Meet LGBT Pride Month Local Hero Jonathan Bailey

June 15

KPBS Local Heroes Project

For Jonathan Bailey, food is love. And he works hard to feed love to as many people as he can. That’s why he was nominated as a 2016 LGBT Pride Month Local Hero.

Meet LGBT Pride Month Local Hero Mattheus Stephens

June 15

KPBS Local Heroes Project

Mattheus Stephens is a lawyer by trade, a teacher by passion, and a committed community member by nature. And now, he represents the LGBT community as the first transgender Local Hero.

Meet Asian Pacific American Heritage Month Local Hero Li-Rong Lilly Cheng

May 16

KPBS Local Heroes Project

Li-Rong "Lilly" Cheng is a tenacious teacher, language lover, and a curator of cultural immersion. Her passion for all of these earned her a nomination as an Asian Pacific American Heritage Month Local Hero.

Meet Asian Pacific American Heritage Month Local Hero Huma Ahmed-Ghosh

May 16

KPBS Local Heroes Project

Professor Huma Ahmed-Ghosh serves as the chair of the nation's first university Women's Studies department. She works at home and abroad to improve awareness of issues facing women — specifically those from Asian cultures. Her efforts to elevate discourse on these matters are being recognized as she picks up a nomination as this month's Local Hero.

Meet Jewish American Heritage Month Local Hero Marjorie Morrison

May 1

KPBS Local Heroes Project

Marjorie Morrison champions a rare cause: to educate the community that surrounds veterans — to shift a culture's view toward service members. She's being recognized as a Jewish American Heritage Month Local Hero for her success in achieving this shift.

Meet Jewish American Heritage Month Local Heroes Rose And Max Schindler

May 1

KPBS Local Heroes Project

Holocaust survivors Rose and Max Schindler are on a mission. They won't stop, they won't say no, and they're among the few who can still fulfill it. For this dedication, they're 2016 Jewish American Heritage Month Local Heroes.

Meet Women's History Month Local Hero Jeeni Criscenzo

Women's History Month 2016 Honoree

March 1

KPBS Local Heroes Project

Jeeni Criscenzo is the 2016 Women's History Month Local Hero. She's a poet, activist, former congressional candidate, and champion for homeless San Diegans.

Meet Women's History Month Local Hero Teodora Purcell

Women's History Month 2016 Honoree

March 1

KPBS Local Heroes Project

Local attorney Teodora Purcell has a passion for helping others, and a proclivity for law. Her dedication to both earned her recognition as a Local Hero for Women's History Month.

Meet Black History Month Local Hero Marc Chery

Black History Month 2016 Honoree

Feb. 4

KPBS Local Heroes Project

Marc Chery is a dedicated public servant. He's worked with boundless amounts of books and people in his San Diego tenure. And for all this work and effort, he's been nominated as a Black History Month honoree.

Meet Black History Month Local Hero Makeda Marianne Cheatom

Black History Month 2016 Honoree

Feb. 2

KPBS Local Heroes Project

Black History Month Local Hero Makeda Marianne Cheatom is a woman on the go. But there's one place in San Diego more special to her than others, and her work there led to this nomination.

American Indian Heritage Month Local Hero Stan Rodriguez

American Indian Heritage Month 2015 Honoree

Nov. 1

KPBS Local Heroes Project

He’s a U.S. Navy veteran, a Native linguist, an inspired musical can rattler, devout educator and student of local Native culture. Meet Stan Rodriguez, 2015 American Indian Heritage Month Local Hero.

American Indian Heritage Month Local Hero Vickie Gambala

American Indian Heritage Month 2015 Honoree

Nov. 1

KPBS Local Heroes Project

She’s a Cherokee Indian from Oklahoma, a devoted leader of Native education in San Diego County, community uniter, mother of three, and powwow veteran. Meet Vickie Gambala, 2015 American Indian Heritage Month Honoree.

Disability Awareness Month Local Heroes William Stothers And Cynthia Jones Fight For Rights

Disability Awareness Month 2015 Honorees

Oct. 1

KPBS Local Heroes Project

Behind great challenges are committed leaders like Cyndi Jones and Bill Stothers — two masterminds behind the fight to break down ignorance and barriers for people with disabilities.

Disability Awareness Month Local Hero Stephen Wampler: Conqueror Of El Capitan

Disability Awareness Month 2015 Honoree

Oct. 1

KPBS Local Heroes Project

Known as the first person with cerebral palsy to climb El Capitan mountain, Stephen Wampler aims for a new challenge: opening a campsite where disabled children can have real wilderness experiences.

Hispanic Heritage Month Local Hero Enrique Morones — Titan At The Border

Hispanic Heritage Month 2015 Honoree

Sept. 15

KPBS Local Heroes Project

Free legal consultations for deported immigrants on the border. This is just one of the dozens of ideas engineered by human rights activist, Enrique Morones.