Board of Directors

Martha Molina-Gonzalez is originally from Houston, TX but has lived in Brownsville for most of her life.  She has two wonderful sons who are BiG supporters of her involvement in the community.  Martha holds a Bachelor Degree in Business Administration, a Master's Degree in Special Education, a certification in Principalship, and hopes to one day obtain her doctoral degree in Education Leadership.  She was a BISD Special Educator for 16 years, but left her career to begin the non-profit organization, BiG Heroes, Inc., which is a God-centered organization empowering young adults to focus on abilities. Martha was a member of Leadership Brownsville Class XXXV. 

"Don't focus on what they can't do.  Focus on what they can do!"

Author: Unknown

Richard Castillo was born in Albion, Michigan but grew up in Brownsville, TX starting at the age of two. Richard received his Bachelor's and Master's Degrees in Education from the University of Texas at Brownsville. Richard has been a special education teacher for over 30 years, most of these years with Brownsville ISD. Richard aspired to become a lawyer but enjoyed working with children so much that he changed his career pathway. Richard has been a longtime supporter and volunteer of BiG Heroes. Richard is married to Claudia Cantu, and they have two sons, Michael, and Gabriel. In his free time, Richard enjoys working with his hands, hunting, fishing and Zumba.

Amanda West was born in Harlingen, Texas, but raised in Brownsville. Amanda grew up in the Southmost area and cares deeply for her community which has guided her professional career. Her passion for helping her community is rooted in the years that she spent at school as she saw many individuals in those schools and neighborhoods doing the best that they could with the only tools that they had to raise others. Her mother instilled in her that education and grit were the answers to a better life. Amanda graduated from the University of Texas at Brownsville and worked in higher education.  This experience pushed her to reflect on the work she was doing to support her community. 

Amanda is now at IDEA Frontier.  She has worked at the College Prep level, as a Special Education Teacher and Interventionist for 3 years ensuring that students with academic gaps were supported in her new role as a Regional Critical Student Intervention Coach and Regional Special Programs Coach. Currently, Amanda continues her work at IDEA, but at a national level. Personally, Amanda has been married for nearly 10 years and has a son. One of her greatest joys is to be with her husband, son, and close friends. Amanda has a servant's heart and wants to continue to help my community outside of her professional career which is why she pursued volunteering at BiG Heroes.

Rodrigo Lopez Jr. is originally from Los Fresnos, TX.  He is a Commercial Loan Officer and holds a title of Assistant Vice President with Lone Star National Bank. Rodrigo has 20 years of banking experience and oversees a portfolio of commercial, construction, and consumer loans. He obtained his Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration with a concentration in Finance from the University of Texas at Brownsville. He is married to Susana Lopez and has two children, Jimena and Rodrigo III.

During his leisure time, he enjoys barbequing and spending time with his family. Rodrigo previously served as a member of Leadership Brownsville Class XXXV. He is excited to serve as a board member and looks forward to making an impact to future generations.

Monica Sanchez was born in H. Matamoros, Tamaulipas, Mexico and was raised in Brownsville, Texas.  She is a licensed Insurance Agent and Branch Manager at Benavides Insurance. Monica strives to provide the best customer service with her experience in personal, commercial, and life insurance. She also has over 20 years experience in retail management. 

Monica has been an active member of Brownsville Junior Service League for over 10 years, a member of Leadership Brownsville Class XXXV, and also a board member for FemCity. She enjoys spending time with her family friends, but most of all with her niece and nephew. 

Coming Soon

Anika Aviles was born and raised in Brownsville, TX and obtained a Bachelor Degree in Business Administration Marketing from the University of Texas at Brownsville in 2018. She began her banking career straight out of high school as a teller. Over the years, she has worked at different community banks in Brownsville and has now settled in at Rio Bank where she is a Vice President for Commercial Lender,  Anika married Roel in 2014 and has a beautiful daughter, Emilia who loves to play dolls with mommy. Anika is highly involved with her community and serves on multiple non-profit boards. It is her great hope to take BiG Heroes to the next level as she shares her expertise and love for her community. 

Martha Barrientes is from Brownsville, TX and a proud graduate from the University of Texas at San Antonio with a Bachelor's Degree in Business Administration. After working in San Antonio as a marketing coordinator, she decided to pursue education and was an educator for 15 years in BISD. While teaching, her husband and her embarked on a journey of founding Las Jacarandas Assisted Living, LLC in 2011 and opened up Las Jacarandas Adult Day Care and Las Jacarandas Healthcare Services. She is an active member of the Junior League of Brownsville and enjoys volunteering. Martha is married to Abraham Barrientes and they have two boys, Jacob and Isaac.

Christie fell in love with fundraising without even knowing what it was. After watching a friend climb the fundraising ranks, Christie grew more intrigued and began volunteering her time as a regional walk coordinator for the Children’s Heart Foundation. After gaining some experience as a volunteer, Christie began working in fundraising for private Catholic schools. After receiving her Masters in Nonprofit Management from Our Lady of the Lake University, she moved into higher educational fundraising.

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As a Senior Director of Development for several health programs at the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley Christie works closely with deans and faculty members to strategize and attain funds for programming and scholarship needs. Christie’s approach to gaining a supporter’s trust is simple – keep it real and authentic. Be you.

Christie currently lives in Brownsville with her 16-year-old son Alejandro and their three dogs – two pugs and a lab mix.