MEET JESS RIVAS

I Wasn’t Born in Pasadena, But I Got Here as Soon as I Could
 

One of my earliest experiences in Pasadena was attending Caltech’s Young Engineering and Science Scholars program as a high schooler. Designed specifically to empower women and people of color, the experience was not only personally transformational, but also sparked my love for Pasadena. I fell in love with the walkable neighborhoods, abundant tree canopy, beautiful parks, restaurants, and world-renowned institutions like Caltech and so many others.

When my husband and I began looking for a place to settle and raise a family, we knew Pasadena was where we needed to be. After years of renting, and after a massive rent hike spurred our search for a new home, we were fortunate enough to buy our first home in Washington Square. After a few years we welcomed a baby girl, and a few years after that we wanted to further grow our family, and found a new home in Bungalow Heaven. A baby boy soon followed.

However, our story isn’t our family’s first time in Pasadena. This is the city where my grandfather found his first job in the United States—working as a handyman and window washer at The Langham Hotel (then called the Huntington Hotel). He immigrated from Brazil during the late 1950s and met my grandmother, a Los Angeles Unified School District teacher, whose family arrived from Mexico in the early 1900s. In the 1950s and 60s, my father’s side of the family immigrated from Guatemala and Nicaragua. They all settled in the San Fernando Valley, where they were able to make a better life for themselves, their children, and ultimately for me and my sister.

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Serving Community and Country

The generations before me worked hard to secure the opportunities I’d been afforded, so I wanted to give back by pursuing a career in public service.

After graduating from Princeton University, I chose to become an attorney, enrolling at NYU School of Law. I first joined the California Department of Justice as a deputy attorney general before working as deputy county counsel for the County of Los Angeles. During that time I also served as a judge advocate in the U.S. Army Reserve and attained the rank of major.*

 

Today, I help hardworking public servants protect their futures as an attorney for the Los Angeles County Employees Retirement Association.

In Pasadena, I served on the Northwest Commission and the Commission on the Status of Women. I also became a board member for the Washington Square Neighborhood Association and am currently a member of the Bungalow Heaven Neighborhood Association. I am a member of the League of Women Voters – Pasadena Area and the National Women’s Political Caucus – Greater Pasadena Area. To support our community through philanthropy, I have proudly supported the Pasadena Community Job Center, Union Station Homeless Services, Friends In Deed, Adelante Youth Alliance, Planned Parenthood Pasadena & San Gabriel Valley, and many others.