The Massachusetts Alliance of Portuguese Speakers (MAPS) has recently welcomed two new community members to its Board of Directors—Adriana Bento from Watertown, Massachusetts, and Ana Cristina Lindsay, DrPH from Providence, Rhode Island.

Adriana Bento is originally from Minas Gerais, Brazil. She holds a Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration, and from 2012 to 2015, she was a teacher at Faculdade Multivix in Brazil. She first got involved with MAPS in 2017 as a client of the organization’s Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault Services. She took part in the program’s support group for four years and has since felt the need to give back to MAPS for the assistance and support she received.

“I am both proud and honored to be a MAPS Board member,” said Bento. “This organization changed my life by helping me when I needed it the most. I am happy to now be able to help other immigrants facing cultural and linguistic barriers.”

Ana Cristina Lindsay, DrPH, is a Brazilian community-based public health researcher and a professor at the University of Massachusetts Boston. Her research focuses on examining structural, psychosocial, and cultural determinants of health among Hispanic and Brazilian communities in the United States.

“I worked at MAPS in the 90s as a Youth Group Coordinator and saw first-hand the important role organizations like MAPS play in advancing the health and economic opportunities of our Portuguese-speaking communities,” said Lindsay. “This will be a unique opportunity to share my expertise and experience working with Latinx immigrant communities in the US and contribute to the improvement of the health of the communities served by MAPS.”

“We are looking forward to having a survivor’s voice and a public health specialist on our board,” said Paulo Pinto, MPA, MAPS Executive Director. “The life experiences and knowledge they bring are invaluable and will certainly help shape the organization for years to come.”