Our Staff

Fekadu is a recent immigrant to the United States from Ethiopia, where he worked as an accountant for two decades. His accounting experience includes processing payroll, banking, billings, account receivables/payables & preparing financial statements. Fekadu has been working with IMPACT since the spring of 2015 to support with accounting duties and is now a part time employee.

Javier Chavez is an immigrant from La Paz, Bolívia, an organizer, former educator, and father of three children. He's called Gaithersburg home since 2002 and continues to give back to the community that has given him so much. He’s done this through his experiences as a lead volunteer tenant canvasser for Everyday Canvassing, former English professor at Centro Boliviano Americano Institute, and founder of a Latino parent teacher group called PALA at Gaithersburg High School. Javier was recently certified in Support Coordination & Case Management Training from Virginia Commonwealth University. In his free time, Javier likes to listen to classic rock and play instruments with his children.

Carmen Hernandez is without doubt the most seasoned community builder ever to serve on the IMPACT Staff. She is originally from El Salvador, where she worked with the administration and faculty at the Central American University on various community building/engagement projects. Carmen has been in the United States for 16 years, and worked for three years as a lead organizer with Tenants & Workers United in Virginia. She has worked with IMPACT Silver Spring since 2011.

Harold is a DC native and Briggs Chaney local who started community engagement work with motivational speaking in prison half-way housing in Washington DC to re-entry inmates. His motivational speaking grew to include audiences at churches, schools, and other organizations. In addition to his work with returning citizens, Harold is also a housing justice activist who has testified before the Montgomery County Council and is a member of the Montgomery County Racial Equity (MORE) Network’s housing committee. Along with being a part-time Network Builder in East County for IMPACT, Harold is also an organizer for partner organization Everyday Canvassing. Harold’s favorite proverb is: “No one cares how much you know until they know how much you care!”

Renée is a graduate of Montgomery County Public Schools and the University of MD at College Park, where she majored in philosophy and English. She continued her studies with graduate coursework in the Philosophy and Social Policy program at American University. She served three years on the Countywide Recreation and Parks Advisory Board, and has led several all-volunteer nonprofits in the Burtonsville area.

Wilfredo Antonio Medrano, who goes by Will, was born in Houston TX, and came to Montgomery County when he was 3. He has been coaching soccer alongside his brother since 2007, and has enjoyed every moment of it! He prides himself on teaching kids not only the beautiful sport, but also the fundamentals of life and how soccer can apply. He has been married for 18 years and together, he and his wife have 3 kids--a 17 year-old daughter, (A senior at Blake HS), 12 year-old son, and a 4 year-old son. His full-time job is with the National Institutes of Health as a Physical Science Tech and he currently attends Lakeshore Technical College where he is studying Health Physics. He really enjoys working for Impact and feels he can make a difference in the community.

Sara has been with IMPACT since 2007 and has over 15 years in deep community development and organizing with IMPACT. She began her work as a facilitator working with immigrant parents through the IMPACT in the Schools program and became the lead organizer of IMPACT’s Parent Educator Program before moving to her work with the Family Asset Building Network. Sara currently works as the Senior Network Builder in Long Branch. Sara is a native of Ethiopia and, in addition to English she speaks Amharic and Tigrinya.

Valerie Salazar joined IMPACT as a Local Economy Networker in the winter of 2018. She got involved with IMPACT in 2017 as a founding member and administrative manager of the Montgomery Community Investment Cooperative, the first cooperative initiative in Montgomery County. Valerie has a B.A. in Business Administration with a minor in Theology, a C.S.C in Business Information Technology, and advanced proficiency in Spanish. She also has a background in community organizing, accounts, and program management. Valerie understands local economic support varies among individuals, neighborhoods, and communities. She is centered on working towards building a bridge between economic justice and supporting the creation of democratic workplaces through providing technical support to cooperatives, small businesses, and entrepreneurs by building relationships with community members, empowering personal and local capacity, and providing business development support and relevant business skills countywide.

Lanita has worked as a fundraiser, project manager, and event planner for non-profits for more than 20 years. Before coming to IMPACT, she worked for the National Association of State Boards of Education (NASBE) as Director of Special Projects and worked as a consultant on projects including the national AIDS/HIV Youth Summit, the NASBE New State Board Member Institute, and several State Superintendent of Education searches. Lanita has a BA in English from North Carolina State University. Lanita has been involved in the IMPACT Network since 2009, initially working as a community builder with the Thriving Multicultural Schools Project. She has worn several hats at the organization including East County Network Builder, Director of Development, and Network Coach. She now serves the organization as a Senior Organizer who supports IMPACT's communications, reporting, and special projects.