Sandra Maria Garcia | 2023 Latina of Influence
We are pleased to announce that Sandra Maria Garcia, Manager of Public Affairs Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railroad and State Chair of Hispanic Women’s Network of Texas, has been selected as a Hispanic Lifestyle 2023 Latina of Influence. Ms. Garcia will be recognized for her leadership in our community during Hispanic Lifestyle’s Connecting Latinas of Influence – Dallas/Fort Worth event on October 11, 2023.
Sandra will commence her employment as Manager of Public Affairs on September 18, 2023 with Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railroad (BNSF). She worked for the City of Fort Worth and recently ended her career after 25 years.
Sandra Maria Garcia is currently the Hispanic Women’s Network of Texas State Chair. Previously she served as the State Chair Elect. She is responsible for nine (9) chapters across Texas.
She served as the Fort Worth Chapter Chair of the Hispanic Women’s Network of Texas, the Fabulous Fort Worth Chapter, an organization committed to the advancement of women in public, corporate, and civic arenas. She served on the Gala, Scholarship and Education Committees. She previously served as Chair Elect in 2018, State Representative in 2017 and Marketing Chair in 2013-2014. Sandra served as Vice President of MANA de North Texas in 2018 and Secretary in 2017. She also served as Treasurer of Juntos Se Puede in 2018 and on the advisory board in 2017. She was previously an Ambassador with Hispano Exito for many years. Sandra is also a founding member of the City of Fort Worth’s Hispanic Leadership Organization, whereby she encouraged and mentored numerous city employees for promotions within the city. She is also a board member of the Young Women’s Leadership Academy Foundation, Cuidado Casero Foundation and the Texas Wesleyan University President’s Advisory Board.
Sandra holds a Bachelor’s degree in International Business and a Master’s in Management from Texas Wesleyan University. Sandra is an alum of Leadership Fort Worth and LeadershipISD Tarrant County. She was selected as one of HWNT’s Estrellas de Tejas in 2018 and Shining Star in 2017. Sandra was also selected for a Community Fellowship from LeadershipISD for 2020-2021. She was recently awarded a Heroes for Children Award from the Texas School Board of Education for District 13.
Sandra was born in Francisco y Javier Mina, Durango, Mexico. She came as an undocumented person with her family at the tender age of 7 years. At the time of their arrival in Fort Worth, Texas, undocumented students were not allowed in school. Entire families were not allowed to send their children to school. Nuns from All Saints Catholic Church adopted the children and taught them to get them ready to enter school. It took a law to allow students to enter FWISD and start their education finally. Sandra is one of the first undocumented students allowed to enter a classroom in FWISD. She hasn’t looked back since that historic day as one of the first students to be allowed in FWISD as an undocumented student.
