Meet Perla Martinez, Our 2026 Pride in Progress Award Winner

For our second ever Pride In Progress Award, we are honored and delighted to celebrate Perla Martinez, M. Ed.  We all likely have known someone whose presence and work brings us together and moves us forward, making connections, strengthening ties, and forging a path for others to follow.  Perla has done all of that and more.  Arriving in the U.S. from Mexico, working as a preschool teacher and launching a childcare business, she came to see, understand and then strive to address the disparities facing immigrants and working class families—something she understood on a personal level.  This eventually led to a career path and professional life focused on making government more accessible, equitable, and just. 

Today, she serves as Deputy Director for Economic Engagement and Community Development for Franklin County Board of Commissioners. For those of you unfamiliar, Franklin County is the largest in Ohio and the seat of the state capital, Columbus. She also serves as the secretary for the National Association of Queer Officials. Locally, her work in these roles has led to stronger relationships between local government and queer organizations—contributing to Franklin County investment in Stonewall Columbus, a leading Pride organization and expanding opportunities and engagement for LGBTQ+ residents and county employees. Nationally, Perla helped establish a partnership between NAQuo and CivicPRIDE, developing new collaboration, networking, and the sharing of ideas between county and municipal leaders.

The Pride in Progress Award recognizes public service professionals for their work to inspire and connect the LGBTQ+ local government community. Perla’s life and work demonstrate this in spades in the way she lifts up and actively moves LGBTQ+ inclusion and leadership forward in local government.  A thousand kudos, some sparkly confetti, bursting rainbows and all of our appreciation to Perla Martinez!