Staff

Mario Paz has led Good Samaritan for 17 years, overseeing its successful geographic expansion to include the Bayview and Potrero neighborhoods as well as its long-standing Mission District presence.

Mario is a passionate nonprofit and public service leader who has served children, youth, families and communities for over 30 years. He has worked as an organizer, counselor, director, consultant, policy advisor and foundation program officer. A member of numerous boards of directors, he currently serves on San Francisco’s Immigrant Rights Commission, the Mission Council, the Athletic Scholars Advancement Program, and the San Francisco Interfaith Council.

Mario has received recognition and awards for his work from several communities and foundations including Grantmakers for Children, Youth and Families, and the Stanford University Haas Center for Public Service.
Together with his wife Ruth, Mario has three children: Isela, Monica and Daniel. Mario holds an MA in public administration from Cal State East Bay and a BA in Political Science from Golden Gate University.

The first-generation daughter of immigrants from Mexico who is a USC-trained Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist, Julieta grew up in the Central Valley. For five years, she has overseen Good Samaritan’s two-generation strategies that help immigrant families achieve their dreams. From services that promote positive parenting to healthy early childhood development, she’s benefiting from de-stigmatize mental health services.

Joining in 2017 as the Director of Family Services, she has spent the last five years overseeing two-generation strategies that help immigrant families achieve their dreams. Julieta brings clinical expertise in evidence-based practice and prior management experience to her new role at Good Samaritan.

A graduate of San Francisco State University with degrees in Child, Adolescent and Family Development, Special Education and La Raza Ethnic studies, Melissa also brings 20 years of experience championing inclusive early childhood programs, and advocating for children and families throughout San Francisco’s disenfranchised communities.

Melissa has served as a program director, early intervention specialist, disabilities manager, school readiness coordinator (at Good Sam), teacher, and parent leader. She has collaborated with many clinicians, teachers, and parents to understand that social-emotional support learning is at the heart of all successful early care and education programs and relationships. Melissa also believes in a strength-based approach and seeks to empower educators/providers to look through a child’s lens for a refreshing new glimpse into the environment we strive to create for our preschool students and their families.

A Bay Area native, Ed brings an immense passion for working with youth who are at risk of being failed by adult-driven systems. Ed has a diverse, 16-year background in supporting and developing comprehensive school based programs, off site community based programs, and summer camps. He also has experience in gang prevention and intervention, building programs and services in a juvenile detention facility, and working to support special education. An experienced, endorsed California School-Age Consortium trainer, Ed has worked with out-of-school-time professionals across the state.

Ed studied Community and Commercial Recreation Administration at California State University, Chico. He lives in the East Bay with his wife, a 6th grade teacher.

Claudia Cisneros is a Mexican immigrant and feminist passionate about advocating for survivors of domestic violence, immigrants, and women of color’s rights. In Mexico, Claudia provided free legal representation to support low-income women experiencing domestic violence as a Family Lawyer and the Coordinator of the Mediation Center at the Instituto Poblano de las Mujeres for nine years.

Continuing her education in San Francisco, Claudia earned her Associate’s Degree in Women’s Studies, a Community Mental Health certificate, and a Sexual Health Educator certificate from City College of San Francisco. With her experience in these fields, she started at the Good Samaritan as a Family Advocate/Differential Response Liaison in 2016. She became the Family Support Manager in 2017, supervising the Family Advocate Team, facilitating family-centered programs, and connecting participants with community resources.

As she partakes in her new role as the Family Services Director, Claudia seeks to expand the Good Samaritan’s partnerships/collaborations and support the well-being of the staff to offer quality services for Latino immigrant families in San Francisco.

Jaime Aragón, the son of Spanish-speaking parents, has over 15 years of experience in the field of social services. Bilingual, he oversees the intake and outreach team in our Family Services department and manages several community partnerships that have helped Good Samaritan grow its reach. For example, Jaime helped Good Samaritan expand services to residents at Bernal Dwellings Community, an affordable housing complex in the Mission neighborhood.

Jaime also spearheads Good Samaritan’s collaborations with: Telecommunication Education Assistance in Multiple Languages (TEAM); the Community Help and Awareness of Natural Gas and Electricity Services (CHANGES), a project of the California Public Utilities Commission; and, the San Francisco Office of Civic Engagement and Immigrant Affairs.

Jaime is currently pursuing a degree in Business Administration. He plans to run a non-profit agency in the Bay Area one day that specializes in helping underserved families achieve their dreams.

Ana Marina is a Salvadorian immigrant with over 20 years of experience working as a community organizer advocating for social services, community outreach, and family services in the Mission and Bayview area of San Francisco for the Latinx community. From 2002-2011, Ana Marina began working with pregnant mothers experiencing high-risk health problems. She provided educational infant workshops, provided referrals to mothers so that they could receive social services, and accompanied them to their medical appointment to provide emotional support.

In May 2019, Ana Marina joined Good Samaritan and began working at one of Good Sam’s satellite hubs in the Bayview Area. Ana Marina is currently the Bayview Manager at El Central Bayview. El Central Bayview is a comprehensive Family Resource Center collaborative with Mission Neighborhood Centers (MNC) and Mission Economic Development Agency (MEDA) as partner agencies. The center was successfully developed by the organizing efforts of the San Francisco Latino Parity and Equity Coalition in response to the growing number of Latinos residing in Bayview.

Erika has been working in the field of youth development for 9 years. She has a wide range of experience ranging from volunteerism to program management. The majority of her experience is in working with middle school youth. Erika has had the opportunity to work with youth at multiple SFUSD schools including Everett, Francisco, and Willie L. Brown Jr. Middle School. She has served on the Beacon Bridge Committee for over two years working to collaborate and support the greater network of SF Beacons by sharing best practices and providing professional development opportunities for staff.

Erika earned a BS in Public Health from San Francisco State with an emphasis in community based non-profit work and a minor in Criminal Justice. Being an English Language Learner with Spanish as her first language, Erika has a passion for working with and supporting Newcomer and Immigrant families. Erika was the second in her family to graduate from college.

She is committed to creating opportunities for and supporting underserved youth in order to pay forward the support that she received early on in her academic career which she feel has led to her success.

Aura Sunux is originally from Guatemala. She immigrated to the U.S. in 1995. Aura has always wanted to work with children since she was young. She felt it was her mission to want to make a difference by providing a safe and positive environment for children to thrive. Her journey began in 2008 as a volunteer and substitute teacher at Centro Las Olas preschool in the Mission district of San Francisco.
In 2014, Aura began working at Good Samaritan as a teacher for a Kids’ Club, a free school-readiness program for children under three years old. In 2017, Aura took on the role of Program Coordinator for Kids’ Club and continued to provide quality education and childcare. However, her hard work and passion for children allowed her to take on a new position, and in 2022 she became the Kids’ Club Early Literacy Manager.

Victor Carrillo is originally from Guatemala and has lived in San Francisco since 2008. As an educator and community organizer, Victor has over 20 years of experience working with youth and newcomer students in the Bay Area. In 2011, Victor began working at Good Samaritan as a Site Specialist working the summer programs by providing Latinx middle school and high school students nature-based opportunities to explore the Bay Area, develop a support network, and learn about Latinx and Native traditions that honor Mother Earth.
In 2020, Victor took on a new role as Newcomer Services Manager overseeing youth support groups for students at SFUSD school sites, including various additional support services for newcomer students and their families. Victor loves art, outdoor spaces, culture, and nature which are essential to him and vital in ensuring that his programs provide a positive and safe environment.

Manuela immigrated from Mexico to the U.S. as a child and has lived in the Mission District since 2006. Manuela came across Good Samaritan looking for interactive classes for her youngest child. As a participant at Good Samaritan, she wanted to be more involved in the community, thus Manuela became a Promotora. She enjoyed her role in interacting with new parents and educating them on the available resources in the Mission and Bay Area. Because she excelled as a Promotora, Manuela became an Intake Specialist in 2016.

Then a few years later, she was promoted to Family Advocate working with Latinx families one-on-one to provide the necessary resources and essential basic needs.  In 2021, Manuela was promoted to Service Coordination Manager. Manuela is committed to supporting Latinx families and providing them with the necessary resources for her families to strive and be successful in the Bay Area. 

Judy is a San Francisco native from a Chinese immigrant family. She has been working in the child development field since 2010. Judy has worked with children from grades kindergarten through eighth. While working with students, she encourages them to explore their interests and try new things. Judy enjoys being able to watch her students grow and to be able to share her interests with them to encourage them to be able to build and grow their interests.

Lily was raised in Mexico and lived in Southern California before moving to the Bay Area many years ago. She believes every child deserves an equal education regardless of their background. That’s why I have dedicated my life to Early Childhood Education, focusing on Infant/Toddler education and care and working with children with special needs.

Sam immigrated from Mexico to the US as a child and has lived in San Francisco since 2010. Sam has been involved with community organizing since high school. She is passionate about advocating for immigrants’ rights and fighting against the systematic oppression towards immigrant communities in the Mission and Bayview districts. Sam initially joined Good Samaritan as an Intake and Referral Specialist in 2017. A few years later, she was promoted to Family Advocate working with newcomer families with one-on-one support, advocating for newcomer rights, building connections around community partnership, and helping families to navigate the complex system of immigrations in SF.

In 2023, Sam was promoted to Family Support Manager, and she is looking forward to supporting families in the Mission and Bayview communities by leading the Good Samaritan Family Advocate Team and to continue community partnership with Mission Education Center, Safe & Sound, Homeless Prenatal, and Mujeres Unidas y Activas.