Muñoz Roach Named Executive Director of SVdP!
The Board of Directors of the Society of St. Vincent de Paul Council of Seattle|King County, has named Mirya Muñoz-Roach its new Executive Director, according to Mary Jo Shannon, President of the Council. Muñoz Roach is the first Latina SVdP Executive Director and the first woman to be named to the SVdP Executive Director position in Seattle in its 100-year history.
Muñoz-Roach had been the Associate Director of St. Vincent de Paul since May of 2018. She replaces Ned Delmore, who will remain with the agency in a Senior Advisory role. With Delmore’ s leadership, he is credited with developing a new course of community engagement that was inclusive of all of our neighbors and expanding the SVdP image, message, and program outreach throughout King County for the past eight years. He stepped down as Executive Director on Oct. 1, 2019.
Since joining St. Vincent de Paul in 2012, Muñoz-Roach spearheaded major initiatives and strategies across the company’s portfolio of services, most notably the creation of Centro Rendu in 2013 to serve the growing Hispanic/Latino community needs across King County.
Under Muñoz-Roach ‘s leadership, the Centro Rendu program grew exponentially and now serves over 1,000 individuals and families annually, and offers programs for the whole family including ReRoute; an at-risk program that engages middle school students and their families. ReRoute promotes positive values, cultural identity, behavior modification, and academic support. The program keeps kids off the streets and out of the justice system.
St. Vincent de Paul, one of Seattle’s oldest community service agencies, will celebrate its 100 Year Centennial in 2020. The agency now has over 100 employees and serves neighbors in over 50 communities in Seattle and King County. Last year volunteers made over 15,000 home visits, providing neighbors with rent and utility payments to prevent evictions and reduce homelessness.
Muñoz Roach holds a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration with a concentration in Business Management and Human Resources from the University of Florida, and a master’s degree from Seattle University in pastoral studies. For the past 13 years, she has been actively serving immigrant and low-income communities across King and Pierce Counties, forming leaders, promoting equity in education, raising awareness of the housing crisis, and advocating for individuals and families affected by systems that perpetuate inequality and poverty.
Muñoz Roach was recently re-appointed to the Access to Justice (ATJ) board by the Supreme Court of the State of Washington. As an ATJ board member, Muñoz-Roach sits with members from the legal community to discuss topics that affect people living in poverty.