Hispanic Heritage Month: Montclair Community Leader Honored

MONTCLAIR, NJ — A community leader in Montclair is being honored to recognize Hispanic Heritage Month: Marcia Almeida.

The Essex County Board of County Commissioners recently held its third annual Hispanic Heritage Month celebration, paying tribute to several local residents. Watch a video of the ceremony here.

This event celebrates the accomplishments of local residents and their “unique contributions to the Essex community and society as a whole,” according to a news release from the commissioner board.

According to the board, here’s why Almeida earned a nod this year:

“Marcia Almeida, presented by Commissioner Brendan Gill, was born in the Dominican Republic, and has been living in Montclair for more than 50 years. Since moving to the town, she has been involved in different aspects of the community. When her kids were young, Marcia had leadership roles in the school and district PTAs, and worked on programs that improved education and opportunity for all of the town’s younger citizens. Recently she was appointed to the Montclair Juvenile Conference Committee to continue helping Montclair youth. She has been a member of Montclair’s Department of Recreation and Cultural Affairs Advisory Board for over 25 years and has volunteered in various town projects and committees. She is an active board member of May in Montclair and the Northeast Earth Coalition. About four years ago, her and her friend Jose German started a group called Latinos of Montclair to provide information and support to new town residents. At the beginning of the pandemic, Marcia got involved with the MFEE (Montclair Fund for Educational Excellence) Navegadores program, to better help the growing Latino population in town.”

“Today we celebrate Hispanic Americans and Hispanic culture,” Commissioner Vice President Carlos Pomares said. “Our honorees exemplify and are a reflection of the outstanding people in our Hispanic community who have done great things here in Essex. Because of your contributions, we are all the better as a community. We thank you for all you do, and we congratulate all of you on this honor.”

“As a Hispanic American, I am certainly proud to take part in today’s ceremony,” agreed District 1 Commissioner Robert Mercado.

“The Hispanic community is defined by our culture, history, pride, and diversity,” Mercado added. “It is impossible to imagine where Essex County, New Jersey and the country would be without the work and contributions of Hispanic Americans and communities.”

In addition to Almeida, the board recognized Rosaura Bagolie, a Livingston councilwoman, Nelson Barrera, a business and education leader in Belleville, Amiris Perez, a humanitarian leader in Newark, and Griselle Ponce of Newark, president of the Puerto Rican Day Parade Inc.

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