2024 Board of Directors
Heidi A. Kiesling, President of the Board
Community and Employee Engagement Director, Pan-American Life Insurance Group, New Orleans
Ms. Kiesling is the Community and Employee Engagement Director at Pan-American Life Insurance Group in New Orleans. In this role, Ms. Kiesling is responsible for the Company's Internal Communications, Corporate Events, Corporate Philanthropy, and Employee Engagement initiatives. Ms. Kiesling is very active in the community events that the company sponsors throughout the city. She is currently the Board President of the Nicaraguan Relief Fund, the Academy of the Sacred Heart Alumnae Board, and a past board member of Puentes New Orleans. She is a lifelong resident of the city of New Orleans where she attended the Academy of the Sacred Heart and then Loyola University New Orleans, where she earned her Bachelor's of Arts in Graphic Design and her Master of Arts in Mass Communications. Ms. Kiesling chaired the 2016 Azúcar Ball. She has served on the NOHHF Board of Directors since 2018.
Lauren Mastio, Immediate Past-
President
Partner, Jones Walker LLP, New Orleans
Ms. Mastio is a law partner at Jones Walker LLP in the firm’s Business & Commercial Litigation Practice Group. Her litigation practice includes all aspects of corporate litigation, focusing on the energy and construction industries. She is a 2010 graduate of Vanderbilt University Law School, where she received her Juris Doctor degree. She also received her Bachelor of Science in Human and Organizational Development and Political Science, summa cum laude, from Vanderbilt in 2006. Ms. Mastio is an active member of the New Orleans community, who has served on the March of Dimes Board of Directors, Audubon Nature Institute’s Scales & Ales Committee, The Good Shepherd School Gala Committee and the Metairie Park Country Day School fair, in addition to various other civic and community endeavors. She chaired the 2014 Azúcar Ball and has been a member of the NOHHF Board of Directors since 2018.
George J. Fowler III, Vice President, Development & Chairman Emeritus
Attorney, Partner, Jones Walker LLP, New Orleans
Mr. Fowler is a partner at Jones Walker LLP in the Maritime Practice Group, where he focuses on litigation, arbitration, and dispute resolution. Mr. Fowler is an internationally recognized trial lawyer known for his successful record trying hundreds of cases to juries and judges, including numerous high-profile matters, complex litigation, and cases of national concern. Mr. Fowler has written and lectured extensively on private international law and world trade and is active in promoting trade and investment for the City of New Orleans. Committed to promoting educational opportunity, he is the founder, chairman emeritus, and a current board member of the New Orleans Hispanic Heritage Foundation. He is also deeply involved in human and civil rights issues and has represented a number of clients in matters involving police abuse in New Orleans, negligent treatment of individuals by US authorities, and violations of human rights.
Alex Gershanik, Vice President, Scholarships
Attorney, Educator & Business Proprietor, Power Courses, New Orleans
Mr. Gershanik is the president and head teacher of The Power Courses, an educational consulting company that helps students prepare for standardized tests such as the ACT, SAT, PSAT, LSAT and GMAT. His students have received admissions to the most competitive schools in the country and have been awarded scholarships and other financial aid. Mr. Gershanik received his undergraduate and law degrees from Georgetown University. He sits on the boards of the Greater New Orleans Foundation, the Bureau of Government Research, Second Harvest and Family Service of Greater New Orleans. He has also served on the boards of the United Way, Catholic Charities, and the Alliance for Children and Families; he is a former president of the NOHHF and is most proud of his twenty-plus years of involvement with the Foundation.
Max Moreno, Treasurer
Banker, Former Vice President, The Hancock Whitney Bank, New Orleans
Mr. Moreno, a long-term resident of the New Orleans area, is a vice president of the Whitney Bank in New Orleans, where he is the International Relationship Banking Manager. A native of Panama and an LSU graduate, he was President of the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce of Louisiana and is a member of the Board of Directors of the New Orleans Ballet Association. He was also President of the NOHHF and has been a member of the Board of Directors of the Foundation since 2002.
Mariana H. Tafur, Secretary
Engineer, New Orleans
Ms. Tafur is a Mechanical Engineer and an MBA currently working as a Project Manager for Worley in New Orleans, Louisiana. She previously held various roles at Valero Energy in Operations, Maintenance, Turnarounds, and Engineering. She holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Mechanical Engineering from Louisiana State University, a Masters of Business Administration degree from the University of Florida, and she is a licensed engineer in the State of Louisiana. She moved to the United States from Venezuela in 2003 to attend LSU and has lived in the United States ever since. Ms. Tafur previously served on the boards of directors of the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce of Louisiana and the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce Foundation. She received the 2017 Ada Lovelace Award in the STEM Educator category for promoting STEM to girls and young women. Ms. Tafur has served on the NOHHF Board of Directors since 2019 and chaired the 2023 Azúcar Ball.
Yakelis Anzola
Neonatal Nurse Practitioner, New Orleans
Yakelis Anzola has been a beloved and dedicated member of the healthcare and Hispanic communities in New Orleans for nearly 30 years. Born in Venezuela, Yakelis and her husband, Carlos moved to New Orleans with their young daughter in 1983. Yakelis is currently the lead neonatal nurse practitioner at West Jefferson Medical Center. She serves as Treasurer for Casa Argentina, and has organized multiple silent auctions for charity – including many a successful Azucar Ball! Yakelis is a die-hard New Orleans Saints fan. She can often be found enjoying time with her three grandchildren, making “arepitas.” Yakelis has been a loyal Azúcar Ball volunteer for many years. With her appointment to the Board of Directors of the NOHHF and hopes to further their important work.
Rosa Balaguer Arostegui
Production Manager Renaissance Publishing, New Orleans
Ms. Balaguer Arostegui is a first-generation New Orleanian with her roots growing from the Dominican Republic. She attended the Academy of the Sacred Heart for high school and Loyola University of New Orleans for college, majoring in mass communication with a focus in advertising and a minor in visual arts. A recent graduate of Tulane University’s School of Professional Advancement, she obtained a Post Baccalaureate Certificate in digital design to enhance her skills in graphic design. She loves to create across all mediums and is always happy to paint custom dog paintings for fellow dog aficionados. She chaired the 2019 Azúcar Ball.
María Bonilla
Export Business Proprietor, President, American Overseas Trading Co., New Orleans
Ms. Bonilla is a business owner and President of American Overseas Trading Corporation, based in New Orleans, where she has dedicated her professional life to international trade. She was born in Honduras, but has called New Orleans home for over 50 years. Ms. Bonilla enjoys working with nonprofits, charitable and civic organizations and has served on the Board of Directors of the New Orleans Ballet Association and many other local boards. She is particularly proud of her involvement with the New Orleans Hispanic Heritage Foundation, where she has served as President and chaired the 1997 Azúcar Ball and where she plans to continue to contribute her efforts in the future.
Luz Caputto
Community Activist, New Orleans
Ms. Caputto is a real estate developer in the U.S. and Argentina, where she was born. She has called New Orleans home since 1973. She presently serves on the Board of Directors of Casa Argentina where she served two terms as President. She has served on the Board of Directors of the Touro Hospital Auxiliary, where she was responsible for curating the collection of Touro Hospital’s Art Department, and where she remains in charge of the “Artist Corner”. She continues to be active in the art community and supports various organizations, volunteering for the New Orleans Ballet Association, the New Orleans Ballet Theatre, the Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra and the New Orleans Museum of Art. As a board member of the New Orleans Hispanic Heritage Foundation since 2008, she serves on the Scholarships Committee and is the Chair of the Cultural Committee.
John Casbon
CEO & President, First American Title Insurance Company of Louisiana, New Orleans
Mr. Casbon is the Executive Vice President of First American Title Insurance Company and the CEO and President of First American Transportation Title Insurance Company. He is also a member of the Board of Directors of the IBERIABANK Corporation and serves on the Board of the Business Council of New Orleans. As a community leader he founded the New Orleans Police Foundation in 1995 for the purpose of linking the local business community with the local police department. His intimate knowledge of the New Orleans community and his desire to help it has made him the recipient of numerous awards, including the FBI Director’s Community Award, the Anti-Defamation League’s A.I. Botnick Torch of Liberty Award and the Medal of Honor from the Mayor of New Orleans, among others. Mr. Casbon has been a member of the NOHHF Board of Directors since 2015.
Maria Alejandra Fuertes-Andurand
Educator, New Orleans
Ms. Fuertes-Andurand is a graduate of a Cabrinian Institution in Argentina, where she received her education from first grade to senior year. After obtaining a Bachelor’s in fine arts in Buenos Aires, she moved to New Orleans with her husband in 2002 and started working at her alma mater. She attended the University of New Orleans where she earned a Bachelor’s in General Studies with a major in Anthropology. She later obtained a Master’s in Educational Leadership at the University of Holy Cross, along with English as a Second Language and Spanish Teacher Certifications. She recently accepted a new role as the ESL Coordinator at Walter L. Cohen High School in New Orleans. She has been involved with the NOHHF since 2021, serving as a Cultural Committee member, Azúcar Ball Logistics Co-Chair, and Scholarship Ambassador. Inspired by the compassion of Mother Cabrini towards the immigrants, she loves to advocate for children and adults who cannot express themselves in English, to give them a voice, and to always be there for them.
Maricarmen Huelga Aldana
Management Consultant, New Orleans
Ms. Aldana is an Industrial and Systems Engineer and an MBA, specializing in supply chain management and finance. She has extensive experience in the manufacturing industry, having worked in management consulting positions in Detroit, New York, and Chicago. With Deloitte she served Fortune 500 companies in the automotive and finance industries. In New Orleans since 2013, she has been very active in the community, volunteering for the Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra and at the Isidore Newman School Parents Association, where her three children attend school. She chaired the 2015 Azúcar Ball, was President of the Board from 2020 to 2021 and has been a member of the NOHHF Board of Directors since 2016.
Veronica Lihn-Lurati
Investor; Consultant to Defense Organizations and Events Producer.
Veronica moved to New Orleans after more than 30 years in Washington D.C. and fell in love with the city at first sight. Born and raised in Santiago Chile, she attended the Sacred Heart and obtained her BS at the Catholic University of Chile. Later she further advanced Linguistic studies at the University of Texas, Dallas, and Georgetown University. She started her professional career at Sony Corporation, whereas Product Manager, developed many skills in strategy, planning, and marketing, which were later reinforced working for one of the most recognized international advertising agency in Chile. Recruited and moved to Washington DC by the Chilean Navy, to join the Chilean Foreign Service as an executive in the Office of the Chilean Naval Attaché and Naval Mission, she culminated her career in a long stretch at the Chilean Embassy, Washington DC. She is delighted to have the opportunity to work towards the goals of the NOHHF.
Blanca Rosa Maldonado
Physician, New Orleans
Dr. Maldonado is a physician with Ochsner Medical Foundation in New Orleans and Memorial Hospital in Gulfport, Mississippi. She is the CEO and the owner of real estate investment company Maldonado LLC, in New Orleans, and a partner in real estate investment group Grupo Obando, in Guatemala City. In New Orleans since 1995, she has written many articles in Pathophysiology and received a National Institute of Health Doctoral Trainee award. She also received a degree in Master in Health Administration from Tulane University. In 2015 she received the Champions of the American Dream Entrepreneur Award from Dillard University in New Orleans. She is one of the founders of HOLA (Hispanic Organization for Latin Arts) and UNISAL (Unified Salvadorians of Louisiana). She has served on the Board of Directors of the NOHHF since 2011.
Mayra Pineda
President & CEO of the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce of Louisiana, New Orleans
Ms. Pineda is a local business woman and President & CEO of the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce of Louisiana where over the years she has worked tirelessly to develop strong and long-lasting business relationships between Louisiana and the Hispanic Community and Latin America. She is a former Consul General of Honduras in New Orleans, Arkansas, Tennessee, Mississippi and Alabama; and was named one of the Women of the Year by the New Orleans CityBusiness publication. In addition she has been the recipient of the Leadership Award by the New Orleans Hispanic Heritage Foundation, the High Achievement in Compliance by Subway Corporation and an Honoree of Men and Women of Fashion/Prix de Elegance, as well as SABAA Business Woman of the Year, in New Orleans, and Personality of the Year by Que Pasa Festival. Ms. Pineda is a former President of the NOHHF (2008-2011) and has been a member of the Board of Directors of the Foundation since 2000.
Patrick Quinlan
Physician, CEO, International Services, Ochsner Health System, New Orleans
Dr. Quinlan was Chief Executive Officer of Ochsner International Services and Executive Director of the Ochsner Center for Wellness and Health Policy. He is on the Ochsner Board of Directors, serves as Chair of the Medical Advisory Committee. He earned his Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics from the University of Texas at Austin and received his medical degree from the University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston. He earned a Masters degree in Health Administration from the College of St. Francis in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Dr. Quinlan has been named the number one most powerful physician executive in the nation by Modern Physician magazine and selected as one of the “100 Most Powerful People in Healthcare” by Modern Healthcare magazine. He currently serves on the Board of the Pan American Life Insurance Group. Dr. Quinlan has been a member of the NOHHF Board of Directors since 2015.
Jacqueline Simon
Community Activist, New Orleans
Ms. Simon is a retired hotel executive assistant and has extensive experience in the hotel business management industry. She is a former Secretary of the NOHHF and has served on the NOHHF Board of Directors since 2003. Ms. Simon enjoys working with local nonprofits organizations and is an avid supporter of the arts. She is on the Board of Directors of the Haitian Association for Human Development, the Alliance Française of New Orleans and the Moscow Nights organization, also in New Orleans; and she belongs to other local and national organizations such as the Women of Fashion, National Smart Set and The Carrousels, Inc.
Ileana Suquet
Community Activist, New Orleans
Ms. Suquet is a well-known and involved community activist who has been on the Greater New Orleans Foundation Board, the Arts Council, the Audubon Nature Institute’s Zoo-to-Do Committee, and the Board of Directors of the Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra; she currently serves on the Board of Trustees of Loyola University New Orleans and is a member of the Women of the Storm, the Miracle Makers Committee for the Tom and Gayle Benson Cancer Center and the Catholic Women’s Giving Circle. She was born in New York City but has called New Orleans home since 2006. She chaired the 2009 Azúcar Ball and is a former President of the Board of the NOHHF. Ms. Suquet has served on the NOHHF Board of Directors since 2007.
Carolina Thompson-Trapani
University Administrator, Loyola University, New Orleans
Ms. Thompson is Interim Director of the Office of Financial Aid at Loyola University New Orleans. She has a Master Degree of Elementary Teaching from Loyola, a B.S. degree in Economics from Tulane University, and a B.S. degree in Psychology from Loyola. Due to her own Jesuit training she has long ago recognized the necessity and importance of an education and has worked tirelessly to assist others, at Tulane, Loyola and in the local Hispanic community. Originally from Nicaragua, she has been in New Orleans since 1979. Ms. Thompson chaired the 1993 and the 1996 Azúcar Ball events and is a former President of the NOHHF. She has been an active board member of the NOHHF since its inception in 1989.
María León Vallejo
Community Activist, New Orleans
Ms. Vallejo is a graduate of St. Mary’s Dominican High School in New Orleans and the University of New Orleans, where she received a Bachelor of Science degree in Logistics. She has lived in Houston, where she worked for the Cy-Fair Independent School District as a teacher to immigrant students. In New Orleans Ms. Vallejo has been on the NOHHF Board of Directors on-and-off since 1995. She has also served on the boards of St. Mary’s Dominican High School Parents Club and the Citizens for a Clean & Beautified Westbank of Jefferson Parish. She currently serves on the Board of Directors of Sociedad Española and the Cuban Club of New Orleans. She has been awarded the Young Leadership Council of New Orleans Role Model Award in Environment, the Westbank Rotary Club Paul Harris Fellow Award, the Jefferson Parish Council Certificate of Merit for Community Service, and the New Orleans Chamber of Commerce Westbank Council All Star Award for Community Service.
Executive Director
Belinda Flores-Shinshillas
Belinda Flores-Shinshillas is a renowned Artist, Curator, Educator, Art Administrator, and advocate for the Arts. She was born in Mexico City and a resident of New Orleans, Louisiana since 2004. Ms. Flores-Shinshillas holds a Master of Arts in Higher Education Administration from Louisiana State University and a Bachelor of Arts degree from Southeastern Louisiana University. She also apprenticed under several Mexican Masters at the National School of Visual Arts (Old Academy of San Carlos) in Mexico City. She has studied under well-known Mexican muralist Manuel Guillen and Dr. Teresa del Conde at the Rufino Tamayo Museum in Mexico City. She has been associated with the Consulate of Mexico in New Orleans in various capacities and she was instrumental in the creation of the newly appointed Mexican Cultural Institute working as a volunteer. She was a Top Female Achiever in 2023 and received the most prestigious award from the Mexican government “Ohtli Award” in 2024. Mrs. Flores was a member of the NOHHF Board of Directors from 2016 to 2019.
2024 Advisory Board
Elsa Baker
Margarita Bergen
Richard F. Cortizas
Helen Flammer
Gilda (‘Cuqui’) Moore
Pamela Ryan
Dágmar Vichot
Special Committees
Azúcar Ball Liaisons:
Heidi Kiesling and Belinda Flores
Azúcar Ball Sponsors Committee:
George Fowler (Chair), Ileana Suquet, and Rosa Rodriguez
Azúcar Ball Venue Committee:
Helen Flammer (Chair)
Cultural Committee:
Yakelis Anzola, Luz Caputto (Co-Chair), Marcela Correa, Lourdes Fanjul, Alejandra Fuertes, Maricarmen Huelga-Aldana, Veronica Lihn-Lurati (Chair),
Blanca Rosa Maldonado, Cuqui Moore, Jacqueline Simon and María León Vallejo
Financial Committee:
Max Moreno (Chair) and Belinda Flores
Gálvez Cup Committee:
John Casbon, George Fowler (Chair), and Ileana Suquet
Marketing Committee:
Heidi Kiesling, Rosa Balaguer (Chair)
Mentoring Committee:
María Bonilla, Heidi Kiesling, Veronica Lihn-Lurati, Mariana H. Tafur (Chair) and Gracia María Zaccaro
Scholarships Committee:
Maricarmen Aldana, María Bonilla, Luz Caputto, Elena Countiss, Alex Gershanik (Chair), Alejandra Fuertes-Andurand, Max Moreno,
Mayra Pineda, Ileana Suquet, Carolina Thompson and María Vallejo