Raquel Valdez Sanchez

Raquel Valdez Sanchez is passionate about building strong communities by promoting balanced economic opportunities for homeowners, small business owners, and consumers. She has done this through her 20 years of professional and personal work with the statewide nonprofit economic development organization Business & Community Lenders of Texas.

Throughout her career, Raquel has worked directly with over 2650 Texas-based business owners. The economic impact of this effort resulted in $50 million in affordable loan capital deployed, with over 760 new jobs created. In 2014, Raquel collaborated with community-focused partners to provide a small-dollar loan program at the Community Loan Center of Austin and Dallas. Since its inception, the program has made 32 thousand loans, resulting in over $31 million in affordable short-term lending and a 25 million dollar savings in high interest rate fees.

Raquel’s biggest strength lies in her ability to bring together diverse players to build joint efforts through her work with various nonprofit and private sector community development advocates to address Texas’ most pressing economic and social challenges.

Raquel has served with boards such as the Caritas of Austin, Dream Come True Foundation, and the Greater Austin Hispanic Chamber of Commerce. She previously served as Treasurer and Vice President of the Young Hispanic Professionals Association of Austin and Treasurer and Vice President of the I-10 Corridor Association for regional economic development.

Raquel is active in community service as and a Parent Champion and PTA Treasurer at Govalle Elementary. Professionally, she serves on Cadence Banks New Market Tax Credit Committee, NeighborWorks Alliance of Texas as Treasurer, and is Vice Chair of the City of Austin Economic Prosperity Commission.

Raquel, a University of Texas at San Antonio graduate, completed the inaugural Opportunity Fellows Program offered by the Opportunity Finance Network and a Leadership Texas graduate class of 2020. In 2018, Raquel was named as a finalist for the Austin Young Chamber Change Makers Award, the 20th Austin Under 40- Nonprofit Sector, and the YWCA Greater Austin’s Woman of Color Leading Change Award. In 2020, she was named the Individual Volunteer of the Year Award by the Austin Chamber of Commerce and received the GAHCC’s 2023 Gus Garcia Service Award.

Raquel is a 5th-gen Austinite raising her young son, Christian, to love his community and be a servant leader.