‘Senior of the Year’ Honored at Health Fair

At a health fair at White Memorial Medical Center attended by more than 1,400 senior citizens, a 66-year-old woman was honored as the “Most Outstanding East Los Angeles Senior of the Year” by a committee of health care professionals.

East Los Angeles resident Elena “Cha Cha” Valencia won the award for her 20 years of fund-raising and volunteer activities in the city’s Eastside communities, officials said.

Valencia was singled out for one of her own projects: “The Special Fun Games,” which she created to provide activities for the physically and developmentally disabled.

In addition, Valencia was praised for her “Burrito Brigade,” a group of 100 mothers she organized to help feed families left homeless by the 1994 Northridge earthquake.

“Despite a health condition … which cause severe dizziness, Elena continues to be an icon of what caring, love and volunteerism signifies,” said hospital spokeswoman Alicia Gonzalez.