© Latinas in History 2008 |
GARCÍA CORTESE, AIMEE (1929 )
The
activist religious leader, García Cortese was born and raised
in the South Bronx, New York City. Motivated by her Christian faith
in the Pentecostal denomination, she engaged in street evangelism at
an early age, becoming a pioneer in Christian ministry with her ordination
in 1962. García Cortese worked alongside her husband Joseph Cortese
in the Billy Graham Evangelistic Team in Latin America. She served as
a delegate to the First Congress on Evangelism in West Berlin, Germany
in 1966. A community activist, she worked to provide health services
to the needy, and participated in the political arena as an aide to
her brother, then New York State Senator, Robert García.
García Cortese was ordained in the Spanish Assemblies of God Pentecostal Denomination in 1974. She served as the first female chaplain for the New York State Department of Corrections. With the English language Assemblies of God Church, García Cortese formed Crossroads Tabernacle Church in the Bronx. A dynamic speaker, she continues to provide pastoral services and community leadership.
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