RANCHO CORDOVA, CA (MPG) - The City of Rancho Cordova is a diverse community of nearly 80,000 who live here and 65,000 who work here. In fact, Rancho Cordova is one of the most diverse cities in the United States.

The city’s team is also diverse. As we celebrate Black History Month, here are the stories of four of the city’s team members.

Alaina Boutte

Alaina Boutte grew up in New Orleans, Louisiana among a mostly African American, mixed-race community. Whenever Alaina was asked as a child what she wanted to be when she grew up, she always answered an attorney and the “first Black woman president.”

When Alaina was a senior in high school, Hurricane Katrina happened. Her life was turned upside down when a levee near where she lived broke and destroyed her home. Her family decided to move back to Sacramento, which was where her parents had originally met. Her father, a construction worker and Marine Corps veteran, traveled back and forth rebuilding the City of New Orleans and the family home.

Alaina finished out her senior year and enrolled at Loyola University New Orleans and then Sacramento State University. In college, she obtained a position working for the Department of Homeland Security overseeing different TSA checkpoints.

Alaina then joined the City of Sacramento as a Parking Enforcement Officer. She found a mentor in one of the city’s female fire chiefs and became interested in joining the fire service. Alaina became a Reserve Firefighter with the hope of becoming a firefighter, but she sustained an injury that prevented her from doing so.

Alaina then joined the city’s Code Enforcement team and now serves our community as a Code Enforcement Officer II for the Rental Housing Inspection program. The program ensures healthy and safe rental housing for residents in our community.

Alaina also volunteers her time with the NAACP and Sacramento Urban League young professionals.

What does Black History Month mean to you? “Black History Month to me is acknowledging our oppressive history in America, while also recognizing our accomplishments and what we’ve been able to come back from,” said Alaina. “We continue to advance and make history despite our circumstances and the systemic racism that is still present in our country today. I’m very proud to be the first African American female code enforcement officer and International Code Council Certified Building Inspector for the city. I’m also proud of my people’s journey and the journey still ahead.”

RCPD Officer Corey Jackson

RCPD Officer Corey Jackson grew up in Rosemont with a desire to give back to his community. His sixth grade teacher still has the homework assignment where he wrote he wanted to be a police officer when he grew up.

But Officer Jackson’s journey began as a behavioral therapist. He worked at an after-school program with youth and adults with mental health needs, autism, and special needs.

Officer Jackson then joined the Sacramento County Sheriff’s Office to continue doing the same job of supporting those with mental health needs but now in a badge and uniform. He worked in corrections with inmates with mental health and psychiatric needs, before coming to RCPD Patrol.

While responding to calls, Officer Jackson realized there was a need for mental health services, but there was not a Mental Crisis Support Team dedicated to our area. He presented the idea to the leadership, and learned they’d been working on the idea, but were excited by his passion and initiative.

Officer Jackson is now part of the city’s Mobile Crisis Support Team, alongside a County Licensed Mental Health Clinician, that responds to emergency calls to support Rancho Cordova residents experiencing mental health crises. In addition, the team has a County-contracted Peer Navigator that follows up with individuals with potential mental health needs to ensure they are offered support in navigating care systems and linked to appropriate services.

What does Black History Month mean to you? “Black History Month is a great opportunity to learn about great leaders of our past,” said Officer Jackson. “Not only do we learn about well-known leaders, like Martin Luther King Jr. and Jackie Robinson, but we learn about people like Mamie Till (Mother of Emmitt Till) and how her fight helped pushed the civil rights movement.”

Dalia Fadl

Dalia Fadl grew up in the Sudan, a country in northeastern Africa, that she reminisces is very rich with culture from multiple tribes and hundreds of languages and dialects spoken. Her community is welcoming and warm, hard-working and focused on education, and shared what they had with you, even if they didn’t have much.

When political turmoil broke out in the country, Dalia’s family thought there might be better opportunities in another country. Her older brother came to the United States, went to Sacramento State University for his Master’s Degree, and then helped the family move here.

Dalia began attending an adult school to advance her English and fondly remembers her teacher encouraging her not to be afraid of making mistakes and keep talking. She enrolled in Sacramento City College and then transferred to University of California, Berkeley where she graduated with her Civil Engineering Degree.

Dalia worked at the Sacramento County Department of Water Resources and City of Sacramento Department of Utilities before joining the city’s Public Works team. She is a Principal Civil Engineer and oversees the city’s Stormwater Division that protects our waterways.

Throughout Dalia’s journey, she has focused on representing her culture and background by remaining active in the Sudanese community. She also has a passion for showing people that whatever your background, you can succeed and make a difference. Dalia participated in a mentoring program at Sacramento State University, one of her mentees whom she reunited with when she started working at the city.

What does Black History Month mean to you? “Because I always have Sudan in the back of my mind, Black History Month is a time to celebrate my culture and background, and an opportunity to teach others about my country and culture,” said Dalia. “It is also a time to be thankful for where I am at today and look into the future to see how I can be a change agent to help others get to the same place. I feel like it’s my responsibility to make sure those from different backgrounds have opportunities.”

Andrew Thomas

Andrew Thomas grew up in the Oak Park Neighborhood of Sacramento. He remembers it wasn’t the best of areas growing up, and he could have been pulled in a not-so-positive direction.

But in high school, he decided to join student government and then the key club that focused on community service projects, from planting trees to visiting senior living facilities. Andrew was the only African American in the key club. He was elected Vice President his junior year, making him feel like the first Barack Obama of the key club, and then President his senior year.

After Andrew graduated, he was in limbo over whether he should go to college, as neither of his parents had gone. He decided to go into the Job Corps, based on feedback from other family who had gone through, and joined the Security and Investigations Trade. He completed his trade and got a high-level security job alongside retired law enforcement and military.

Andrew then worked at California Independent System Operator, followed by the City of Sacramento in Parking Enforcement, Code Enforcement and Business Compliance. He then joined the city’s team in January as a Code Enforcement Officer.

What does Black History Month mean to you? “You are able to see where we are at now versus where we were before, and the things we are able to do versus what we weren’t able to do. Things have changed so much for the better, but many things still need to change,” said Andrew. “Being Black for me is knowing you’re going to endure some kind of struggle during your life. When you overcome that struggle, because you will, it makes you a stronger person.”

To learn more about how our Rancho Cordova community celebrates and supports diversity, visit CityofRanchoCordova.org/CelebratingDiversity.