Theresa Eleanor "Terry" Roderick-Alderete (May 17, 1945 in

San Jose, California San Jose, officially San José (; ; ), is a major city in the U.S. state of California that is the cultural, financial, and political center of Silicon Valley and largest city in Northern California by both population and area. With a 2020 popul ...

– March 21, 2013 in

Newark Newark most commonly refers to: * Newark, New Jersey, city in the United States * Newark Liberty International Airport, New Jersey; a major air hub in the New York metropolitan area Newark may also refer to: Places Canada * Niagara-on-the ...

, California) was an American businesswoman from the

Bay Area The San Francisco Bay Area, often referred to as simply the Bay Area, is a populous region surrounding the San Francisco, San Pablo, and Suisun Bay estuaries in Northern California. The Bay Area is defined by the Association of Bay Area Gov ...

. After working for Pacific Bell for thirty years, she started her own consulting business which organizes events for Bay Area non-profits. She was inaugurated into the Alameda County Women's Hall of Fame in 2012.

Personal life and education

Terry Alderete was born in the

. Her mother and aunt were migrants from

Jalisco, Mexico Jalisco (, , ; Nahuatl: Xalixco), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Jalisco ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Jalisco ; Nahuatl: Tlahtohcayotl Xalixco), is one of the 31 states which, along with Mexico City, comprise the 32 Political d ...

. They came to the United States in 1922 and her mother started ironing clothes in

Los Angeles, California Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

. Her father migrated, in 1910, from

Cebu, Philippines Cebu (; ceb, Sugbo), officially the Province of Cebu ( ceb, Lalawigan sa Sugbo; tl, Lalawigan ng Cebu; hil, Kapuroan sang Sugbo), is a province of the Philippines located in the Central Visayas region, and consists of a main island and 167 ...

. Her parents met and moved to Newark, California, and worked as migrant workers. After saving enough money, they started their own

strawberry The garden strawberry (or simply strawberry; ''Fragaria × ananassa'') is a widely grown hybrid species of the genus '' Fragaria'', collectively known as the strawberries, which are cultivated worldwide for their fruit. The fruit is widely ap ...

farm. Her father died when Alderete was four. Alderete graduated from Newark High School with honors. After high school, she attended

San Jose State University San José State University (San Jose State or SJSU) is a public university in San Jose, California. Established in 1857, SJSU is the oldest public university on the West Coast and the founding campus of the California State University (CSU) sys ...

. She intended on studying

medicine Medicine is the science and practice of caring for a patient, managing the diagnosis, prognosis, prevention, treatment, palliation of their injury or disease, and promoting their health. Medicine encompasses a variety of health care pract ...

, but, received her B.S. degree in recreation. Terry had two children and lived in Newark, California.

Professional career

After graduating from San Jose State University, Alderete started working at Pacific Bell. She worked there for twenty-nine years. She started as a phone operator and left the company as Ethnic Marketing Director. Alderete started working for the Unity Council in Oakland. After retiring, she started her own consulting business, Alderete Business Visions, in 1998. The company organizes events for Bay Area

Hispanic The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or Hispanidad. The term commonly applies to countries with a cultural and historical link to Spain and to Vic ...

non-profits such as the Dia de los Muertos in

Oakland Oakland is the largest city and the county seat of Alameda County, California, United States. A major West Coast port, Oakland is the largest city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area, the third largest city overall in the Bay A ...

, the

Carnaval Carnival is a Catholic Christian festive season that occurs before the liturgical season of Lent. The main events typically occur during February or early March, during the period historically known as Shrovetide (or Pre-Lent). Carnival typi ...

in San Francisco, and the

Mariachi Mariachi (, , ) is a genre of regional Mexican music that dates back to at least the 18th century, evolving over time in the countryside of various regions of western Mexico. The usual mariachi group today consists of as many as eight violins, t ...

Festival in San Jose.

Volunteerism

Alderete has served as Director of the California Hispanics Chamber of Commerce and has been active in the organization since 1988. She is the former President of the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce of Alameda County. Terry was also the Director of the Newark Rotary and was also involved in the Ohlone College Foundation, the

Fremont Symphony Orchestra The Fremont Symphony Orchestra was established in Fremont, California as a community orchestra in 1964 and was first called the "Fremont Philharmonic" and later the "Fremont-Newark Philharmonic Society." History The Fremont Philharmonic Society wa ...

, and the

San Francisco Foundation awards San Francisco Foundation is a San Francisco Bay Area philanthropy Philanthropy is a form of altruism that consists of "private initiatives, for the Public good (economics), public good, focusing on quality of life". Philanthropy contrasts with ...

Notable awards

*''Congressional Recognition Award'', Congresswoman Barbara Lee *''Hispanic Heritage Hero Award'',

Oakland Raiders The Oakland Raiders were a professional American football team that played in Oakland from its founding in 1960 to 1981 and again from 1995 to 2019 before relocating to the Las Vegas metropolitan area where they now play as the Las Vegas Raide ...

*''Maria Arias Memorial Business Fund Award'', 2005, ''

Latina Style Magazine Latina or Latinas most often refers to: * Latinas, a demographic group in the United States * Latino (demonym), a term used in the United States for people with cultural ties to Latin America. * Latin Americans Latina and Latinas may also refer ...

'' and Wells Fargo Bank *''Telemundo T48 Business Salute Award'', Telemundo *''Woman of the Year'', Senator Liz Figueroa *Inductee, 2012, Alameda County Women's Hall of Fame

Death

She died on 21 March 2013 in Newark of cardiac arrest. Remembering Terry Alderete: A real person, a real role model
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References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Alderete, Terry American women in business People from Newark, California San Jose State University alumni People from San Jose, California 2013 deaths Businesspeople from the San Francisco Bay Area 1945 births 21st-century American women