Hispanic community advocate heralded: Lorenia Lara receives Pledge for Life Partnership’s Harold Award

Since 1989, Harold the Giraffe has visited local schools as the mascot of the Life Education Center‘s programs, sponsored by the Iroquois-Kankakee Regional Office of Education and Pledge for Life Partnership.

Harold’s impact reaches thousands of area children each year as he heralds the center’s substance misuse prevention program, Wise Highs, teaching students the skills needed to choose healthy lifestyles and support social and emotional development.

In his name, the Harold Award is given to an individual who has provided support for Pledge for Life initiatives and “stuck their necks out” for the youth in the community.

For her extensive community advocacy and volunteerism, Lorenia Lara is this year’s Harold Award recipient for both her commitment to the Pledge for Life Partnership and her service to the Spanish-speaking community.

Lara has been on the partnership’s Board of Directors for a decade and currently serves as the vice president.

Among her many community involvements, Lara currently provides support to Spanish-speaking families in Kankakee School District 111, is a longtime member of the Kankakee County Hispanic Partnership and founding member of Consejo Asesor de Padres, Project SUN’s parent advisory council for Spanish-speaking parents and caregivers involved in the children’s mental health system of care.

“Lorenia is truly a madrina (godmother), a respected and influential woman in the community,” said Deb Baron, former director of Project SUN. “Spanish-speaking members of the community know that she is a tireless volunteer and advocate for individuals.”

Baron said Lara’s wealth of knowledge and contacts were invaluable in creating the Spanish version of the KAN-I HELP Information Network, an initiative of the Community Foundation of Kankakee River Valley that connects residents with government agencies, human services and non-profit organizations through kanihelp.org.

Brenda Wetzel, director of Life Education Center programming, describes Lorenia as having “a passion to help.”

“Lorenia always asks, ‘What do you need? How can I help you?’” Wetzel said. “Lorenia has a skill for involving everyone and is genuinely committed to community collaboration. She is very respectful and caring, making everyone feel valued.”

Adding to her accolades, Lara has been a driving force behind Kankakee’s Hippocrates Medical Clinic, which provides free medical and therapeutic services to uninsured and underinsured residents of Kankakee County.

She is also a volunteer with the Farmworkers and Landscapers Advocacy Project and a co-founder of Club Poder Latino Kankakee, an initiative to bring Mexican cultural art to our community.

She served as a member of the Catholic School Board at Bishop McNamara Catholic Schools, where her daughters attended, gaining a reputation for helping struggling Hispanic families and assisting the Diocese of Joliet’s initiative to educate more Latino students.

Through her parish, St. John Paul II in Kankakee, she has helped numerous adults and teens to develop the skills needed to maintain healthy relationships.

She is a founding member of Family Bridges Kankakee, a local chapter of the larger Chicagoland organization dedicated to providing services that strengthen family relationships, while embracing cultural and spiritual values.

She has also led many voter registration drives and has been instrumental in recruiting participants for the Pledge for Life Partnership Youth Advisory Council, Baron said, even providing rides to those in need.

“Lorenia is an exceptional role model for our young people,” Baron said.

Lorenia and her husband, Ismael, have two adult daughters, Paulina and Maria Jose, and live in rural Kankakee.

Lara was selected in 2020 for the Harold Award, which was put on pause since the COVID-19 pandemic before returning this year.