[Congressional Record Volume 171, Number 158 (Friday, September 26, 2025)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E902]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




   HONORING REV. DR. JEANETTE SALGUERO AS A DISTINGUISHED LEADER IN 
                 CENTRAL FLORIDA FOR HISPANIC HERITAGE

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                            HON. DARREN SOTO

                               of florida

                    in the house of representatives

                       Friday, September 26, 2025

  Mr. SOTO. Mr. Speaker, Rev. Dr. Jeanette Salguero is a pastor, 
educator, and nonprofit leader whose work has transformed Florida's 
Ninth Congressional District. As co-lead pastor of The Gathering Place 
Church in Orlando, she has built a thriving, multicultural congregation 
committed to restoring lives, families, the city, and the world. She is 
co-leading the creation of a Dream Center Campus in Central Florida, 
designed to provide comprehensive services for families in need. Dr. 
Salguero is the creator of the Oikonomia Initiative, a groundbreaking 
program that equips pastors and nonprofit leaders with financial 
literacy, debt-relief resources, and leadership excellence funds. 
Through this initiative, Central Florida pastors and leaders have been 
empowered to pay down personal debt, stabilize their finances, and 
strengthen their capacity to serve their communities.
  She also founded the Avance Initiative, which brings together Latino 
leaders and entrepreneurs for capacity development, strengthening their 
organizational infrastructures and expanding their community impact. As 
executive director of the Carrion Hispanic Leadership Center at 
Southeastern University, Dr. Salguero has helped expand access to 
affordable, high-quality education for over 200 Latino students.
  She also serves as co-founder and vice president of the National 
Latino Evangelical Coalition (NaLEC), headquartered in the district, 
where she mobilizes a national network of over 3,000 leaders around 
issues such as poverty alleviation, immigration, and educational 
equity. With a pastoral heart and prophetic vision, Dr. Salguero has 
secured multi-million-dollar philanthropic investments, built bridges 
across sectors, and brought national visibility to Florida's Ninth 
District as a model for church-based and nonprofit-led community 
transformation.

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