As a 911 emergency dispatcher for the city of Los Angeles, Norma’s life changed forever when a Spanish speaker called with an emergency and the person answering the phone couldn’t understand her.

By the time the call was transferred to Norma, all she heard on the other end of the phone was the sound of five bullets hitting and killing a young girl.

This experience inspired Norma, who successfully led the fight to require bilingual dispatchers at the LAPD’s 911 center and went on to make protecting our communities the focal point of her work as a City Councilmember, Mayor and Assemblymember.

Norma got involved in her neighborhood association and established a successful neighborhood watch program. She ran for and won election to the Pomona City Council in 2000, served as Mayor from 2006 to 2008. At the city, Norma fought to make neighborhoods safer, to bring new jobs and improve the local economy, and to improve neighborhoods and protect homeowners.

Norma lives in Pomona with her husband, Louis, and their two sons, Robert and Matt. Her son, Airman Christopher, is currently serving on active duty with the U.S. Air Force.