Diego F. Maya

Social Entrepreneur • Media Innovator • Community Builder
VISIONARY

Born in Cali, Colombia, Diego F. Maya, known as The Latino Spirit, is a visionary social entrepreneur, media innovator, and community builder whose life reflects extraordinary resilience, discipline, and purpose.

At age seven, Diego was sent to live in Putumayo, near the Amazon, where he attended a Catholic school alongside indigenous children. There, he learned early lessons about cultural diversity, respect, and self-determination. At ten, he emigrated alone to the United States with his mother’s support to live with his uncle in El Paso, Texas. Adopted by his uncle—a U.S. Army serviceman—Diego grew up across military bases in Texas, Germany, and Georgia. He became a U.S. citizen at fifteen, shaped by the values of discipline, respect, and service.

The Athlete and the Dream

Soccer was Diego’s first passion and his earliest path to leadership. By fourteen, he played for Selección Cauca in Colombia, and at fifteen earned All-Central-State team honors in Texas. By sixteen, he played for the U.S. Army’s Ft. Benning team, and at seventeen for the Guatemalan League’s A Division in New Jersey, Mercer County Community College, and in Flushing Meadows Park in Queens—often taking a train from Princeton to Manhattan and then to Queens just to play.

His promising athletic career faced challenges when financial hardship halted his progression. Yet, this unfulfilled dream became the seed of a greater purpose: to open doors for others facing similar barriers.

Education and Early Innovation

Living independently at sixteen, Diego graduated from Princeton High School, continued at Mercer County Community College, and years later earned his B.A. in Business Administration and Computer Information Systems from Rider University with honors (GPA 3.9).

While working 30 hours weekly to pay tuition, he became a pioneer in digital education—helping launch Rider’s first online accounting courses and broadcasting its first virtual graduation, the first of its kind in New Jersey.

After graduation, he developed McCarter Theatre’s first database-driven website through ArtsWeb, a coalition of East Coast performing arts centers. Professionally, he joined Covance Inc., programming multilingual clinical trial systems, and later ThinkCentric, a software consulting firm specializing in corporate digital solutions—laying the groundwork to merge technology, communication, and community service.

Building Bridges Through Media

In 2001, Diego founded MayaSolutionz (I See Digital Media), a groundbreaking media company dedicated to empowering Spanish-speaking communities in New Jersey and Pennsylvania. He launched Hablamos Español™, the first printed Spanish-language Yellow Pages in the region.

What began as a 10-page directory with three advertisers evolved into a 130-page publication with over 100 clients, including Fortune 500 companies—printed in South America and imported to the U.S. for distribution. This milestone positioned Diego as a pioneer in multicultural marketing.

Film, Family, and the Journey to Colombia

In 2008, Diego co-founded Frontera Digital Media, pitching Remedios, a 12-part Latino health television series to the pharmaceutical industry. That same year, he returned to Colombia so his son could experience his roots.

There, he worked at a public university, deepened his expertise in television production, and collaborated with indigenous communities in coca-growing regions—documenting stories of resilience and transformation.

Return to the U.S. and Founding of Latino Spirit Media

Returning to the United States in 2018, Diego launched The Latino Spirit Media, a statewide platform amplifying Latino voices and celebrating leadership. He also established United States Latino Affairs Initiatives (USLAI), a nonprofit organization dedicated to Latino civic integration, education, and empowerment.

Media Leadership and Civic Impact

Diego worked as a consultant for the Statewide Hispanic Chamber of Commerce of New Jersey, where he helped the organization grow by designing media packages for its signature events and producing professional video coverage of major functions.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Diego became the first individual in the nation to interpret and simultaneously broadcast a governor’s daily briefings into Spanish—reaching 1.7 million viewers and ensuring that life-saving information reached Latino families.

From this experience, he developed a new business model and went on to produce bilingual simulcasts of State of the City addresses in Newark and Trenton, and Board of Education meetings in Camden, Vineland, and Trenton—helping thousands of parents engage in civic life.

Community Impact

During the COVID-19 shutdown, Diego distributed over 400,000 pounds of food across New Jersey and Philadelphia—an effort he financed and organized himself with the support of local business owners.

He also shipped COVID-19 materials to Guatemala, Haiti, Colombia, and Puerto Rico, and donated masks to the Passaic County Sheriff’s Office, a Newark nonprofit, and the Trenton Police Department.

He later opened the first U.S. Latino Affairs Office in Paterson, New Jersey, where he managed $350,000 in energy assistance grants (2022–2024). The same office was later awarded a $2 million Lead Remediation Grant (2025–2026) benefiting Passaic County families.

International Humanitarian and Educational Work

Diego founded Hope for Girls – Tejiendo Sueños, a program that empowers survivors of abuse and trafficking in Colombia and El Salvador (with expansion planned in El Salvador) through sewing, recycling, and entrepreneurship—restoring dignity and self-sufficiency for young women rebuilding their lives.

During a natural disaster in Guatemala, Diego traveled with his longtime friend Edgar Esquivel (R.I.P.) to deliver food and clothing to volcano victims—an effort he documented and shared publicly.

In partnership with Google engineers, he launched coding programs for 250+ students across Latin America, organizing the Central and South America Hackathon and Coding with Music sessions that unite creativity and technology—teaching children to code while composing music virtually.

Visionary Projects and Collaborations

• The Latino Index – A yearly published digital hub connecting Latinos with nonprofits, services, and officials. Distributed through phones, emails, and links, it reaches over 100,000 people annually.
• Top Latinos of New Jersey – An annual recognition of Latino leaders guided by international advisory panels of elected officials from New Jersey and Latin America, documenting the achievements and impact of exceptional Latino trailblazers.
• Estamos con Diego F. Maya y Angie – A live broadcast featuring five community leaders each week, empowering audiences to learn about leadership and success stories from around the world.
• A Toy for a Smile, Food on Tables, and Hablamos Tecnología – Humanitarian campaigns supporting children and families throughout the Americas, including Ecuador, Colombia, Guatemala, the Dominican Republic, Honduras, and Haiti.

Enduring Philosophy and Mission

From Princeton to Pereira, from Newark to San Salvador, Diego’s mission is unwavering:

To transform pain into purpose, anguish into opportunity, and hopelessness into dignity.

Every chapter of his life—as athlete, technologist, immigrant, father, and advocate—has been a step toward one unified vision:

To ensure Latinos not only have a voice in America, but the tools, media, and opportunities to shape its future.

www.DiegoFMaya.com

dmaya@uslatinoaffairs.org