Guests at this year’s Dirk and Rachel awards, including our host for the event, Dr. Charles Cole (Center in the right picture)!
As guests mingled and munched on Creole and Cajun food, Dr. Charles Cole, III, took the stage at the 2026 Dirk Tillotson and Rachel Willis-Henry Awards. For Charles, the evening was more than an awards ceremony. It was a sacred space, a connection to his personal history, and his friends (and two fellow co-founders of Families in Action), Dirk Tillotson and Rachel Willis-Henry.
“They were fearless,” Charles said in his opening remarks. “That doesn’t mean they were without fear. It just means that they did the work, regardless.”
This spirit of showing up no matter the obstacles was embodied in every honoree at the Dirk and Rachel Awards, an annual celebration of two iron-willed, unyielding community pillars who left this earth far too early.
The Rachel Willis-Henry Parent Leader Honorable Mention was awarded to Cecilia Perez-Cervantes, a parent leader at Aspire Lionel Wilson and mother of three, who transformed her own engagement to mobilize her community. “I believe in the domino effect,” Cecilia has previously said about her organizing philosophy. “If one person tells two people, and they tell two people, we can reach so many people.”
Gregory Nash (center) with his well earned award!
The Rachel Willis-Henry Parent Leader Award winner, Gregory Nash, a parent leader at Hoover Elementary, characteristically spoke straight from the heart. “FIA saw something in me that I didn’t see in myself,” he said, his voice filled with emotion. He thanked his family, especially his grandson, for being the reason he was up on stage accepting an award.
For the Dirk Tillotson Education Advocate Honorable Mention, Vanessa Sinfuentes, the Deputy Chief of Post-Secondary Readiness at OUSD, framed her work as a sense of duty and purpose. “I never think of myself as an advocate,” she said. “I think of myself as a mom, as a daughter, as a wife, as an educator. I guess when you put all those things together, there’s no other choice but to advocate.”
Vanessa with former OUSD Board member, Jorge Lerma (Image on the left) and Daniel (Image on the right) earning their awards alongside FIA’s CEO and Co-Founder, Kimi!
The Dirk Tillotson Education Advocate Award was presented to Daniel Zarazua, the Executive Director of Alternatives in Action. He captured Dirk’s enduring influence, remarking how he was a regular reader of Dirk’s blog, “It was always about our kids, and these are our children,” he said. He emphasized his similar mission. “I just care about our kids,” he said while accepting the award. “I don’t care what school you go to. Are we serving our youth?”
The Youth Advocate Honorable Mention was earned by Diamond Griggs, a Lodestar student. In an emotional tribute to her family, she honored the personal foundations of her advocacy. “I just want to really appreciate the acknowledgement, but it wouldn’t be without my mom,” she said, noting that what she heard about Rachel during the evening reminded her of the woman raising her.
The Youth Advocate Award went to Luan Nguyen, an Oakland High student. He spoke about channeling personal hardship into advocacy. He expressed gratitude for the leaders who came before him. “I first want to honor Dirk and Rachel for all their work,” he said, “and I hope they are doing well, wherever they are.”
Diamond (left) and Luan (right) accepting their awards!
FIA Executive Director Kimi Kean shared personal memories of Dirk and Rachel and the role they played in an organization they helped build, which is growing in its impact on the lives of students and families in Oakland public schools. “I know they’re here with us tonight, and they’re looking down, and they’re guiding us to the next phase of our impact,” she said.
“We are going to keep showing up for the families of Dirk and Rachel, that’s what we’re going to keep doing.”
All our award recipients (Cecilia not pictured) for the Dirk and Rachel awards!
Guests at this year’s award ceremony!
