speaking community. As such, he saw firsthand the many needs and struggles that confronted area Hispanics. Through his reports he not only informed and focused attention to areas of life that needed the public’s attention, he also helped educate Hispanics regarding their many social, education, health, employment, and legal problems. Among the many stories he covered were the massive farmworkers strikes the United Farmworkers Union, led by Cesar Chavez, in their efforts to help field workers attain a higher quality of life.
For over 20 years Jess organized and produced an annual fund raising telethon to provide toys for children of needy families at Christmas. He also organized, produced, and directed fund raising campaigns and telethons for a local children’s hospital and for earthquake relief when Mexico suffered a couple of
destructive earthquakes.
Douglas (Doug) W. Kessler - Executive Director
Kessler is the Executive Director of Si Se Puede Fresno, Kings, Kern and Tulare. Kessler joined Si Se Puede in 2018 bringing 40 years of politic experience to the role. In his capacity as Executive Director, Kessler oversees the nonprofit’s work in rural communities throughout Fresno, Kern, Kings and Tulare counties.
Kessler grew up in a family of activists, spending time between Chicago, IL and Grand Rapids, MI. Kessler’s first campaign was McGovern for President, followed by US Representative Richard VanderVeen, the first Democrat elected in Grand Rapids since the Civil War.
Kessler attended Grand Rapids Community College and Michigan State University. Kessler’s family was heavily engaged in the UFW boycott, a cause Kessler was so passionate about that he left school to come to California for Proposition 14. This began his nearly 10 year career with the UFW. His career continued as a union representative for public employees; the Laborers Union and the California School Employees Association. Additionally, Kessler served as an international representative for H.E.R.E and SEIU.
Kessler is a proud community activist organizer, gathering wisdom from his training and work with Saul Alinsky, Fred Ross and Marshall Ganz.
Kessler lives in Selma, CA with his wife of more than 30 years, Estella. They are active in the lives of their six children, more than 20 grandchildren and two great grandchildren. Kessler is fluent in Spanish.
Lucia Flores Delao - Fresno County Member
Lucia was born and raised in Clovis, California; the eldest of six children and only daughter of Guadalupe and Celia Flores. She attended local schools in Clovis; Weldon Elementary and Clark Intermediate. Thereafter, her education continued in Mexico where she lived with her grandmother for five years. The experience of studying in Mexico in Spanish, coupled with her success in her primary education in English, Lucia a feeling of empowerment that reassured her she could be successful in life. That was then she learned the meaning of “Si Se Puede”—that she had what it takes to make it. When she returned to California, she enrolled at Cal State University Fresno and studied science, community health, and child development. She finished her studies at Fresno City College—attaining degrees in life science, child development, and nursing.
Going out in the world, Lucia worked in many fields, including in her family’s popular Mexican Food restaurant where she was involved in everything from management to kitchen work. However, she focused primarily on working in health at community hospitals and in child development with the Fresno Economic Opportunities Commission’s (EOC) Headstart Program where she was a supervisor for home visitors.
Later in her career, she worked for the Reading and Beyond Program as a “promotora” (a promoter) providing resources social services, health and education to families in the low income areas of Fresno. More recently, Lucia was employed as a supervisor for the home visitation services with Centro La Familia Advocacy Services in the Central California communities of Kerman, Mendota, Firebaugh and San Joaquin.
Lucia is passionate about helping families reach their goals in education and in health. She feels strongly about young children being started in pre-school at an early age to help assure they continue progressing at every grade level as they continue their individual growth. She feels parents need to be advocates for their children for them to be successful in their education. She strongly believes they should prepare themselves as best possible in all areas because they, the parents, are their children’s first teachers.
Throughout her many years of community involvement and her religious affiliations, Lucia has regularly participated in community workshops, conferences, and webinars that inform on topics such as health, education, child development per parents, child growth, as well as the recruitment of children for pre-school programs. Though she is no longer employed, Lucia continues recruiting children for the Headstart Program by informing parents of resources and opportunities available to enroll their children in pre-school at three years of the age.
Part of her ongoing advocacy on behalf of the low income community is helping them receive food from community foodbanks.
From an early age, “Si Se Puede” has been Lucia’s passion and motto. She feels that only by having that attitude can families and their children accomplish their objective to be successful and to overcome challenges that may hinder their growth. That’s how she’s been able to help so many families, children, and adults to reach their goals over the years! Based on all she has accomplished in her life it appears having the “Si Se Puede” attitude can make all the difference in the world!
Estella Kessler - Controller
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Ut elit tellus, luctus nec ullamcorper mattis, pulvinar dapibus leo.
Timothy Maravillo - Organizer
B.S. - BIOLOGICAL SCIENCE, CURRENTLY SEEKING PRE-MED Youthful leader, who is inspired and driven by my community. My inspiration to becoming a doctor is focused on providing better health-care services to disadvantaged cities like the one I grew up in. I have devoted thousands of hours volunteering to help create change and loom forward to new beginnings.