Growing up in New York, Jessica Padilla Gonzalez watched the way her parents fostered community. The two of them had come to New York's Washington Heights from Puerto Rico as teenagers. When he was in his early 20s, Padilla Gonzalez's father, Porfirio, opened a meat market. "Everyone knew his
Padilla Gonzalez says her need to "do good" came from seeing all her parents did in their neighborhood; from watching her father, known for his steak sandwiches, set some aside for the homeless individuals he knew. The youngest of four children, Padilla Gonzalez also wanted to help people."My building was my community," she says of the apartment where she grew up. Though her family moved to New Jersey, where she still lives and works today, she keeps in touch with the people who once roller skated through hallways with her. In New Jersey, where her family purchased their first home, she became more aware of the "haves and the have-nots," which crystalized during a college class and a discussion of Marxism "It sparked something in me," Padilla Gonzalez says. "I thought, 'this is unfair. What can we do about it?'"
She was asked in college, "Where do you see yourself in 20 years?" She responded, "As the executive director of a nonprofit that would help people." It didn't take her 20 years to get there.
Taking a leadership role
Padilla Gonzalez began working with Housing Partnership for Morris County two years after she graduated from college with a degree in sociology and social work. She started as an assistant housing counselor and worked her way up. The nonprofit combined two things she thought were important: education and providing a sense of hope. It was a time of both loss and opportunities for her. She suffered a blow in her late 20s when her father died. At the same time, Partnership for Morris County's executive director decided to retire. The organization hired a replacement, "but she never showed up and they reopened the pool of applications."The universe seemed to be saying: This is your chance. Padilla Gonzalez applied for the position and started as executive director in 2013. She was 29 years old, among the youngest directors in the NeighborWorks network.
"My heritage definitely had a lot to do with my career choice," she shares. "Understanding the challenges that we face as a people definitely had an impact. It's been an amazing journey. I think what brings most joy to doing this work is being able to combine the foundation my mom and dad always pushed." That included education focused on financial counseling and the path toward homeownership. "Sharing this knowledge and seeing how that transforms somebody is wonderful, when you sit somebody down and see the light go off, 'I can really buy a house.'"
She enjoys linking individuals with resources that will lead them to homeownership, which can lead to generational wealth and empowerment. "I'm a result of those statistics," Padilla Gonzalez says. "I bought my first home when I was 24, literally 10 years after my parents were able to buy their first home. I became a homeowner once my parents were able to achieve that goal themselves."On Aug. 31, NJBIZ, New Jersey's leading business journal, announced Padilla Gonzalez as the recipient of one of its Forty Under 40 awards. The organization will celebrate the honorees, which span industries that include health care, finance and law, on Sept. 30.
Her goal is to lead the organization into the future. She was already doing that – focusing on infrastructure change that allowed for remote work – in February 2020, just before the pandemic shut everything down.
"I know we can do more," she says of the future. Under her leadership, the organization has doubled the number of people who attend homebuyer education classes, to 400 new families who taking the course annually. They've also doubled the number of homebuyers and help an average of 100 people buy their first homes.
Padilla Gonzalez is a true team member, says Carlos Caprioli of Family Promise of Morris County, a partnering organization. "She is also detail-oriented, especially when it comes to workshops. "You know if you are doing something with her, it will be a success. She thinks about everything, every angle."
More recently, Padilla Gonzalez is considering the angles it would take to become a lending organization. "I'd like us to be in the region of lending and helping reduce the wealth gap that exists," Padilla-Gonzalez says. "I'd like us to be able to provide more down payment assistance, working as a secondary lender to help push forward our community."
She'd also like to inspire her daughters, Eva and Leah, the way her parents inspired her. When they attended school virtually last year, they were able to hear their mother working in the next room. "They would play office and I'd hear them talking about affordable housing and social justice," she says. "I'm excited to see how they can change the world."
