Community Partners
ViviendasLeón maintains relationships with numerous members of the Nicaraguan community to better provide sustainable development to communities and to offer insights into the realities of Nicaraguan life to our program participants. These partners include:
Daniel Pullido – artist, muralist
Daniel is an artist living and working in León. His credits include many mural paintings around León and most recently a mosaic installation at the Museum of Myths and Legends. He is the director of Tierra Madre, an art center in the Goyena community and is an art teacher at the Casa Cultural in León.
Fidel Bervis – President, Sutiava Indigenous Community Board of Directors.
Fidel is the President of the Board of Directors of the Indigenous Community of Sutiaba (CIS). CIS represents the entire indigenous community of Sutiaba, acting as a conduit for aid and coordination with City Hall, national and international aid organizations who provide assistance to the indigenous community.
Pablo Medina Cardoza – President, ASODEL
Pablo began his career studying Law. After graduation he worked as Director of the Regional School for Social Leaders, in the Pacific coast region of Nicaragua. In the early 1990´s he began work as the director of a radio station in León, then moved to be the Legal Representative of the Alternative Trade Japan Corporation in Nicaragua. Pablo is currently the Director of a non-profit organization, the Association for Survival and Local Development or ASODEL. This NGO has worked in the communities of Chinandega, Villa Nueva and Somotillo, and has developed a program in disaster preparedness, human development and capacity building.
Dr. Luis Felipe Perez – Attorney
Dr. Perez is an attorney, professor of Law studies at UNAN and former mayor of León from 1980 – 1983 and again from 1988 to 1996. Dr. Perez brings a personal perspective on both the current political scene and historical events surrounding the Sandinista Revolution of 1980.
Tomas Donaire – Former Mayor of León, Architect
Tomás is an architect, businessman and former politician. Early in his career, Tomas worked with the political party FSLN in the northern city of Chinandega in the Ministry of Housing. During a time in the 1980’s he was mayor of León, and in the 90’s he and other ex-revolutionaries formed a new party, the MRS. He is no longer in politics and focuses on his architecture practice.
Pedro Chavarria – General contractor
Our chief constractor, Pedro has been working with ViviendasLeón for eight years participating in the development of earth based construction projects. He and his wife Ana Rosa Pérez have six children.
Carola Delgado – Business owner, singer
Carola has had careers in youth development, restaurant ownership and music. She currently owns her own restaurant and performs as a singer there as well as other venues. Carola assists ViviendasLeón when coordinating evening cultural activities including live music perforamances.
Rural Community Leaders
ViviendasLeón works primarily in the rural community of Goyena. Goyena is divided into smaller communities organized and led by community-elected 8-9 person board of directors. Each board of directors is responsible for finding and securing assistance from organizations and agencies in Nicaragua to help their community.
Maria Eugenia Muñoz – President, Nueva Vida Board of Directors
Eugenia has been the leader of the Nueva Vida community Board of Directors for nine years. Eugenia is married and has nine children. Three of her oldest boys are in Costa Rica working as contractors while four of her children are girls and are married. The youngest is 10 years old and is studying second grade, the other, Bianca, is 15 years and is in 5th grade. Her husband works as a campesino farmer and is the only source of income for the family.
Luis Alberto Meza Sanchéz – President, Cooperative Aristides Sanchez Board of Directors
Luis is 38 years old and is originally from the community of Las Parcelas. He is married and has five children. He has participated in political organizations for many years. In 1989 he began to participate directly as a community leader and union leader serving as a coordinator. His tenure as president of the Board of Aristedes Sanchez began in 2009.
Maria Mercedes Maradiaga – President, Las Parselas Board of Directors
Maria began her involvement in communal activities in 2005, forming a board directors in the Arts Center Madre Tierra. This board managed the repair of local roads. Once they had organized at the community level, they started to work with MAGNA, a rural health organization, which over time has given many benefits to their community. Her vision is to assist population to work together because without this, they will fail to achieve their common goals. Among the things Maria and the board are working for is a park for their community and sports teams.