Faces of New Bedford

Meet Rayana Grace, 24-year-old Youth Development Director at the YMCA. Rayana, who has lived in the city her entire life, couldn’t imagine living and working anywhere else. After graduating from Boston College with a degree in Sociology and African/African-Diaspora studies, she had friends who took their skills and talents elsewhere, …

Meet Robert Mendes, Executive Director of the Boys and Girls Club of Greater New Bedford. Robert grew up in the cities south end, before moving into the house his parents bought just a few blocks from the program. Almost immediately his mother had him and his siblings signed up and …

Meet Debra Perry, 52-year-old Singer and Vocal Coach. Debra has always loved singing and teaching, even organizing the children in her neighborhood and practicing Christmas Carols in October, only at the age of 9. As she got older she continued to perfect her voice, training with Katie Linder-Tetzel at the …

Meet Yesenia Miranda-Santiago, 26-year-old New Bedford Police Officer and Army Combat Veteran. Yesenia was born in Puerto Rico and moved to the United States when she was 4 years old. Growing up she wanted to serve in the military, as she took great pride in her new home and wanted …

Meet Trevor Carter, 30-year-old business manager of Carter’s Clothing and Footwear. Trevor has always been involved in his family’s business as long as he could remember, starting to work at the business at the age of 11. Carter’s Clothing was opened by his grandfather, William “Bill” carter in 1947, which …

Meet Sarah Kocur, 28-year-old academic advisor/adjunct instructor and small business owner. As far back as she could remember, her mom, grandmother and nana had sewn. Being of European decent, it wasn’t uncommon for the women to make their own clothes, so she picked up on it and found excitement in …

Meet Frank Stephens, 62-year-old security officer at St. Luke’s Hospital. Frank was born in Kansas City, but grew up in Newport and Providence, Rhode Island. Upon graduating high school, he spent some time at Tennessee State University before transferring to American International College (AIC) in Springfield, where he received his …

Meet Jess Bregoli, 32-year-old gardener and sculptor. Jess moved to the area when she was a child from Oregon so that her mother could finish her Masters degree at UMass Dartmouth. Growing up she would work with her mentor, Emily Johns, taking care of the waterfront gardens at the Seaport …

Meet Joe Lopes, 42-year-old loan officer and City Councilor for the City of New Bedford. Spending his entire life living in New Bedford, he always had a huge love for the city. After graduating from the University of Massachusetts with a degree in Political Science and with some inspiration from …

Meet Edson Goncalves, 27-year-old systems engineer. Edson’s mother saved money during his early life, to move him from Praia, Cape Verde to New Bedford to work towards a better life. Growing up in housing projects throughout the city most of his life, he had been exposed to so many things …