5th Annual Midwest Latina Conference

Katalina “Kathy” Tinoco, Director of Community Development at Dick Smith Ford and Maria Antonia, a weekend anchor and reporter for KMBC TV, will both be honored at this year’s three-day Midwest Latina Conference. Maria Hinojosa, CNN correspondent, award-winning author, and anchor of “LatinoUSA,” a weekly program on National Public Radio, will be the Conference’s keynote speaker.

Ms. Tinoco will receive this year’s Rising Star Award. Created in 2001 by the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce of Greater Kansas City and MANA de Kansas City, the Rising Star Award annually recognizes a young Latina professional who best exemplifies the traits of volunteerism, community service, and achievement in her chosen profession.

The Ana Riojas Leadership Award, named for a leading Kansas City businesswoman and philanthropist, will be given to Maria Antonia.

The two awards will be formally presented at a luncheon on Friday, August 5 at the Fairmont Hotel on the Country Club Plaza.

Maria Antonia
Ana Riojas Leadership Award Honoree
Each year, the Ana Riojas Leadership award is given to a Latina businesswoman who exemplifies the great traits of the award’s namesake. And, as someone who excels in her career and gives so freely to her community, Maria Antonia seems to be the perfect choice.

As a reporter, Maria has earned numerous professional awards. She has won four Emmys and was also selected by the Radio-Television News Directors Association as the winner of three regional Edward R. Murrow awards. She has received awards from the Missouri Broadcasters association, Association of News Broadcasters of Kansas and the Kansas City Press Club. In March 2003, Maria took local reporting to a new level when she covered the initial stages of the war in Iraq from the deck of the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln.

Maria has also earned awards for her service to the community. Among them: The Heart of Gold Award from the YWCA, a Leadership Award from the Greater Kansas City Hispanic Community and a National Award from the National Bone Marrow Registry, for raising awareness about transplants and the need for donors, through a special series of reports.

Maria has been involved with the Dream Factory, the Guadalupe Center, the United Cerebral Palsy Telethon, El Centro, the Variety Club, and is the first woman to serve as chairperson of the Kansas/Western Missouri March of Dimes, WalkAmerica.

When she’s not at the station or out on a story, Maria can be found in the company of her husband, Tim -- who’s an award-winning photographer at KMBC 9 News - and their sons Tyler and Turner. Both children were nominated for an Emmy for a “Ghost Stories” feature report they produced and reported on Channel 9.

Kathy Tinoco
Estrella en Ascenso (Rising Star) Award Honoree
Kathy Tinoco truly is a rising star and, as such, has been recognized by the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce as this year’s Estrella en Ascenso honoree. “There are so many involved, influential women in this city who deserve recognition. To be among their number and selected to receive this award, is the ultimate compliment. I am honored and flattered.”

Tinoco has resolutely set goals and consistently exceeded her own expectations, including mastering conversational Spanish to better serve her Hispanic clients, first as a district sales manager for Avon Products, Inc. and later as a new vehicle sales consultant at Dick Smith Ford. With the support and encouragement of the Smith family, Kathy set the trend of promoting the dealership and creating event-based marketing programs tailored to the Hispanic community.

Kathy has co-chaired special events, coordinated programs and volunteered for organizations such as the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, the Greater Kansas City Hispanic Heritage Committee, Azteca de Greater Kansas City, the Raytown and Greater Kansas City Chambers of Commerce as well as the American Business Women’s Association.

Kathy has served on the board of MANA de Greater Kansas City and currently serves on the board of the American GI Forum KC Metro Chapter. Recently named one of Dos Mundos newspaper’s 㦅 Up and Coming” honorees, Kathy continues to stay committed and connected and serve as a positive role model for future rising stars.

The proud mother of daughters Angelina, Regina and Lauren, she and her husband, John, make their home in Kansas City north.