Hispanic Canadians Delegation meets Prime Minister Harper

May 27, 2010

Picture Caption:
(First row L-R) Dr. Mary Carmen Romero, Mauricio Ospina (organizer, Hispanic Business), Mario Pérez, Carlo Dade (Executive Director, FOCAL), Oscar A. Jofre Jr., Prime Minister Harper, Dr. Ivar Méndez, Dr. Carlos Morillo, Dr. Julio Torres-Recinos, Esteban Lasso

(Second row L-R): Dr. Marco A. Guzmán, Johnny Campuzano, Dr. Marlinda Freire, Lita González-Dickey.
 

On Thursday May 27, a delegation of past winners of the10 Most Influential Hispanic Canadians programme met with Prime Minister Stephen Harper as part of their activities on Parliament Hill, organized by HispanicBusiness.ca and FOCAL.
 
As Minister of State of Foreign Affairs with a particular focus on the Americas, I have the privilege of serving the Hispanic Canadian Community both here at home in Thornhill, across Canada, and on the international stage. Today’s meeting with a delegation of hard-working Hispanic Canadians is a true affirmation of our Government’s commitments to listen and serve the needs of the Hispanic Canadian Community. 
 
To learn more about the delegation, please find below bios of our friends:
 
Delegates Biographical Information
 

1. Dr. Mary Carmen Romero (Spain):. A teacher and principal for 28 years, she was selected three times by the Canadian Teachers Federation to train teachers in the Caribbean and in Ghana. Has received numerous awards in Spain and Canada, including awards from the Ministry of Citizenship and Culture, the Canadian Hispanic Congress, and the Toronto Catholic District School Board.
   
   
2. Mario Perez (Cuba): Cuban university professor and software developer began his Canadian journey in 1992, homeless at a Salvation Army shelter. In 1997, with a business venture loan from the Government of Canada, Mario started YAK - a software company that had a successful IPO on NASDAQ with a market cap of over 100M.  In 2003, he founded Telax Hosted Call Center with clients like Industry Canada, Health Canada, WSIB, and US Federal and State Governments.
   
   
3. Oscar A. Jofre Jr. (Chile): Entrepreneur and IT innovator who founded Ottawa-based Babel Fish, IT provider of multilingual solutions to 7,600 contractors around the world. He co-founded the Canadian Network of Language Industries and sat on the steering committee of the federal government's Language Industry Technology Roadmap. He is the only Canadian on the United Nations' MIT Digital Nations, a research consortium that seeks to address major social challenges in underserved communities.
   
   
4. Dr. Ivar Mendez (Bolivia): Director of the Neural Transplantation Laboratory at Dalhousie University in Nova Scotia. As a clinician, Dr. Ivar Mendez is pioneering the use of robotics in neurosurgery. As a researcher, Dr. Mendez is breaking new ground in the field of neurotransplantation.  At Canada’s only Cell Restoration Laboratory, Dr. Mendez’ work moves us closer to the possibility of brain repair. His last project with the Canadian government was to develop a distance surgery system to treat Canadian soldiers in Afghanistan.
   
   
5. Dr. Carlos Morillo (Colombia): Professor of Medicine and Director Arrhythmia Service at McMaster University and Hamilton Health Sciences. Morillo is researcher at the Population Health Research Institute working on Chagas Disease, a disease pimarily seen in Latin America (approximately 10 million people are infected), current immigration patterns indicate that 80,000 to 250,000 subjects may be infected in North America.
   
   
6. Dr. Julio Torres-Recinos (El Salvador): Associate Professor of Spanish and Literature at the University of Saskatchewan. He is president of Saskatoon’s Folkfest, the largest multicultural festival in the province with over 269.000 visits in 2009. For this role, he received a Leadership Award by Tourism Saskatoon (2009).
   
   
7. Esteban Lasso (Ecuador):  Since 2001, Lasso has led Transforming Faces Worldewide (TFW), a not-for-profit dedicated to improving the availability and quality of medical treatment and care of children and adults with left clip and palate and related cranio-facial disorders. Lasso also worked with UNICEF as Private Sector Fundraiser Officer.
   
   
8. Dr. Marco A. Guzman (Bolivia): Executive Director of Frontiers Foundation Inc. for ten years. For his work with children, he received the Grand Cross of Bolivia and had a high school named after him. In 2004, Marco received the "Best Affordable Housing Projects" trophy for NFARC's Project Amik. Project Amik is a 75 -unit facility in east Toronto, with half the one, two and three – bedroom suites designated for aboriginal residence and 14 of the total space for handicapped.
   
   
9. Johnny Campuzano (Ecuador): Police constable dedicated to being a positive role model, leader and team player. Since 2004, Campuzano has been the co-captain for Toys for Tots. In 2007, he received the Community Service Award from the York Region District School board for his contribution to student success.
   
   
10. Dr. Marlinda Freire (Chile): Psychiatrist focused on assisting victims of human rights violations. Former Chief Psychiatrist at the Toronto District School Board Association representing it at the Law Society's Equity Advisory Group. . She is currently an Assistant Professor at the University of Toronto and has taught and mentored students at York and Ryerson universities. She also consults at the Hospital for Sick Children, Canadian Centre for Victims of Torture, City Health Associates, and sits on the Mental Health Advisory Committee for the UN High Commission for Refugees.
    
    
11. Lita Gonzalez-Dickey (Peru): For almost 30 years, Lita has been the Spanish Community Relations Officer of the Toronto Catholic District School Board. During these years she has been instrumental in the admission of thousands of children of Hispanic origin into Toronto’s Catholic schools. With the Hispanic families in mind, she created Centro Bienvenidos -TCDSB Spanish Resource Centre from where she assists children with their homework and provides opportunities for foreign trained teachers