01/01/2026
2025 Highlights
The year 2025 was full of challenges. We usually begin new cycles with projects already lined up, but this time, that wasn't the case. A contracted economy and budget cuts created uncertainty. However, a bit later in the year, work resumed: cameras began rolling again, and computer keyboards echoed as scripts were written over the following months.
* In addition to sharing some of the work we accomplished during 2025, we want to thank the Washington State Department of Commerce for its support. This year, they provided Latino Northwest Communications with funding to upgrade some of our equipment, enabling us to continue serving our community.
* Once again—marking eight years now—our alliances with the Zero Waste WA, Duwamish River Community Coalition (DRCC), and Duwamish Valley Youth Corps (DVYC), organizations that work for environmental justice and climate policy, brought us back to South Park. There, LNWC, with the collaboration of Utopia Media and Entertainment, provided video production training to a new cohort of youth. For over eight weeks, fourteen young participants from DVYC learned to produce videos to educate the community on how to protect the environment, resulting in three pieces: a PSA, an educational video, and a music video.
PSA - Save By Saving: https://vimeo.com/1105637039?fl=tl&fe=ec
Educational – Small Changes to Help the Environment: https://vimeo.com/1105637500?fl=tl&fe=ec
Music - Keep It Green: https://vimeo.com/1105638101?fl=tl&fe=ec
* Since 1998, King County METRO established its bus shelter mural program. More than 3,000 photo murals have transformed the county into an impressive, sprawling art gallery.
Thanks to Penny Lara, KC METRO Market Innovation (retired in 2025), and Dale Cummings, King County METRO Bus Shelter Manager, LNWC was chosen to serve as curators for the first photo mural dedicated exclusively to King County's Latino community. The project, which was presented in two stages, can be found in various areas across the County. Below are the links to this project:
Recognizing heritage and history: Bus shelter photomurals celebrating King County’s Latino community
https://kingcountymetro.blog/2025/04/21/recognizing-heritage-and-history-bus-shelter-photomurals-celebrating-king-countys-latino-community/
Celebrating the completion of the bus shelter photomural project, recognizing King County’s Latino community
https://kingcountymetro.blog/2025/10/22/celebrating-the-completion-of-bus-shelter-photomural-project-recognizing-king-countys-latino-community/
King County TV produced a video about the photomural project:
“Meet the couple behind Metro's newest bus shelter art”
https://vimeo.com/1073357583
* The HEAL Act, or the Healthy Environment for All Act of Washington State, ensures fair access and treatment regarding health services for minority groups. The Duwamish River Community Coalition (DRCC) is one of the agencies responsible for overseeing the implementation and enforcement of this act. LNWC was commissioned to create a message where young leaders from the organization showcased their talent. Below is the link to the produced video:
DRCC HEAL ACT – Environmental Justice for All: https://vimeo.com/1093931376?fl=tl&fe=ec
* Trio Guadalevin is a group of three musicians and historians who recently composed three original melodies about the contributions of Latinos in Washington State. The trio commissioned LNWC to produce two of the three music videos that showcase these melodies, which honored and recognized our community's presence in this state.
Below are the links to the videos: https://www.guadalevin.com/elnoroeste
La Pizca del Oeste: https://vimeo.com/1097657028?fl=tl&fe=ec
Presente Estoy: https://vimeo.com/1097771566?fl=tl&fe=ec
Día en Diah (Day in Neah Bay) https://youtu.be/fpyMwlHkHnM?si=iwQOx_Vz2EfmtLu7
(Photo: Trio Guadalevin, Famlia Hunter & La Cantina)
* By involving our communities in preservation efforts, we ensure more equitable participation and broaden our vision of what it means to care for the environment. LNWC produced a video about the Cemetery Pond, a wetland in the City of Renton, where every restoration effort reminds us that nature knows no borders and that protecting it should be a collective effort.
Cemetery Pond: Wetland Restoration Project:
https://vimeo.com/1120609484?fl=tl&fe=ec
* Latino Educational Training Institute (LETI) has now completed 26 years of serving the Latino community in Snohomish County, and LNWC has documented a portion of the important work this organization carries out. Here is the link to the last video produced by LNWC:
LETI Celebrating the Impact of Unity and Action.
https://vimeo.com/1122517462/223faaf691?fl=tl&fe=ec
* Para Los Niños de Highline (PLN) is an organization whose mission is to support the development of leadership skills among members of the Latino community. For the past four years, LNWC has produced the annual videos showcasing the extraordinary work this organization is doing for the immigrant community.
PLN Video Corazón: https://vimeo.com/1136728303/f481e69ef8?fl=tl&fe=ec
* Part of LNWC’s mission and vision is to inform and inspire the Latino community in the Northwest. Sharing stories of programs that empower and serve the community is also part of our commitment. One of these programs is Growing Contigo, a business incubator that successfully serves Latino/a entrepreneurs in Spanish.
Here is a link to a story produced by LNWC:
We Grow When You Grow : https://vimeo.com/1133424893?fl=ip&fe=ec
* With the celebration of Day of the Dead (Día de los Mu***os), the Latino community kicks off the year-end festivities in the State of Washington. At the Seattle Art Museum, this celebration marks its 31st Anniversary, showcasing the popular sand painting installation created annually by Zapotecan Artist Fulgencio Lazo, in collaboration with other artists and community volunteers. This year, the museum reached full capacity, with attendees witnessing a tradition that is enduring across generations.
Below is a link to a mini-documentary produced by LNWC to commemorate the 30th Anniversary of this event.
Celebrando 30 Años del Día de los Mu***os en Seattle Art Museum: https://youtu.be/F50QKD0-jZM?si=i6Em8JEsme7LXhGp
* This year, we were honored by Washington State Senator Rebecca Saldaña, who elected us to receive the Community Business Award of her Annual Golden Clippy Awards.
Martha Sánchez & Mario Zavaleta with Senator Rebecca Saldaña
