Mr. Anselmo Villarreal

Mr. Anselmo Villarreal is the President and CEO of La Casa de Esperanza, a community-based organization dedicated to serving Waukesha’s low-income and Latino population since 1966. With 24 years of experience in non-profit management, Anselmo’s primary responsibility as President and CEO is to provide strategic vision, planning, and direction of the organization under the guidance of the Board of Directors and in line with the organizational mission.

Under Anselmo’s leadership, La Casa has expanded its programs and services to respond to the changing needs of the community. Anselmo’s accomplishments during his tenure as President and CEO of La Casa include strategic planning to ensure efficient service delivery agency wide, vastly expanding community collaborations, leading two successful capital campaigns for a new community center and building renovations totaling $4.8 million, and starting social enterprise projects through the national Denali initiative and Café Esperanza Food Service Training Program. In 2003, Anselmo played a key role in establishing a Foundation Board that is dedicated exclusively to attracting financial support to ensure the future viability of La Casa’s programs and services. In 2006 and 2009, La Casa de Esperanza received the National Council of La Raza / Ford Motor Company Central Affiliate of the Year Award for its exemplary work in serving the community. La Casa’s Children, Family and Youth Program also received the National Council of La Raza / Annie E. Casey Foundation “Family Strengthening Award”, which is given to only four organizations nationwide.

As an emerging leader in the Latino community, Anselmo was selected to participate as a Fellow of the Denali Initiative, an enterprise of Manchester Craftsmen’s Guild, which challenges leaders of non-profit organizations to create and implement a social enterprise within their communities. Anselmo has also completed the Executive Training Program of Stanford University. His service to the Waukesha community has been recognized by the Waukesha County NAACP and Waukesha County Technical College (WCTC) where he received the Community Service Award and Citizen Service Award, respectively.

Dedicated to advancing the well-being of Latinos and building stronger communities, Anselmo Villarreal is a member of several local and national organizations. He serves the Treasurer of the Board of Directors of the National Council of La Raza, the largest national Hispanic civil rights and advocacy organization in the United States. Anselmo also serves as a Board Member for the Alliance for Children and Families, a national organization representing 310 human services in the United States and Canada. Additionally, he serves on the Workforce Development Board and as the Wisconsin Representative of the Advisory Council of the Institute of Mexicans Abroad. He has also served on the Waukesha Area Chamber of Commerce, Mexican and American Solidarity Foundation, the Federal Home Loan Bank of Chicago Advisory Board, National Rural Housing Action Coalition, Southeastern Wisconsin Regional Planning Commission, and American Lung Association, and the Consumer Advisory Council of the Federal Reserve Board.

Anselmo began his career in the federal government of México, the country of his birth and college education. After graduating from the Instituto Tecnologico y de Estudios Superiores de Monterrey in Mexico, Anselmo came to the United States to advance his career by earning a Master’s Degree in Economics from the University of Wisconsin Milwaukee in 1986. Today, Anselmo’s caring begins at home in Greenfield where he resides with his wife of 23 years, Elvira, his 19-year-old son, Roberto and his 13-year old son, Daniel. Anselmo has also begun to pursue a Doctorate in Leadership for the Advancement of Learning and Service at Cardinal Stritch University.