Ann and Jim Curry

Ann and Jim Curry have been valuable members of the LAA family for decades, supporting the LAA’s mission unconditionally. This year we have the honor of celebrating them at our Annual Compañeros Luncheon as they receive the LAA Cornerstone Award.

Ann is the former owner of Coxe Curry, who is privileged to continue to ply her craft under David Eidson’s leadership. She began work at the firm in 1992 and purchased the firm from prior owner Frankie Coxe in 1993. Her current role allows her to be a senior advisor to  clients and a resource for the firm’s staff.

Ann’s previous community service includes serving as president of the Atlanta-Fulton League of Women Voters, as Georgia president, and as a member of the League’s national board. She chaired the Atlanta-Fulton Public Library Board for three years and was the  founding president of the Atlanta-Fulton Public Library Foundation. Ann is a graduate of Leadership Atlanta and Leadership Georgia.

She is a member of the YWCA Academy of Women Achievers and was the 2017 co-winner of their Woman of Achievement honor.

Ann was a member of the Corporate Board of State Bank and Trust prior to its merger with Cadence Bank. She is a member of the Advisory Board of the Georgia Conservancy. She is an active member of the Atlanta Rotary and was the 2018 recipient of the M. Collier Ross Leadership Award. She is a board member of Adventure Scientists, a Montana-based organization that collects data for scientists to address critical challenges to the environment and human health.

A graduate of Duke University, Ann is the chair of the Advisory Board for Duke University Libraries, a past chair of the Duke University Women’s Studies Council, and a six-year member of the Board of Visitors for Trinity College at Duke. She is a committee member for the Sarah P. Duke Gardens’ “Garden Gateway” campaign.

Jim retired in May 2004, at the age of 60, after 38 years of practice with Deloitte & Touche LLP.  He studied Spanish at the LAA from September 2004 until 2008 and was able to travel extensively to Latin America during that timeframe. He is currently on the LAA’s board.  In addition to his long service on the board of the LAA, Jim has also had a multi-decade involvement at Families First, where he serves on the Finance Committee, the Endowment Committee and the Executive Committee.  He is a past chair of the board of the Georgia Conservancy and a strong environmentalist.

Jim is a graduate of Duke University and holds an MBA from the University of Michigan.  He and Ann met at Duke and have enjoyed many trips back to and with the university for alumni involvement, alumni travel and sports, primarily basketball, their shared passion.

Ann and Jim live in the Brookwood Hills neighborhood.

Commissioner John King

John F. King was sworn in as Georgia’s Insurance and Safety Fire Commissioner by Governor Brian Kemp on July 1, 2019, becoming the first Hispanic statewide official in state history. He was elected to a full four-year term on November 8, 2022.

Before becoming Commissioner, King spent his career in law enforcement, beginning as an Atlanta police officer in 1985 and culminating as Chief of Police for the City of Doraville. While at the Atlanta Police Department, he worked various assignments including Red Dog, Organized Crime/Intelligence, and received the Chief’s Blue Star in 1987 for being injured in the line of duty as a result of a criminal attack with a firearm. His career also includes assignments to both FBI and DEA as a Task Force Agent.

A native of Mexico, King made a meaningful impact by building bridges among Doraville’s diverse populations and implementing youth education and crime-prevention programs in his role as Chief of Police. Recognizing the international composition of Doraville’s community, King made it a priority to hire bilingual police officers, place multiple languages on police cars, and ensure effective translators and public defenders were employed at the City Courthouse. Commissioner King’s initiatives include Anti-Gang education programs for elementary school students and parents. He worked with the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce to establish an education program for prospective small business entrepreneurs and worked with state, county, and local leaders to implement a safety and speed reduction program targeted to Buford Highway to reduce the number of pedestrian fatalities. Commissioner King is also a member of Leadership DeKalb.

King received his Bachelor of Arts degree in criminal justice and public administration from Brenau University and a Master’s Degree in Strategic Studies from the U.S. Army War College. He graduated from Harvard University Senior Executives in National Security and Syracuse University National Security Decision Making Course. Commissioner King was a graduate of class #229 in the FBI National Academy in Quantico, VA, and also a graduate of the Georgia International Law Enforcement Exchange program to Israel (GILEE).

Commissioner King is also fluent in Spanish.

International Rescue Committee

The International Rescue Committee (IRC) in Atlanta creates opportunities for refugees and immigrants to integrate and thrive in Georgia communities. Since opening in 1979, the IRC’s locally funded office in Atlanta has welcomed more than 28,000 refugees from over 65 countries to resettle in communities across the state. A committed staff of more than 100 professionals work together with volunteers to assist families in reuniting and rebuilding their lives in the greater Atlanta area. The IRC in Atlanta offers a broad range of programs including resettlement and case management services, adult education classes, youth programs covering ages 5 to 24, employment assistance, asset building resources, community health response programs, and immigration services, all of which serve more than 4,000 clients each year.

In 2021, the Latin American Association received funding from the International Rescue Committee to support the Avanzando Juntas program. This program has been instrumental in helping Latina entrepreneurs in Georgia launch and grow their businesses. This support enabled the LAA to offer more comprehensive services, including training, workshops, and capital, to help Latina entrepreneurs thrive in a post-pandemic world.

The partnership between the LAA and the IRC has proven to be highly effective in meeting the needs of Latina small business owners in Georgia. Thanks to the support and partnership, the LAA has been able to provide key resources, training, community, and capital to ensure Latina’s remain the fast-growing group of small business owners in Georgia. The LAA is deeply grateful for the partnership with IRC and for the impact the partnership has created.

Crecer, the Hispanic/Latino BRG – a UPS Business Resource Group 

Crecer, the Hispanic/Latino Business Resource Group (BRG) at UPS, took root in 2012 as a people-led effort to grow careers, develop customer relationships and make global connections.

A decade of growth: In 2022, Crecer celebrated over 1,200 active members representing 24 diverse nationalities across 20 international BRG chapters that continue moving forward with an ‘Echa Pa’lante’ determination. That means to keep going, no matter what.

Crecer’s mission is to empower individuals through leadership and professional development, accelerating business growth for UPS, our customers and our communities.

Atlanta Braves Foundation

The mission of the Atlanta Braves Foundation is to build community through baseball engaging Braves Country, reaching vulnerable populations, and improving equity and access in sport, health, education and well-being outcomes for children, families, and communities.

Phil Brown

Phil retired from Mohawk Industries in December 2020 where he was Executive Vice President Human Resources from 2008 until his retirement. After about 9 months of retirement Phil decided to return to work part time as the Business Administrator at Tabernacle Baptist Church in Cartersville. Prior to Mohawk Phil had a long career at Goodyear Tire and Rubber company where he was Human Resources leader in North, Central and South America businesses. His last assignment at Goodyear was as the Plant Manager at the largest tire plant in the world in Lawton Fort Sill, Ok. During his career he worked to support employee’s needs, develop the next level leaders, and partnered with community organizations such as NAACP, local community groups to improve diversity and inclusion across the organization. He is especially proud of the partnership with Latin America Association and the work being done in NW Georgia from the recently established Dalton / Whitfield County office. Phil and his wife Wanda have 2 sons and 5 Grandchildren in AL, TX and TN.

Martha Revelo

Martha Revelo is the Northeast Outreach Director for United States Senator Raphael Warnock. She is the first Latina to hold this position for a U.S. Georgia Senator, but certainly not the last. As an Atlanta native born from Salvadoran immigrant parents, Martha has been a lifelong community advocate and professional, championing years of advancing opportunities for minority and underserved communities. Growing up in the south metro Atlanta region, Martha experienced limited access to proper education, healthcare, and civic engagement which has continued to suppress the advancement of black and brown communities. She knew that in order to move the needle forward for her community, she needed to be part of the solution and so decided to pursue her career in government.

Through a non-traditional college experience, Martha worked through college to get both her undergraduate and Master’s degree, being part of only less than 10% of Latinas to have access to higher education. Since then, Martha has worked with organizations, stakeholders, and federal, state, and local government to engage, participate, and sustain a pipeline of opportunity for needed funds to
hundreds of projects including education and workforce. Recently, Martha championed the first federal congressional directed spending earmark to the Georgia Hispanic Chamber of Commerce and Ser Familia, which made a historical marker in the Hispanic community in the state of Georgia. Martha also led the creation of Salvadoran American Day in Georgia which is now recognized on September 17th.

Martha was named as one of the 50 most influential Latinos in Georgia last year and was recognized by the Fulton County Board of Commissioners proclaiming, “Martha Revelo Appreciation Day” honoring the years of commitment and service in the community she grew up in. During the 2022 legislative session, Martha was recognized by the Georgia State House of Representatives for her commitment and leadership working across the region and in particular Gwinnett County. She was recently selected among ten distinguished individuals to Outstanding Atlanta’s 2022 cohort, individuals who have demonstrated extraordinary leadership in their prospective discipline across the City of Atlanta.

Martha holds an M.A. in Political Science for Professional and International Politics and a B.A. in Political Science for International Relations from Georgia State University. She lives in Atlanta with her husband and two dogs.

Shirley Paucar, Sweet Toppings ATL

Shirley arrived in the U.S. from Ecuador in 2014 with her family. After settling in the United States, Shirley knew she wanted to make more for herself and sought out the Latin American Association (LAA) to receive support with starting a business. From the start, she has been passionate about sharing her love of baked goods and pastries with her new community. Since September 2020, Shirley has worked with the Latin American Association, one of the spokes in Atlanta’s Community Navigator Pilot Project. However, after registering her business and finalizing her business plan, Shirley’s hopes to start Sweet Toppings ATL came to a stop when COVID-19 hit. The impacts were so detrimental that Shirley returned to Ecuador to live with her family and had to cease her business.

In January, after returning to the United States and working as an assistant manager at IHOP for a year, Shirley connected again with the LAA. She decided to leave IHOP to pursue her business full-time. Despite the risk Shirley knew she was taking, she reminded LAA staff that Sweet Toppings ATL was her dream, and that she “hopes to see her business grow and eventually franchise like IHOP.” After refining her business plan and taking on her first clients, Shirley enrolled in the Community Navigator Pilot Project this quarter. Her navigator provided Shirley with 39 hours of counseling and training on digital marketing, social media for business owners, Google platforms, Serv Safe, and more. In collaboration with the navigators at the IRC in Atlanta, Shirley attended a grant clinic and applied to local and national grant opportunities, totaling $70,000. In just a few months of restarting her business, and with support from her navigator and other resource partners, Shirley is a successful business owner living her dream. She now works full-time from home and can care for her son. She generates $5,000 per month in profit and saw a 36 percent salary increase. In the future, Shirley plans to work with her navigator and open a coffee shop in a nearby neighborhood.

Catherine Warren

Catherine Warren is a proud native Atlantan and currently calls Southwest Atlanta home. Catherine is a third-generation public servant. She began her tenure at the LAA as an AmeriCorps VISTA in the Economic Empowerment department. She then worked on the Resource Development team, leading the annual giving program for three years. In 2022, she moved to the newly formed operations department where she now serves as Operations Manager.

Prior to joining the LAA, she served as a Young Adult Volunteer (YAV) with the Presbyterian Church U.S.A. in Lima, Peru. She is a graduate of the University of Georgia (UGA) with bachelor’s degrees in international Affairs and Anthropology.

She currently serves on the board of the Association of Fundraising Professionals and on the mission council of Trinity Presbyterian Church where she is a member. She has previously served on the board of Presbyterian Women Inc. on the communications and funds development committee, justice and peace committee, and strategic planning committees. In 2015, she attended the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women as a delegate with the Presbyterian Ministry at the United Nations.

She started taking Spanish at Decatur Presbyterian Children’s Community at age 4. She continued through primary and secondary school in Decatur City Schools, minored in Spanish at UGA, and continues to study Spanish with LAA Spanish instructors.