The Rev. Joel Mora Peña served as an episcopal leader in the Methodist Church of Mexico before immigrating to the U.S. and leading United Methodist churches as a pastor in the Rio Grande Conference. He died Jan. 3 at age 88.
Rep. Delia Ramírez Hernández (D-Ill.) was sworn into the 118th U.S. Congress on Jan. 7. She grew up attending Humboldt Park United Methodist Church in Chicago and has been a leader in the denomination.
Bishop Joel Martinez, having grown up in a Methodist family of farm workers, has been a life long advocate for migrant and farm workers in all of his roles of leadership in The United Methodist Church.
The Rev. Roberto Gómez, who died recently at age 75, was a force in the Rio Grande Conference and beyond, including successfully pushing for a Spanish-language hymnal for The United Methodist Church.