Mireya and Nisha are partnering with the Aurora Public Library District Foundation to offer Financial Literacy training workshops for girls ages 16 to 19.

Meet Mireya Luna

Mireya Luna is employed by the First National Bank of Omaha (FNBO) and has served as a community mortgage lender for more than four years. Before taking on her role at FNBO, Mireya worked for the nonprofit, Family Focus, in community support services.

She volunteers her time in the community by serving on the APLD Foundation board of directors, helping to raise awareness and funding for projects at the Aurora Public Library. She said she came to Aurora in 2001 from Los Angeles and has loved living in a close-knit community.

“Aurora gave me a small town feeling while being close to the City (of Chicago). No traffic! I love experiencing the seasons and the friendly people. Aurora is a very community-oriented city,” she said.

While Mireya can help any customer with their mortgage, her target audience is low to moderate income buyers. “The idea behind my role was to help revitalize the community. I get the opportunity to get involved in the community. It is my personal mission to contribute to the well-being of others. I believe we should work together to make the world a better place,” Mireya said.

One way Mireya helps achieve this goal is by offering community education opportunities in financial literacy. “The opportunity to empower young women early on is so crucial. Young women of color often come from families that struggle with resources. They often hear, “We can’t afford that,” and that creates a scarcity mindset, versus, “How can I make money work for me,” Mireya said.

Meet Nisha Floyd

Nisha Floyd has served on the board of directors for the Aurora Public Library District Foundation since 2018 when she took on the role of Community Development Relationship Manager at Woodforest National Bank. Her territory covers Illinois, Indiana and North Carolina, and it is her job to ensure that where their banks are located, their employees are involved in the community.

Prior to banking, Nisha worked for the Women’s Business Development Commission where she ran the entrepreneurial program through the Aurora Chamber of Commerce. She said she developed a financial literacy program for young women and liked the idea of offering similar training to high-school aged girls who may have an interest in it.

“Our hope is that we can show girls how to create a budget, identify needs versus wants, make connections and talk about careers in banking.”

Nisha said she likes serving on the board at the APLDF for several reasons.

“I like the diversity of people on the board and the impact we have on the community. People don’t always know about the work the Foundation does, but we are doing so much good. My personal mission is, ‘how can I help my community’.”

How they Are Partnering

Mireya and Nisha are partnering with the Aurora Public Library District Foundation to offer Financial Literacy training workshops for girls ages 16 to 19. This project is funded by a grant from the AWE Foundation for the purpose of making a lasting impact on young women and girls in at-risk demographic groups within Aurora. These one-day seminars are intended to reach young females, from diverse backgrounds who may not have access to essential information about finance, budgeting, building credit, home ownership and other topics. Information that will allow them to achieve their financial goals and grow as productive members of the community.