Forty Under 40: Daisy Bonilla

A public servant looking to empower others, Daisy Bonilla said she’s always had a passion for serving people, especially people from the most vulnerable communities. From Sylmar, Calif., she started a nonprofit at age 15. Now she helps others become successful by overcoming barriers in their lives.

Bonilla’s immigrant grandfather inspires her. He escaped poverty and instilled family values in her. “Aside from work ethic, that’s been my moral compass,” she said.

After graduating in 2008 from the University of California, Riverside, with degrees in U.S. history, media and culture studies and Spanish, Bonilla worked for several nonprofits. Her parents relocated to Northwest Arkansas, so she moved to the area and became the Children’s Safety Center’s bilingual advocate in 2013.

A growing frustration with the judicial process and the realization that policy affects how much nonprofits can accomplish led Bonilla to get her master’s degree in social work, focusing on policy. “When you work in policy, you can effect change in the way laws are written,” she said. While at New York University, she got an insight into government during a fellowship at the New York City Department of Education.

After graduating in 2017, she moved back to Northwest Arkansas, working for Washington Regional Hospital, Circle of Life Hospice and as a licensed clinical social worker at Eason Counseling. In June, she transitioned to private practice, specializing in helping people heal from trauma. She plans to open a nonprofit next year to educate the Hispanic community on the importance of mental health and because of the “gap in accessibility to mental health for LatinX and immigrant communities.”

A trailblazer, in 2020, Bonilla was the first Latina to run for Arkansas State House District 93. Although not elected, she plans to run again in 2022.