I still miss him. He was a rising star at the Child Care Alliance.  He left us too soon.

Hello,

I just found out about the passing of Jessie,  I remember his beautiful smile, his passion for what he was doing, and making everyone feel important.  God has an ANGEL!!!

23 years ago, Jessie hired me to work at Child & Family Services (now Pathways LA).  At CFS, I gained valuable experience working with him for 5 years. He was a great boss who gave me lots of opportunities for learning and growth, which helped shape my career.  Many of us who have worked for him have shared a similar experience and continued to feel part of his extended work family, many years later.
After I moved on to work at the Child Care Alliance of LA, I continued to work closely with Jessie for another 18 years through our shared committees and meetings.  Throughout all these years he was a leader, always happy to share his knowledge, always willing to help, always thinking of ways to improve our work and improve services to families.  He had a big heart and truly cared about his clients, his staff, his agency, and the Child Care Alliance, which he was a big part of.
By fate, several years ago I ended up moving down the street from Jessie and got a chance to meet his wife and kids, who were his pride and joy.   My more recent favorite memories of him were carpooling to our shared meetings.  We would talk about family, kids, sports, life, work.  I will miss his companionship and his stories, which made those long trips stuck in traffic a lot more enjoyable.
Jessie was a colleague, a mentor, a friend - who I trusted to talk about any work issue – no matter how small, no matter how complicated.  He always made the time to talk to me and offer his valuable guidance.  
I was really heart-broken to learn about his passing and will truly miss him.  I’d like to offer my deepest condolences to his wife, his kids, and his entire extended family.  I hope you find comfort in knowing he had a big impact on a lot of people, myself included.

I met Jessie in 2006 as I started my career with the R&R’s at Pathways.  I am grateful for the gift of working with such a WONDERFUL person, supervisor, mentor, collaborator, and leader.  Jessie’s bright caring spirit shined through every collaboration, from our Pathways events to the Best Start Metro LA and the Magnolia Community Initiative.  I am grateful to have wonderful memories of having lunch with Jessie and talking about how we could work with other community members and how we could make it happen.  Jessie loved technology and I spoke his language, as he shared with me when he tasked me with coordinating the translation of our website in five languages and called me “Kiddo”.  I will honor his legacy by carrying on his kind spirit, caring heart, and commitment to being in the service of others.  My deepest condolences to Jessie’s family, friends, and colleagues.  

I had the honor of meeting Jessie in 1995 when I started as a receptionist at CFS.  From day one he was very welcoming and kind.  He believed in helping people reach their full potential.  He believed in making a difference.  He encouraged me to grow professionally and taught me many lessons.  Although I left CFS many years ago, I took those valuable lessons with me throughout life and will always be grateful for the interactions, laughs, and smiles we shared.  My deepest condolences to his family, friends and colleagues.   He meant a lot to so many and made a difference in so many lives.  

I worked at Pathways for 9+ years, from volunteer to management. Jessie was always working, looking for the latest technology, seeing our potential, challenging us, reminding us to look at the “big picture,” and emailing us reports at ALL hours of the night. After Pathways, I’d see Jessie at the occasional meeting and sometimes as I drove to my sister’s house, (he lived down the street.) Always a smile and a wave! I recently joined a committee Jessie was leading. It was nice to work with him again, hear his voice, his vision, his passion! He always listened and made you feel heard.
I know it goes without saying but Jessie has truly left a huge void. He is responsible for much of my growth, curiosity, and commitment to the childcare field, as well as that of many of my peers. I will always be grateful for Jessie’s leadership, mentorship, and kindness and for him encouraging me to take Excel training and to try public transportation. My condolences to his family. I am sure you know that Jessie made a huge positive impact on many lives. He made a difference.

I met Jessie when I was 25 years old and interviewed for a job at Pathways. He brought a then 6-year-old Nick along to my interview, and I was surprised and pleased to learn that he sought his young son’s input regarding his hiring decision. Nick must have been on my side (thank you, Nick!) because I was hired. Jessie was and remains a mentor to me. He taught me the most challenging way one can — by example. I didn’t get the sense that he tried to be a “good supervisor” or a “leader” — he embodied it. He was himself and who he was was someone I wanted to learn from. During my first few months on the job, I was stressed about some of the responsibilities of my job. After weeks of silent overwhelm, Jessie approached me about my progress. I remember saying something like, “I don’t know much about this, Jessie. I’m not particularly good at it.” His response? “You mean this is an area of growth for you? Great. We’ll hire a consultant to show you the ropes.” And he did. I was given the support to deliver, but more importantly, I had a supervisor who believed in me. Jessie saw potential where others saw deficiency. He trusted my vision for the work long before anyone else did. I remember him saying things like “Go ahead and try it,” “Your idea’s not too big,” “I think your plan could work,” and “You’re doing great with this. You’re ready to do something more challenging.” These types of responses were common during our check-ins. He knew when to step in, when to push, and when to let go. Jessie met people where they were. He talked to you like an equal, like a person worthy of dignity and respect. I grew to respect his leadership not because he was my supervisor. He earned it through the values he lived. I’m grateful to have crossed paths with your husband, your father, your loved one. Know he impacted the lives of others in ways both big and small, and I count myself blessed to have learned from him.

Dear Salazar Family... Jessie was a very special friend of our family here at Crystal Stairs and an incredible colleague for me. His innovative ideas, relentless spirit and desire to get the job done right paired well with my core values. We had a lot in common. But what I remember most was his love for his family. The Dodgers ranked pretty high too but Jessie spoke often about each of you,  with such great pride and joy. I will miss Jessie deeply and pray that you will be comforted in some way by the memories and accomplishments of such a great guy.  

Dear Salazar Family, The Quality Start Los Angeles (QSLA) consortia comprised of the county’s early learning leaders, please accept our most sincere condolences  on your family’s loss. It is with gratitude and honor that we celebrate the life of Jessie Salazar. His legacy to transforming systems in LA County will live on forever because of how he lived his life to better serve children and families. LA County is indebted to your family for sharing such an incredible human with us all. May you find peace in your heart soon. Rest In Peace, Jessie Salazar!

On behalf of the QSLA Consortia 


I met Jessie when we attended Summer Bridge 1989 at Sonoma State University. We were friends through our college years and shared many unforgettable memories. I am so sorry to hear of his passing. Jessie was kind, funny, outgoing and driven. He looked out for his friends and I do not think I ever heard him say any unkind thing to anyone. I am also a good friend and sister to Bertha. It is hard to say the right thing when a wonderful person passes away. The best I can come up with is that I will never forget him. I will keep his memory alive by talking about him and praying for the people he leaves behind. I look forward to someday talking to his children about the young eighteen year old I met and how he met their mother at SSU. Rest In Peace Jesus. Your crazy Chicana friend, Blanca Herrera.

I first interacted with Jessie when he worked in Family Support Services and I worked for CCIS.  He was always kind, gracious, generous with his ideas and time, and very creative and smart.  Last year I met with him in his Executive Director capacity, and he shared with me spreadsheets he had created, and spent time explaining the logic behind them.  Once again, I was impressed with his kindness, compassion, and generosity of spirit.  The world is a better place for his having been in it.  I pray for God's peace and comfort for his family as they grieve the passing of this wonderful man.

I had the fortune of meeting Jessie when I joined Connections for Children about two years ago. He warmly welcomed me to the Resource & Referral community. He was kind, thoughtful and generous with his time—always willing to share his knowledge to help others. Jessie was a model for collaboration and partnership. I appreciate the time we had together on the Board of the Child Care Alliance of Los Angeles as “newbie” Executive Directors and will treasure the kindness and wisdom he shared with me. I send my deepest condolences to Jessie’s family, friends and colleagues. My thoughts are with you during this very difficult time.

I send this message with my sincere condolences. I also want to share a very fond memory I have of Jessie. I mainly accepted the job offer at Pathways because of Jessie. At my interview, his demeanor and words allowed me to feel comfortable, want to join the team, and actually see myself working there. I will forever be grateful for that and for the opportunity to have worked with him. He will be missed, but not forgotten.
Blessings to you and your family. 

I worked with Jesse for many years in my role with the California Child Care R&R Network.  He was such a wonderful man.  Someone who always had a smile on his face and a positive attitude.  He was such an incredible advocate for children and families.
I am so very sorry to hear about his passing and send all my best wishes to his family during this incredibly difficult time. 
May your many warm and wonderful memories give you comfort.
Donita Stromgren

I was honored to have known Jessie as a beloved colleague as part of the Magnolia Community Initiative and Best Start communities.  When I first became Executive Director of LIFT-LA almost 10 years ago, he was one of the first people I talked to to get a lay of the land.  He was so humble, devoted, creative, curious, determined to supporting families.  What a big heart.  His life has certainly touched my own, and that of so many.  He was an impressive man, gentle spirit. He is our ancestor now.  We share in your grief.  May his every memory be a blessing in you.

Jesse was a big smile, a kind heart, an intelligent source, someone you will never forget.  While at Pathways we rode the Metro and I got to share with Jesse---our love of family and the work that we did.  Jesse, Bert. and Nicholas would visit me and I could see the intense love he shared with his family. Jesse's love and passion for his work has given thosands of children, families and providers a well deserved quality of life.  His legacy will live on, in his childten and those he so lovingly served.

Rest dear one, it is well deserved.
Your friend Ellenor 💞

I was so shocked and saddened to hear about Jessie's passing, I can only imagine the pain and loss you feel and my prayers are with you.
I met Jessie in 2000 when working for Hathaway Family Resource Center in Highland Park.  We started work on a First 5 School Readiness grant, with Pathways as a collaborator.  Jessie was positive, hopeful, such a great person to work with, always holding the spirit of keeping the children, families, and community at the forefront of everything he did.  Our paths crossed again when I went to work for Magnolia Community Initiative, he was the friendly face in the crowd. Always welcoming, joyful, and spoke about his kids and family with such pride and love. He will be greatly missed!

Jessie was a great leader fun to work with. He would always participate in every staff event. I was proud to have him as our Executive Director. I am truly going to miss him. It's not going to be the same once we return to the office.

To the family and kids my deepest condolences may God give you strength in this difficult time.
May you rest in peace Jessie.

Sincerely 
Linda ♥

I am heartbroken to learn of the loss of Jessie. Jessie and I have worked in the child care field together since the mid 1990's. We were part of a class of Up and Comers in the State R&R Network in the early 2000's. Jessie had a kind heart and generous spirit. He always greeted me with kind words and a smile, even during really challenging times at work.  

I know how important his family were to him and I share my condolences and prayers for peace for his wife, children and extended family. I know I have old photos somewhere and will post as I find them. 

You are all in the thoughts of the broader child care community statewide. 

Donna

I had the pleasure of working with Jessie for the last 18 years through our work in the child development field in Los Angeles. He was always such a pleasure to work with, a kind and thoughtful human being who also was great at technology! I appreciated his good heart and his drive to make life better for all families as he built his own. I will miss him. 

As the Executive Director of PathwaysLA  from 1998 - 2015, I had the pleasure to supervise and mentor Jesse and see firsthand his growth and maturity throughout the years.  He developed into a successful manager through hard work, perseverance and a commitment to excellence.  Jesse would work until the job was done and would make himself available evenings on weekends  and yes even on his family vacations. I felt confident in my recommendation that Jesse should be the  next Executive Director when there was a change in leadership at Pathways.

Although I did not know Jesse's daughter well, I did know his wife  Bert and their son Nick. Jesse invited me on several occasions to see Nick play football and and I saw how proud he was of Nick's abilities on the gridiron. Jess, a football player himself relived his football days  through Nick. Jess adored Bert and always talked highly of  her as his wife and the mother of their children. Bert is definitely his queen.

Jess, you will be sorely missed and  whenever I think about Pathways  I will think of you and the legacy  you left.  May your soul be blessed by the almighty  and may your loved ones be comforted during these trying times.

Respectfully, 
                   Duane Dennis

Dear Loved Ones, 

It was a true pleasure working with Jessie for the last few years. His unwavering  passion and support for our communities was unmatched. Jessie's  integrity and commitment inspired me to be a better person.  He will be dearly missed. Forever in my heart and forever grateful. 

I first met Jessie when I became President & CEO of the Child Care Resource Center 17 years ago.  Jessie was a passionate supporter of child and families in the Pathways community and also a passionate parent.    We served together on a number of Child Care Alliance of Los Angeles Committees including the data committee, the Stage 1 Child Care Negotiating Committee and more recently on the CCALA Board of Directors.   As the current chair of the CCALA,  I asked Jessie to chair a committee on data and in a few months Jessie made more progress in getting all the agencies to share data than we had made over the past 17 years.  Jessie was well known by many of my staff and many in the ECE community around the state.  He was known as a fighter for the little guys.  He was a dedicated leader and we were all so pleased when he became ED at Pathways.  He brought energy and a wealth of experience that we will all miss.

I met Jessie when we were collaborating on a project for the school linked services a couple of years ago. It was evident that he had so much love and compassion for the community and the partner agencies. He always took care of us when we met at his office. He would buy burritos for us to eat during our meetings, and was so genuine in how he showed his kindness and care for us. We are shocked and deeply saddened by this news. He will surely be missed by many. Sending our most sincere condolences to his family. 

Such a very sad loss.  My thoughts and prayers are with you as you move through these coming difficult months.  Jessie was such a kind, compassionate leader - Bea definitely knew she had hired the right person to work for Child and Family Services (aka Pathways LA).   I will remember his lovely smile and caring  passion for children and their families.  

My condolences to you.

Terry Ogawa

OBITUARY

Jesus E. Salazar

February 20, 1971 – September 2, 2020

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