Elmy Bermejo has been an active volunteer member of the FoundationCCC’s Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Board Advisory Committee since June 2022. At the regular meeting in September 2022, the FoundationCCC Board voted unanimously to recommend Elmy Bermejo’s appointment as a member of the FoundationCCC Board, for ratification by the Board of Governors. 

Elmy Bermejo is an experienced government and civic leader with a passion for building, connecting, and strengthening relationships to assist people and organizations in achieving their goals. She has been a senior government official with more than 25 years of experience in executive-level management, strategic planning, policy development, and advocacy. She has a successful record of collaboration with public and private stakeholders on a range of issues including paid leave, disaster relief, and small business. 

Elmy recently served as a Senior Advisor and Outreach Director for Lt. Governor Eleni Kounalakis, the first woman ever elected to this position in California. She previously served in President Barack Obama’s Administration as the Regional Representative for the Secretary of Labor in the Western United States and as Director of Intergovernmental Affairs in Washington D.C. Her public service includes working for several elected officials including Retired CA State Senators John Burton and Don Perata, former Congressmembers Lynn Woolsey and Mel Levine, and the late U.S. Senator Alan Cranston. During her tenure serving in federal appointments, she had the opportunity to work with the California Community Colleges to help cultivate and build bridges between colleges' goals and small businesses.

Elmy is currently the Regional Administrator for the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) where she oversees programs, offices, and operations in the SBA’s Pacific region, serving California, Guam, Hawaii, and Nevada. She is also the President of the San Francisco Commission on the Environment, serves on the board of The Beneficial State Foundation, is an Advisory Member of Hispanas Organized for Political Equality (HOPE), and is a founding member of the Emily’s List Latina Advisory Council and EMERGE, an organization that trains Democratic Women to run for local office. Elmy previously served on the California Commission on the Status of Women and is a recipient of the Dolores Huerta Woman of Courage Award from the US Hispanic Leadership Institute.

Elmy’s family owns Tommy’s Mexican Restaurant, a well-known and beloved San Francisco institution for more than 50 years. There she gained valuable insights and sensitivity to the challenges small business owners face, many of whom are immigrants. Her wealth of experience, her innate ability to cultivate strong relationships, and her passion for helping organizations achieve their goals will be strong assets to the Foundation Board.