Meet the Team
The board
Janette Pacheco - Executive Director: President
Born and raised on Chicago’s Northwest Side, Janette is a bilingual graduate of the City Colleges of Chicago. With roots in Puerto Rico through her parents, she now owns her own real estate brokerage in the city. Janette is passionate about empowering women and serving as a voice for seniors, youth, and the often-overlooked community of Hermosa. She is married to Scott, who grew up in Hermosa and shares her deep understanding of the challenges faced by the underserved neighborhood.
alma krueser - vice president
Alma, a founding member of the HNA and a lifelong Chicagoan, has been deeply connected to the Hermosa neighborhood since 1980. Having witnessed the community's lack of resources and attention over the years, she and her fellow founding members were inspired to establish the HNA in 2015. Alma is passionate about issues such as education and protecting our youth and seniors— our most vulnerable. Her goal is to "bring back the hermosa in Hermosa," creating a safe space for youth while fostering unity, safety, and beautification throughout the neighborhood
Daniela Rozo - Secretary
Daniela is a music industry professional currently working at Chicago a cappella, a Chicago-based nonprofit dedicated to advancing the art of ensemble singing as the Marketing and Production Coordinator. Beyond her role with CAC, she is actively involved in various roles within the music industry such as artist management and booking. Originally from Bogota, Colombia, Daniela and her family moved to Chicago when she was 11. She received a degree in Marketing from DePaul University in 2019.
Irma Barreto - Board Member
Born and raised in Chicago with deep Nicaraguan cultural roots instilled by her parents, Irma has a strong drive to contribute to and elevate her community to flourish to benefit all Hermosa. As an alumnus of Hermosa’s Kelvyn Park High School, she pursued studies at Wright College and DeVry University, focusing on business administration. Irma is an Executive Assistant with extensive experience supporting Executives in Information Resources and Government Affairs/Public Relations across CBS, GE Healthcare, Baxter, and most recently, AbbVie’s Medical Affairs. She is a proud part of a CFD family and enjoys being a grandmother and a dog mom.
our volunteers
mikaela o’malley - web development & Video production
Born and raised on Chicago's Northwest side, Mikaela has developed a close fondness for the wide array of communities present in her local area. As a UIC Business Scholars Alum, she has been able to lend her educational background to empower Hermosa Neighborhood Association’s endeavors. In her free time, she loves to read nonfiction, cook delicious food, skateboard, and shoot film photography.
We are so grateful for our past volunteer , staff, and directors: Marlene Gutierrez, Lus Pineda, Nydia Monroy, Marlene Diaz, Jose Burgos, Karla Robles, Annabel Helmer- Lynn, Alex Granados, Rebecca Rodriguez, Lee Helmer, Alfonso Vinaja, Kaytlin Bush, Casey Guerra, Karen Muñoz, Marilynn Lopez, Sean Elliot, Maria Villagomez, Angela Becker Serrano, Jenna Sigman, Kristen Pratt Kalaman, Joelle McCalla (Founder), Sadiki McCalla (Founder), Leonardo Giron, Joshua "Xeno" Martinez (Founder), Steven Wozny (Founder), Alejandra Fleck (Founder), Matilda Montalvo-Lugo (Founder), and Colin Bird Martinez (Founder).