Yolanda was re-elected to the Colorado Springs City Council in April 2021 by the citizens of Southeast Colorado Springs. Now she is running for Senate District 11 to continue serving her community and fight for working families. She works hard to listen to and stand up for the people in her community. It is not unusual for Yolanda to cast a dissenting vote against City policies and ordinances that do not benefit Southeast Colorado Springs. During her 5 years on City Council, Yolanda has learned that change does not come easily. It requires persistence, building trust and coalitions and generating community support. Bringing about change requires more than just making promises.
Yolanda grew up in Colorado Springs the sixth of seven children, and raised her two children, Dulce and Eutimio Garcia here. Her father was stationed at Fort Carson in 1958, and despite several military moves, her mother fell in love with Colorado Springs and they made the city their home.
Yolanda attended every level of education right here in Colorado Springs, starting with kindergarten on base at Fort Carson and ending at Colorado College. She received her Associate of Arts degree from Pikes Peak Community College and graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in Political Economics from Colorado College in 1985. During her time at Colorado College, Yolanda was the director for a Ballet Folklórico dance troupe and she also interviewed migrant workers in the San Joaquin valley.
After college Yolanda spent a few years with community-based organizations in Denver. At the Latin American Research and Service Agency (LARASA) she analyzed census data to evaluate how Latinos fared in education, economic achievement, and health. At MiCasa Women’s Resource Center and Colorado Women’s Employment and Education, Yolanda helped women get off public assistance and into job training programs and/or full time employment with benefits.
Unexpected path led Colorado woman to serve |
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Her dual passion for teaching and criminal defense led to one year in law school, but it was not her calling. In 1990 she landed her dream job as an investigator with the Orange County Public Defender’s office in California. She was also a field supervisor and mentor to the local university seniors.
| Listen to Yolanda’s Story: Latina Voices October 8th, 2016 |
In 1998 Yolanda was diagnosed with retinitis pigmentosa, a degenerative eye disease that has a prognosis of blindness. She was slowly losing her sight and stopped driving in 2000. The initial diagnosis was devastating. She felt like she was at the top of her game and that this disability was the end of her contribution to the community and making a positive difference in people’s lives. She had the experience of living in a world without disability and was not completely aware of the plight that people with disabilities endure. Through much soul searching she came to realize that she was much more than her five senses and could have a positive impact on her family and the larger community. Through her experience she has realized that each and every person is of great value and has much to contribute if only given the opportunity. Yolanda continued to thrive in her work until her retirement in 2011 and her move back to Colorado Springs.
When Yolanda moved back to Colorado Springs to be near her mother Angela Avila, she could not believe how much the city had changed, with the lack of accessibility in public transit, walkable sidewalks, and safe crossings at roads. She immediately became involved with transit organizing, began speaking at city council meetings and was invited by the Independence Center’s CEO to join their advocacy efforts. Yolanda was elected to City Council in April 2017. Since that election, an unprecedented amount of infrastructure construction, including roads, bridges, sidewalks and ADA ramp construction has occurred. She is thrilled that the Airport Road at Spring Creek Bridge will be completed in June 2021, which will provide an amazing, accessible pedestrian walkway. The Circle/I-25 bridges are currently under design as well with input from student ambassadors at Harrison High School. As there hasn’t been an Urban Renewal Authority Project in Southeast, she has been championing this effort and the district will now have two such projects in 2021. Avila is a resident leader of the R.I.S.E. (Resilient, Inspired, Strong, Engaged) Southeast Coalition, which sponsors activities for projects in Southeast and is currently spearheading the Panorama Park initiative. Avila currently serves on the El Paso County Board of Health, where she shapes the response to the COVID-19 pandemic. She recently hosted a COVID-19 GRIT training summit to assist her residents in coping with the trauma and accessing services. She is an alumna of:
- 2020 Women of Influence
- 2019 Senior Executives in State and Local Government course at Harvard Kennedy School of Government
- 2015 Leadership Pikes Peak Signature Program
Yolanda’s guide dog Puma accompanies her to the many boards, commissions, and committees where she serves gratefully as both a City Councilmember and a CSU board director.
